Not Money Down the Drain

The Wiruka Country Times

Letters to the Editor

Not money down the drain!

Dear Sir,

The quality of water in Wiruka has been disgusting for years. At long last our Council is considering taking action to help improve the water quality of its 40-year-old water mains by using a new coating method to line the pipes. At last, we won’t be filling our sinks with pipe rust. With the quality of the water now so bad that some days it is impossible to see the bottom of the bath, this decision certainly won’t be money down the drain!

Ann Brown

Pipes with a silver lining?

Dear Sir,

Am I the only person in Wiruka who thinks that it’s a ridiculous waste to be spending over $3 million so that we can all have a whiter wash three years from now? After so many years of drought the priority for our hard-earned funds should be water conservation and reuse, not plastic coating our pipes. What’s wrong with just using rainwater?

C. Spiros

Filter please

Dear Sir,

For years we have had water that was not suitable for drinking, which is not unusual in an isolated country town. Now it is so bad that you really have to wonder if using it for washing or bathing is actually making things dirtier. The council’s decision to act to remedy the problem is to be applauded, but the anticipated $3 million cost when there are fewer than 600 ratepayers is a major concern. And dirty pipes are only part of the problem. Surely the council should be looking at

the big picture of the quality of water entering our town’s supply in the first place? Water quality will only be improved when all reasons for the water discolouration are considered, including the fact that our water source, the river, is discoloured to start with.

If money is to be spent, it should be spent on filters that will address both problems. Natural sand filters, for example, can remove sediment and water discolouration. If council were to assist and subsidise ratepayers to construct household filters, it would cost a lot less than the $5,000 per affected rate payer. Alternatively a sand filtration plant at the point of delivery would also remove the discolouration that is in our water before it even reaches our town’s pipes.

Felicity Ng

Let’s get it right

Dear Sir,

The quality of the water in our region is a disgrace and it’s about time our local government moved into the 21st century, instead of looking for bandaid solutions. It’s true that we get a bit of sediment and discolouration from pipes, but until we have access to filtered water in the first place, the water will continue to be discoloured, particularly in summer. Cities and many country towns have had access to filtered and treated water for a long time. We have the opportunity and money to improve the quality of our water, and it needs to be spent wisely. Lining or even replacing the metal pipes will not be as effective as filtering the water from the holding tanks. Let’s do it once and do it right!

N. Dowd