Darlington Point residents were surprised to find murky drinking water when they turned on their taps last week, which followed an E. coli outbreak in March.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Concerned resident James Tongue claimed Murrumbidgee Council flushed the water supply with little warning, sparking suspicion.
“It raises more questions in my mind about the quality of the town’s water,” he said.
“Why were they in such a hurry to flush the system.”
However, Murrumbidgee Council general manager Craig Moffitt said the outbreak and cloudy tap water were unrelated.
“Flushing of water mains in Darlington Point is a routine maintenance process and is not a result of (the) drinking water ‘boil alert’,” Mr Moffitt said.
When Mr Tongue contacted council about the quality of the water they told him flyers weren’t printed quickly enough.
“Normally they would give us a week’s notice so we could stock up on drinkable water,” he said.
“I think it is time to seriously consider a water treatment plant.”
Mr Tongue had concerns about the level of communication coming from council following last year’s amalgamation. Since the merger took place he felt as if Darlington Point had been “pushed to one side”, citing issues like water quality.
“We have been having problems similar to this ever since the bore went down about a decade ago,” he said.
“I just wonder what happens if one day something gets into the water supply undetected. There would be a massive health crisis in the town.”
Mr Moffitt said council had recently embarked on an asset condition assessment, including water and sewerage systems for Darlington Point.