Central Coast’s water quality unaffected by bushfires according to council
It’s the most important resource on the Central Coast and there’s good and bad news for residents in the aftermath of a huge bushfire and the ongoing drought.
Central Coast
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Central Coast Council has assured residents the region’s water supply has not been affected by recent bushfires.
At the height of the blazes, the coast’s largest water supply Mangrove Creek Dam, was ringed by the Three Mile fire and down wind of the huge Gospers Mountain inferno, which continues to burn in the Wollemi National Park.
However council has assured residents and visitors the quality of the region’s drinking water has “not been affected by the bushfires”.
“The Mangrove Creek Dam catchment has been affected by recent bushfires,” council said in a statement.
“Council staff are already implementing recovery plans to reduce the impacts of ash and erosion. This includes installing erosion and sediment controls around the edges of the dam and monitoring and testing the quality of water entering and exiting the treatment plant.”
Council said heavy smoke, which has blanketed much of the coast on and off since late last year, would not affect the water quality.
“The Somersby water treatment plant is able to treat the effects of the bushfire and council staff continuously monitor treated water quality to ensure it meets the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines,” council’s statement continued.
It comes as the region hurtles towards Level 1 restrictions with total water storage sitting at just 51.1 per cent.
The trigger point for restrictions is when Mangrove Creek Dam reaches 50 per cent.
Mangrove Creek Dam is sitting at 51.4 per cent while the much smaller dams at Mooney Mooney and Mardi Creek are at 46.4 per cent and 44.8 per cent respectively.
In the absence of any significant drenchings the region’s water supply has plummeted by almost a quarter in the past two years, down from a high of 75.54 per cent in April 2017.
