Mr Joyce, who is chairman of Prime Minister Abbott’s Dams Task Force Committee, said he had been charged to identify and promote potential dam sites around the nation to improve water storage capacity and generate vital infrastructure programs.

“The last major agricultural dam constructed in NSW was Split Rock completed near Manilla in 1987,” he said.

He said the Apsley River project, east of Walcha, had been identified by the NSW Electricity Commission in 1983 to supply water for hydro electricity generation. The project also had the capacity to lift water back across the Dividing Range by way of a series of tunnels and pipelines to put water into the McDonald River which would then flow into the Murray Darling Basin. 

Mr Joyce said a deadline to deliver a list of proposed dam projects to Prime Minister Abbott was “just a few weeks away”.

“In this electorate I have been looking at the Apsley River proposal, Mole River in the north of the New England Electorate and just across the border, the Emu Creek dam proposal near Stanthorpe,” he said. 

“Our nation is going to get forced to build dams in any case. In 1980 we were able to store 4.5 megalitres of water per person.

“Now it is 3.5Ml per person we’ll be at 2.5Ml per person by 2050, which is way below where it needs to be. 

“On 30 June data was released stating the nationally stored amount of water was 60 per cent behind the same time 12 months ago.” 

However Mr Joyce said the projects likely to be most successful would move to the point of greatest participation, with support from the government and the community.

“We will have the money, it’s just the money will get spent with the people who want to work with us in spending it,” he said.

“We’re not going to build some quasi upgrade; we want to build big new dams.

“I’m absolutely prepared for the fight. The fact is 30 per cent of the people will go apoplectic at the thought you would dare to dam a stream.” 

Mr Joyce said generally the fights found when building a dam were many and varied.

“Conservationists don’t want you to build dams because they don’t like it. 

“The established bureaucracies don’t want you to build dams because they find them too much work. 

“State governments don’t want to build dams because of the political ramifications of an extensive campaign by the Green movement on urban seats.

“There is just a general inertia - you have to break through.

“But the peculiar thing is, when you walk down the street, everybody wants you to build them. They just don’t coordinate in groups in such a way as to mitigate the effects of bureaucracy inertia, greens recalcitrance and initial funding requirements.

“The natural path of inertia is the greatest threat in nation building. We have created so many protections it’s protected us from doing anything. 

“But we’re going to do it,” he said.