More discoloured water - fit for drinking, not washing clothes
31 January 2020
Crews on call over weekend to flush mains in affected areas
Tweed residents are advised that the discoloured water issue is likely to escalate and continue over the weekend. The discoloured water is a result of recent rains flushing high levels of naturally occurring iron and manganese into the Tweed River.
While the water is unsightly, it is fit for drinking. However, it should not be used to wash clothes, particularly light-coloured clothes, as it may stain them.
“The levels of manganese in the weir pool are extraordinarily high,” Manager Water and Wastewater Anthony Burnham said.
“These elevated levels of mineral are a result of the recent intense rain washing a lot of organic matter into the waterways, which has then drawn on the dissolved oxygen levels as it decays.
“The dissolved oxygen level in the weir pool is now very low, exacerbating the minerals issue as the manganese and iron is dissolved and not in its usual particle form, making it harder to remove.”
Council is now drawing water from the top layers of the weir pool, where the water quality is better.
Removing iron and manganese from the water during the treatment process is finicky and requires constant fine-tuning of the treatment process.
“Our water treatment process was unable to achieve that fine balance yesterday and the discoloured water is now more widespread throughout the reticulated water network,” Manager Water and Wastewater Anthony Burnham said.
“Check your tap water by filling a small white-coloured container. If it’s coloured anything from a dark browny red to a light yellow, please do not wash your clothes in it … and if you already have don’t let them dry as the drying process fixes the stain. Soak your clothes again and then treat as directed with a citric acid product, available at most supermarkets.”
Residents with discoloured water are asked to contact Council on (02) 6670 2400 and crews will attend to flush the mains in affected areas. Calls to report discoloured water can also be made over the weekend.
“Now that the discoloured water is in our system we literally have to let it work its way through and out.
“We are in the fortunate position, however, that despite being on Level 2 water restrictions the Tweed River is flowing over Bray Park Weir so we can flush the mains without running down our limited storage supply of Clarrie Hall Dam, which is at 81.4 per cent capacity.”
For more information on discoloured water and how to treat laundry, please visit https://www.tweed.nsw.gov.au/WaterQuality