Smelly water angers locals

RESIDENTS of the northern Gold Coast said they are stuck with undrinkable water that even animals are shunning.

In the past week more than a dozen households around Pimpama have complained about a distinctly chemical taste and smell to their water.

Annette Zanker told the Bulletin she had noticed the strong smelling water at home recently.

“Our dog was also refusing to drink the water,” she said.

“The water is not nice to shower in and we don’t drink it, we use filtered water.”

Ms Zanker said she was looking into installing filters in her shower.

Other residents said they had resorted to buying water to avoid drinking tap water, which they say had deteriorated in the past month.

Nardine Smith took to social media to raise her concerns about the water.

“It’s absolutely disgusting. Tastes full of chemicals. I won’t even feed it to my fur babies,” she posted.

Lehlah Maree said the water at her house was “dreadful” while Patricia Taepa said she had noticed a “funny” smell at home.

Another resident said she had been experiencing problems for years.

“Water at times has smelt like this on and off for years, in particular the smell of chlorine. When my kids were younger they’d get a rash after a bath,” she said.

But the Gold Coast City Council said the supply has been tested and there is nothing wrong with it.

“Recent water quality testing and investigations conducted in areas of Pimpama ... indicate there have been no changes in the drinking water supplied by the City to properties in Pimpama,” a spokeswoman said.

“(It) continues to meet water quality requirements of the guidelines.”

The spokeswoman said sometimes chemicals can be tasted in the water supply, but said it is still safe to use.

“Chlorine is added to drinking water during the water treatment process … to protect water supplies from bacteria and virus,” she said.

The spokeswoman urged residents to report any concerns directly to council so they can be investigated by water quality scientists.