Blayney backs Davies on bad smell
The Minister for Water Mia Davies will visit Geraldton on Monday to hear concerns from the community regarding a Water Corporation wastewater pump leaking foul-smelling gas in Utakarra.
This comes after Shadow Water Minister Dave Kelly and local residents demanded Ms Davies see the problem firsthand.
The Water Minister had earlier said her schedule was “quite busy” and she may not be able to get to Geraldton.
Member for Geraldton Ian Blayney has put his support behind Minister Davies, saying she has been “very convincing”.
“I have been dealing with this problem for a while now and we had communications through the Minister saying the problem was fixed,” Mr Blayney said.
“A resident got back in touch with us to say it hadn’t been fixed, so I went to the site and had a good hard look at it.
“I then found Minister Davies and the parliamentary secretary and outlined my concerns to them in no uncertain terms.
“If what they tell me is right, I believe the problem will be fixed in about a month. But I will wait and see.
“All the way through I found her fine to deal with and quite convincing.
“I listen to my constituents and one wasn’t happy and I have absolutely no doubt what he said was true.
“The Minister is coming to Geraldton to hear people’s concerns, she’s doing the right thing.
“The line receives 60 per cent of our sewage.
“The sump has to be put right, it’s not something you fix up and she’ll be right, this is either fixed or it’s not.”
Mr Blayney said it would be necessary to spend a large amount of money on the problem.
“It’s got to be fixed; people shouldn’t have to put up with that,” he said.
He said he would inquire into the history of the pump station and find why it’s where it is.
“I wonder if it’s handling more than it’s supposed to and that has caused the problem.”
Mr Kelly said he was pleased the Minister had agreed to meet with residents on site to experience the extent of the problem.
“The Minister had previously claimed the problem had been fixed by June 30. Clearly, the problem is not fixed,” he said.
“The Minister in Parliament claimed the residents had been stirred up by members of the Labor Party. How outrageous! Clearly the Minister does not believe the residents when they say the smell is intolerable.”
