The ongoing water supply issues in Bullsbrook were once again brought to the forefront during the Nationals WA Water Forum, held on Saturday, February 22. Hosted by Opposition Leader Shane Love and Swan Hills Nationals Candidate Ben Giblett, the forum provided a platform for residents to express their growing concerns over the scarcity of water and the increasing delays in water deliveries.
The issue has become critical in recent months, with local water carriers being instructed not to draw from Bullsbrook’s water supply in an effort to preserve resources for Water Corporation customers connected to scheme water. As a result, these carriers have been forced to travel further afield to source water, often with a slower flow rate, leading to significant delays in delivery times — some residents now waiting up to three months for a water supply.
This is not a new problem, but one that has persisted for years due to a lack of infrastructure development to meet growth in the area. “It appears to me that there certainly is a lack of focus from the Water Corporation on making sure that the capacity meets the demand out here,” said Shane Love. “When I did speak to their officials, they seemed to be unaware of the amount of growth.”
Long-time Bullsbrook resident James Plummer shed light on the historical aspects of the issue, recalling how his family was involved in constructing the original water tanks in the area. “It was told to me at the time that the pipes going all the way to Midland were only good for 400 homes in Bullsbrook, and they couldn’t put any more homes in because they had to redo the water supply through Midland. That has never been done – yet the Kingsford estate has gone ahead.
“And nine years ago, they were meant to put an additional tank in. They actually had a block identified and valued – and they haven’t done it!”
Bullsbrook resident Petrina Porter detailed how her household has adapted to the increasingly dry summers and water shortages. “We have a standing order with our water carrier, who looks after us fantastically, which we’re grateful for,” she said.
“We have also increased our systems to have catchments everywhere, off any building that we could catch water. We save every bit of water where we can, and personally have not had an issue. If our carriers have had to delay by a week, it has not been a problem. Preparation is key.”
However, for other residents, the situation has reached a dire point. Lower Chittering resident Renae explained how her family has been severely impacted by the delays in water deliveries.
“When we moved here, we only had one water tank, and we have a standing order with our supplier for four loads at the beginning of every single month. It has always worked for us.
“This is the first time now where we’ve had a problem, where they can’t deliver the loads right at the beginning of each month. One tank is totally empty already, and we still have the rest of summer to go through.
“We are paying between 3 and 4 times as much per kilolitre of water than they do in the cities, and we accept that. That’s one of the things that we do living rural, that was a choice that we made – but if we can’t get water, our hands are chopped off.”
Beyond household needs, the lack of accessible water also poses a fire risk. “An additional problem is that when you have a water tank on a rural residential property, you are obliged to keep a certain level of water in that tank for fire trucks to draw from. This week there was a fire 700m away from our gate, and I had an empty tank, which is also the tank that the fire suppression system on our roof is linked to. Even if I needed to, I couldn’t have saved the house. Despite having done everything in our power to be prepared.”
Other concerns included the use of potable water for dust suppression in roadworks – of which there’s never any shortage of in Bullsbrook – and housing construction. And a primary concern was the glacial pace at which the Water Corporation seems to be working to fix these issues, summed up by Bullsbrook resident Maureen Rose: “I’ve lived here 40 years, and we’re still talking! I’ve been to that many meetings, it’s no good us wasting our time talking. We want action – or I’ll be dead and buried before anything gets done!”
Shane Love emphasised the responsibility of the government and shires to ensure that rural residential properties have access to supplementary water. “I think that there’s a lack of understanding on the part of the shires and the government about the need to provide for supplementary water for people who are not connected to the scheme in rural residential areas,” he said. “Just because you’re not connected to the scheme, doesn’t mean you don’t have the need for water at some point.
“It is time for government to take acceptance of the fact that people that live on the five-acre, or ten-acre lots — not connected to the scheme— have been allowed to build there because of planning decisions that have been made by both shires and the West Australian Planning Commission. Presumably, in the knowledge that at some point they would need to have supplementary supplies of water.
“You can’t just walk away from that and say, ‘They’re not customers of the Water Corporation, so we’re not interested.’
“We need to make clear that you’ve all got rights as West Australians to consideration from the government, and that the current situation is not equitable and it needs to change.”
