ABC web site or SMH read this morning China has built a channel over 14.000 long? surely 1.400? to bring water to its place it will be used we can if we want do it in small steps or as we did in the Snowy in big ones we plant trees we will not live long enough to see grow, at least I do, we can if we start get this done

That's right Belly. Start to get it done like China did one day.
Interesting numbers here for water historians too.
But this is about a pipe whereas I am suggesting aquduct.

http://www.theatlantic.com/amp/article/284300/

JF Aus think, but not sure the China one is as you are talking about let us hope we can starting thinking of the future in this matter not just the costs

Beyond the Great Dividing range are natural water courses where the tropical wet season monsoonal water runs towards lake Eyre. They should be utilised & where possible prevent water running off to waste. A series of small dams or containment channels would be needed but technically that would be insignificant.

Belly,
Correct. The Chinese system uses pipes whereas I suggest steel aqueduct.
But look at what the Chinese have achieved while we have done virtually nothing lije that.
Australian tall poppy syndrome knockers come to mind.

Individual,
Despite its harsh nature, Lake Eyre has a fragile ecosystem that I would not like to touch, except by adding some water if excess was available.

I think it best to harvest water up north but also from high slopes on the eastern side of the Great Dividing Range, and use tunnels to run it downhill into holding dams and aqueduct on the western side.

Eastern rivers often flood and/or send too much water out to sea. It's that lost volume that could be harvested off the top of the catchment, and that harvest should be under remote control so as not to deprive already existing water users downstream on the eastern rivers.

JF Aus,
As I have stated before, the run-off from built up area has become so massive now that it affects the oceans. Much of this run-off was previously contained underground & taken up by plants/trees. It has now caused a severe unbalance & if at all possible should be reversed by redirecting it beyong the Great Dividing range. Ever large coastal settlement should have collection dams for run-off from whence it could be pumped by windmills to where it is needed & does no damage ecologically. It is not an insurmountable over-ambitious task, it's just not sexy enough for the ivory tower elites. Cost would be recouped by new settlemnts along it's route. It certainly would give the Great Barrier Reef a new lease on life.