❓ Hon. Kate Doust questions the Minister for Water regarding burst water pipes in Secret Harbour, urging action beyond the Water Corporation's current response. The Minister's response indicates the issue stems from defective copper pipes, not water quality.
AnsweredQoN 1354Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
WATER CORPORATION — BURST WATER PIPES — SECRET HARBOUR
1354. Hon KATE DOUST to the parliamentary
secretary representing the Minister for Water:
I refer to the minister's
letter to Rebecca Lemmon—a constituent of the member for Warnbro—dated
10 October 2016, responding to the issue of bursting household water pipes in
Secret Harbour, and an email from the minister's office to a number of
Secret Harbour residents concerning the same matter dated 21 October 2016.
(1) Noting that
the member for Warnbro has since this time been notified of 30 separate
households of various building ages that have suffered from burst water pipes,
will the minister concede that this is not an isolated issue concerning a few
households only?
(2) Will the
minister also acknowledge that the response from Water Corporation to date has
not resolved the matter?
(3) Will the
minister commit to having Water Corp conduct a public forum in Secret Harbour
to directly hear concerns from the residents and develop a better response?
1354. Hon KATE DOUST to the parliamentary
secretary representing the Minister for Water:
I refer to the minister's
letter to Rebecca Lemmon—a constituent of the member for Warnbro—dated
10 October 2016, responding to the issue of bursting household water pipes in
Secret Harbour, and an email from the minister's office to a number of
Secret Harbour residents concerning the same matter dated 21 October 2016.
(1) Noting that
the member for Warnbro has since this time been notified of 30 separate
households of various building ages that have suffered from burst water pipes,
will the minister concede that this is not an isolated issue concerning a few
households only?
(2) Will the
minister also acknowledge that the response from Water Corporation to date has
not resolved the matter?
(3) Will the
minister commit to having Water Corp conduct a public forum in Secret Harbour
to directly hear concerns from the residents and develop a better response?
AnswerView source ↗
On behalf of the parliamentary
secretary representing the Minister for Water, I thank the honourable member
for the question.
(1)–(3) The
Water Corporation is responsible for a water service up to and including the
meter. Issues with household plumbing are not the responsibility of the Water
Corporation, but it has attempted to thoroughly investigate this unusual
situation in order to assist customers to better understand the cause of these
bursts. A consulting materials scientist was engaged to provide an independent
opinion and has concluded that the likely cause of the corrosion within the
copper pipes is a defect in its manufacturing processes that left excess carbon
within the pipe, leading to corrosion and failure. The water supplied to Secret
Harbour is comparable with that supplied across the Perth metropolitan area;
testing data has been reviewed and the water is well within normal standards
for pressure and quality, including chlorine and pH levels.
secretary representing the Minister for Water, I thank the honourable member
for the question.
(1)–(3) The
Water Corporation is responsible for a water service up to and including the
meter. Issues with household plumbing are not the responsibility of the Water
Corporation, but it has attempted to thoroughly investigate this unusual
situation in order to assist customers to better understand the cause of these
bursts. A consulting materials scientist was engaged to provide an independent
opinion and has concluded that the likely cause of the corrosion within the
copper pipes is a defect in its manufacturing processes that left excess carbon
within the pipe, leading to corrosion and failure. The water supplied to Secret
Harbour is comparable with that supplied across the Perth metropolitan area;
testing data has been reviewed and the water is well within normal standards
for pressure and quality, including chlorine and pH levels.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.