Over 40 people from Allendale, Broomfield, Kingston, Newlyn, Smeaton, Springmount and surrounding districts attended a public meeting at Newlyn on Monday night (March 19) to voice their concerns about the poor quality of the local reticulated water supply following the decision of Central Highlands Water eighteen months ago to change over the source of the local water supply from the Newlyn Reservoir to bore water obtained from Forest Hill.

Co-convener of the public meeting, Newlyn resident (Mrs) Leigh Miller, said the bore water was hard and had a high salt content of over 430 Total Dissolved Solids mg/L.

Mrs Miller said, "Household and commercial appliances owned by residents using the water have been extensively damaged by corrosion".

"A large number of these items damaged and corroded by the bore water were on display at the meeting".

The public meeting resolved to form a committee to be called the ‘Newlyn Reservoir Action Group’. The committee will:

• Request Central Highlands Water to abandon the Forest Hill Bore water supply and return to the Newlyn Reservoir supply.
• Seek compensation for damages caused by the reticulated bore water supply.
• Provide a platform for people to air their opinions and to be heard.
• Take whatever action is necessary, as a group, to get the source of the water supply returned to the Newlyn Reservoir.
• Seek the support of local Members of Parliament.

Mrs Miller said that last year in an article published in The Courier, the Minister for Environment and Conservation, the Hon Sherryl Garbutt, “assured Newlyn residents their water supply is now safer, cleaner and healthier”. And in the same article Ripon MLA Joe Helper said, “Such an improvement is very welcome for Newlyn residents”.

However, in a letter dated 22 August 2000, Central Highlands Water Laboratory Manager, Geoff Cramer, states that, “The new bore has more than doubled the amount of dissolved salts than the previous supply from the Newlyn Reservoir”.

Leigh Miller said, “We have seen what the bore water is doing to our household and commercial appliances”.

“Now we want to know what the long term effect the bore water will have on our health, and we want to return to the Newlyn Reservoir for our water supply”, said Mrs Miller.