Council to pay back rates to clear water woes

Clermont residents to get cash back to compensate for a deluge of dirty water

Resident Jess Walsh holding a glass of the discoloured water Clermont residents have had to endure for weeks. Photo: Zizi Averill

CLERMONT residents will be compensated for the dirty water which stained clothes and sinks for weeks.

Isaac Regional Council voted to apply a remission of water usage charges for Clermont residents in the wake of the discoloured water issue.

The remission may finally clear the frustration felt by Clermont residents, after putting up with orange-brown water trickling from their taps for weeks.

Chief executive officer Gary Stevenson said the remission would give back the equivalent of 17 days of water and infrastructure charges to Clermont properties.

SOCIAL MEDIA IMAGE DISCUSS USE WITH YOUR EDITOR - Clermont residents continue to experience discoloured water as a result of elevated levels of manganese and iron in Theresa Creek Dam. The orange-brown water has stained clothes and sinks.

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But this relief would not be immediate.

Mr Stevenson said the financial adjustments would come into play in the next bill, issued in the 2020-21 financial year.

At the last meeting, councillors decided the severity, length and large number of affected homes was sufficient to "trigger" the 'Extraordinary Circumstances Policy'.

This was not the first time Isaac residents have been paid back their water bills, Mr Stevenson said.

Residents who have questions about their charges can phone [phone].

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