Gold Coast: Urgent warnings after ‘catastrophic’ leak pumped 350million litres of sewage into Albert River
The spill of 350 million liters of raw sewage into a river has sparked health fears over the consumption of fish, crabs and shrimp taken from the water.
Pollution of the Albert River on south-east Queensland’s northern Gold Coast has been called ‘catastrophic’ after a sewage pipe in a paddock near Macpherson Road at Yatala was found to be leaking into the waterway two weeks ago.
Although the City of Gold Coast Council quickly repaired the pipe, it is estimated that about four megalitres of sewage per day has been flowing into the river since mid-January.
That’s equivalent to about 140 swimming pools of Olympic-sized sewage going into the Albert and then further into the Logan River.
There are concerns about fish, shrimp and crabs being taken from a river contaminated by a major sewage leak
The council has warned residents and visitors not to consume ‘seafood caught in the tidal areas of the Albert or Logan Rivers’ until further notice.
However, they said ‘microbial testing’ has shown the rivers, which are popular with swimmers and water skiers, are safe for recreational use.
However, the city council seemed to distance itself from this and said that the incident had to be investigated ‘in its entirety’.
Shrimp farms along the waterways are testing whether the crustaceans are safe to eat.
Gold Coast councilor Mark Hammel is amazed this could happen.
“How can it happen that such a crucial part of the infrastructure fails and it takes three months before you know it has failed?” he asked Seven News.
‘I have spoken to local shrimp farmers who are rightly very concerned that in the middle of harvest time and when most of their stock needs to be sold, they are asking government authorities about whether certain stocks should be suspended. ‘ he said.
Gold Coast councilor Mark Hammel demanded to know how the leak occurred and went unnoticed for months
Shrimp farmers along the river are holding their breath as authorities test whether the crustaceans are fit to eat
Fishing industry representatives told Seven News they had no further comment pending the test results.
Michael Kahler, the council’s executive general manager of infrastructure, said a specialist engineering firm had been hired to investigate the leak, how it went undetected and the effectiveness of the local response.
Mr Kahler said the council understood the seriousness of what had happened and was working with relevant government agencies.
“We know that water quality test results from the past two weeks show that the river is safe for recreational use, which is extremely good news,” Kahler said.
‘During the three months the spill occurred, no identifiable fish kills or negative environmental impacts were identified.
“This doesn’t mean there haven’t been consequences, but we need to focus now on what the science tells us.”
Early research found that recent high flows in the Albert River, caused by heavy rainfall, could have helped dilute sewage and possibly reduce the impact.
There are also concerns about the potential ‘catastrophic’ effect the leak could have on local wildlife in the wetlands
“The sensible approach at this time is to let the experts do their research and we will continue to update the community as new factual information comes to light,” he said.
Not only the animals in the water can be infected.
Robert Livingstone of the Eagleby Wetland Community Group said the river-fed wetlands are home to more than 200 native birds and a freshwater lake.
“It could be catastrophic for all birds if this sewage leak affects their food source,” Mr Livingstone told the Gold Coast Bulletin.