Fleurieu Peninsula residents getting ‘sick’ from mains water from Myponga Reservoir

Residents from three Fleurieu Peninsula towns say their mains water is making them sick – but authorities insist it meets Australian standards.

Fleurieu Peninsula residents say they are getting sick – some with headaches and rashes, others with diarrhoea – from drinking and bathing in mains water supplied from Myponga Reservoir.

However, authorities say regular testing shows the water meets Australian standards and they insist it is safe to drink and use.

SA Water began disinfecting water supplied to 3000 households in Yankalilla, Normanville and Carrickalinga with chloramine in March.

Prior to this, chlorine was used.

The switch was made because the chlorine had been reacting with leaves, soil and sediment in the water, creating Trihalomethanes which had, at times, exceeded the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

Yankalilla resident Hanna Law, 67, said when SA Water started using chloramine to treat the water, she became very ill after showering in it.

“I broke out in a rash – my arms were just an open mess,” she said.

“I had a chronic, constant headache where I just felt really ill all the time.”

Ms Law, who also said her eyes began stinging, said the water emitted a strong chemical smell.

She went to her doctor who prescribed cortisone ointment and paracetamol, and began using rainwater instead of mains water.

She said after she switched to rainwater, her symptoms disappeared.

Other people in the area had suffered prolonged diarrhoea, burning eyes and other illnesses, Ms Law said.

“(One woman) ended up really ill from the fumes in the water (when having a bath),” she said.

“Other people have reported being really sick and having to go the doctor.”

Animals had also been affected.

“Lots of people lost their fish,” Ms Law said.

“(There’s) reports of dogs getting sick and refusing to drink the water.”

Mawson MP Leon Bignell called for an independent investigation into the matter.

“We just want some answers – people aren’t making this stuff up,” he said.

“If it’s not (the chloramine), have they increased doses of something else or put other chemicals in as well?”

Concerns have been raised about water being supplied to three Fleurieu Peninsula towns.

Greens MLC Tammy Franks agreed.

“There are clear signs of something wrong here,” she said.

“If people affected are being driven so far as to rely on having to buy bottled water for washing because of the symptoms they’ve been experiencing, then the least they deserve is for full disclosure from the Water Minister as to what is going on here.”

SA Water’s senior manager for water expertise and research, Dr Daniel Hoefel said the organisation’s comprehensive routine water monitoring and testing continued to demonstrate the water being supplied to the towns meets the Australians Drinking Water Guidelines.

Dr Hoefel said SA Water had received feedback from four residents in relation to health concerns and referred them to their GP or SA Health for advice.

“We will continue to work with local residents on any questions regarding their new water supply and encourage them to contact us directly on 1300 SA WATER,” he said.

SA Health said in a statement that chloramine had been added to drinking water in parts of SA since the early 1980s and is used in water supplied to more than 220,000 people in the state.

“Similarly to chlorinated water, a limited number of individuals may experience skin irritation from chloraminated water and anyone with concerns should always seek medical advice from their GP or healthcare provider,” the statement read.

Water Minister David Speirs said SA Water had been working to improve water quality and aesthetics for residents on the Fleurieu Peninsula for several years and testing had shown it was now of an “extremely high standard”.

“Hundreds of thousands of residents across South Australia have already been transitioned to the new process with 99.9 per cent happy with the changes,” he said.