With a continuing dry spell, and many new residents with concerns regarding running out of water, we have complied below to assist our community on what is available at the time of posting this Noosa 360 update (November 2023).

State Government provides bulk water supply through the region to providers such as Unitywater here in our electorate and does not directly provide or arrange domestic water supplies to residents.

Unitywater provides domestic water supply to those residents on town water supply, and bills accordingly. For more information on water supply, the SEQ Water Grid and Lake Macdonald’s role, please see our earlier Noosa 360 update at www.sandybolton.com/lake-macdonald-dam-november-2023/www.sandybolton.com/lake-macdonald-dam-november-2023

Residents on rural properties, relying on dams, bores and tanks, need to manage their water supplies carefully when rainfall has not been sufficient, and ensure they order water deliveries in advance before running out as understandably during dry periods demand for water deliveries is high. For new residents who have never experienced tank water, check your tank by tapping those rungs weekly/daily to assess use, reduce usage when needed by enjoying ‘ship showers’ and taking laundry to a friend’s house are just a couple of simple ways to stretch out your precious resource!

Information on using water wisely, whether on town water or your own supply, is available at www.qld.gov.au/environment/water/residence/use

Water delivery companies are private businesses with the necessary permits and approvals allowing them to deliver potable (safe drinking) water. For much of a year their services may not be in as much demand, so it is not as simple as expecting new businesses to start up when a peak demand period hits. Contacts for these are available through a google search or in your phone directory, or at the end of this update there is a list compiled by one of our lovely hinterland residents in alphabetical order.

Assistance – Noosa Council

State and Federal Governments provide funding to Local Governments (Councils) for staff and efforts to assist in Disaster mitigation and recovery, and it is good to check whether Noosa Council have activated any additional supports for those facing difficulty with accessing water.

The following information is available on Noosa Council’s website at www.noosa.qld.gov.au/emergency-relief-–-water:

Drought Water Supplies

For those who are struggling with having enough water during drought conditions, here are maps showing the locations of taps where water containers can be filled. Council prefers that the taps shown on the maps are the only taps that should be used to fill water containers.

Other taps are not suitable for a variety of reasons. Please remember to take only what water is really needed. Using too much will reduce water pressure across Noosa Shire. Please fill up using domestic-size containers only (up to 1000L).

Hot shower locations

Hinterland:

Cooroy Sports Complex – Mary River Road, Cooroy

  • Showers in cricket/soccer clubhouse – 6am – 9pm, 7 days
  • Tap/sink on southern side of cricket/soccer clubhouse

Cooroy RV site:

  • Tap at the entry that can fill up containers in addition to the paid Unity Water sites

Kin Kin Recreation Centre 

  • 2 showers on the western side

Pomona Community House – 1 Memorial Ave, Pomona

  • Hot showers 9am – 3pm Tues – Fri

If residents have any questions, Noosa Council can be contacted on 5329 6500 or via mail@noosa.qld.gov.au.

Your elected representatives for Noosa Council are the Mayor and Councillors, their direct phone numbers and email addresses are available at www.noosa.qld.gov.au/downloads/file/927/contact-list-councillors.

Assistance – Unitywater

The following information is available on Unitywater’s website at www.unitywater.com/fill-stations:

Potable drinking water

Residents who are not connected to our network and rely on tank water may need to access drinking water when their tank supply runs low.

We have four water fill stations for community members to access potable drinking water at any time.

They are located at:

  • 17 Mary River Road, Cooroy
  • Zealey Road, Nambour (next to number 49)
  • Samsonvale Road, Warner (opposite number 350)
  • Showgrounds Drive, Highvale (opposite number 38)

What do I need?

You will need to bring your own:

  • Container to fill
  • Hose
  • Hose fitting – the filling stations have:
    • a 50mm camlock outlet controlled by a valve at exit (see image below). You will need a 50mm female camlock coupler.
    • a 25mm tap outlet with valve at exit (see image below). You will need a 25mm female hose coupler.

If you use a garden hose, you will need a tap adaptor to fit to the fill station correctly.

Unity Water is a statutory authority with three shareholders – Moreton Bay, Sunshine Coast and Noosa Council’s – and is governed by an independent board. Matters relating to Unity Water do not come under the jurisdiction of State Government. Concerns or complaints need to be lodged directly with Unity Water through their contact details available at www.unitywater.com/about-us/contact-us

Should you wish any decisions or actions of Unity Water to be investigated further, you can lodge a case with the Energy & Water Ombudsman QLD, who provide a free and independent dispute resolution service for unresolved complaints with electricity, gas or water suppliers. Their details are available at www.ewoq.com.au

Private water refill companies

There several private water refill companies who deliver to our hinterland areas. Please note the below list has been compiled by a hinterland resident and is not an exhaustive list of all delivery companies:

·         Ace Water supplies: 0455 788 980
·         Cooroy Hinterland water: 0407 388992
·         Dave’s domestic water: .04.80128560 (Pomona)
·         Hinterland Water Cartage: 0424 333 313
·         Imbil H20: 0402 929 123
·         JC water: 0408921587
·         Mary Water Haulage: 0459146355
·         Pomona water: 0432 741 400.
·         Rapid water: 0429 055 614
·         Stolzenburg; 0408·825 922
·         The Dawn haulage: 0473 859 293
·         The Splasher (Didier): 0414460026
·         Truck Your Water Cooroy: 0408061809

 

Further Assistance/Suggestions

Various community Facebook noticeboards/pages will also have many resident-based suggestions current to local conditions, including some offering to deliver 1000L pods of water to residents who don’t have the ability to collect for themselves. Please ensure you are connected to these groups for feedback from residents, who may have solutions, from having dealt with water shortages previously. Some to consider are Cooroy Community Noticeboard, Pomona Community Noticeboard, Cooran Community Noticeboard and Cootharaba Area Community Page.

For information on how local fire bans and permits are determined, please visit www.sandybolton.com/fire-bans-permits-november-2023

Sandy has many updates on state government issues available at www.sandybolton.com/noosa360. Just use the handy search bar to find your topic of interest.