Drinking fountains shut after lead detected

THE City of Greater Geelong has finished its testing of public drinking fountains, and found 80 with levels of lead above the National Health and Medical Research Council Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

On Wednesday, the city announced that following the return of test results, it had hired plumbers to turn off the affected fountains, which will be tagged “out of service”.

City of Greater Geelong acting director of planning and development Joanne Van Slageren said it was important to note that water supplied by Barwon Water was completely safe to drink.

“This is not an issue related to the quality of water supplied by Barwon Water. This is issue with public drinking fountain infrastructure.

“We have been working closely with public health experts at Victoria’s Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) on this matter.

“People don’t need to worry if they’ve recently used a public drinking fountain in Greater Geelong.

“The Australian Drinking Water Guideline value for lead in drinking water is very conservative of health, so that it protects the most vulnerable people, such as very young children and pregnant women.

“While the levels of lead detected are above the health guideline value in the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines, they are not of immediate concern as drinking water fountains are not the main source of drinking water.”

The city is investigating the issue and is working with DHHS, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), Barwon Water and the Victorian Building Authority to identify the cause of the lead.

A complete list of public drinking fountains that have been found with levels of lead higher than Australian Drinking Water Guidelines is available at geelongaustralia.com.au/publicdrinkingfountains.