Sewerage warning

A warning to Warragul businesses, industries and residents about what they discharge into the sewerage system has been issued by Gippsland Water.

It follows an incident early last week when there was a spike in “abnormal material” entering the Warragul treatment plant.

General manager of operations Peter Skeels said the material compromised the quality of treated wastewater at the outlet of the treatment plant.

Fortunately the automated systems in place at the plant was able to divert the poor quality water to on-site storage and prevent it leaving the site, he said.

Mr Skeels said an investigation had narrowed down the make-up and potential source of the waste.

He said that generally customers discharge fairly consistent waste products into the sewerage system but occasionally there is a spike in unidentified waste that can play havoc with treatment plants.

“The main job of the plants is to keep the microbiology (the bugs) alive and healthy so they can break down waste materials”.

“When the fragile ecosystem is threatened as it was at Warragul early last week Gippsland Water is forced to spend excessive money to ensure damage to our systems and the environment is limited”.

Mr Skeeps said the authority was working with customers around Warragul to ensure they are aware of their obligations and that the waste they discharge is within specifications.

We are more than happy to provide advice to any customers that have changed their processes or want to know what they can or can’t put down the drain, he said.