Council tackles dirty water

Gosford Council will flush water mains in the Pearl Beach area on February 22 and will follow this with air scouring of mains around Woy Woy.

Reducing "dirty" water in the water supply system was a top priority for Gosford Council's water and sewerage section this year, according to a recent council report.

Discolouration of water supplies, otherwise known as "dirty" water, was a major problem faced by all major water utilities in Australia, especially during the summer months, according to the report.

Director of Water and Sewerage Mr Rod Williams said council had begun a major mains cleaning campaign to reduce the water discolouration problems currently being experienced around the Central Coast.

"Gosford Council carried out a targeted mains cleaning pilot in 2005," Mr Williams said.

"Due to the success of the initial pilot program, a comprehensive mains cleaning campaign is now being put in place for areas frequently affected by discolouration.

"The campaign will start on February 22 with a mains flushing project in the Pearl Beach area, followed by an air scouring program around Woy Woy.

"The campaign will initially focus on the Peninsula before being rolled out to other areas of Gosford."

Mr Williams advised residents that any existing discoloured water in the system may be stirred up by the air scouring program but assured residents that the effects were temporary.

"Any residents affected by the mains cleaning program will be advised before the operation starts in their street," Mr Williams said.

"Any discolouration appearing as a result of the air scouring program will be short term and should be remedied as part of the mains cleaning campaign," Mr Williams said.

Mr Williams also assured residents that discoloured water was free from contaminants.

"Gosford City's water supply is treated and extensively monitored to ensure complete removal of any contaminants that pose a health risk," Mr Williams said.

"This treatment and monitoring process confirms that, at all times, the water supply meets the National Health and Medical Research Council's drinking water quality guidelines."

Mr Williams said water discolouration problems, particularly on the Peninsula, were due to a number of factors such as trace elements causing accumulation of iron and manganese particles within the water supply system and that these particles tended to collect at the end of the system in areas such as Woy Woy.

"The problem can be annoying, especially over summer as the warmer weather and greater water use increase occurrences, but residents can be assured that this does not pose any health risk," Mr Williams said.

"Other recent initiatives by council to improve water quality include the installation of an aeration system in Mangrove Dam in 2004 and additional pre-treatment of water at the Somersby treatment facility in 2005".

Mr Williams said the Water Services Association of Australia has also been investigating this problem on behalf of all major utilities in an effort to find practical and cost effective solutions.

Press release, February 8 Laura Clyne, Gosford Council