New water system for Kirwee

Press, 6 October 1980, Page 10

New water system for Kirwee

The water supply in Kirvzee -will greatly improve within the next few days when the township’s, new water system begins operation. r , The chairman of the Malvern County Council (Mr G. F. Wright) has officially opened The pumping, storage and reticulation system, but final work is expected to take another few days. About 70 consumers will be serviced from a 125metre deep w r ell in the Kirwee Domain.

The system includes a reservoir, with a 360.000-litre capacity, constructed in the Courtenay A. and P. Association grounds in the township. The system took five months to build, said the County Engineer (Mr A. C. Watson). “We have onlyjust pressurised the mains in the last few days and we have some leaks to attend to,” he said. For Kirwee residents, the system will replace the present supply from the Malvern Plains stock water race system and rain water tanks.

The new' system will do away with problems over

the purity and quantity of the water supply, Mr Watson said. It would also provide a high-pressure supply for fire fighting. Property owners m . the township began paying for the system in the last rating year. A $lOO charge for each household last year was increased to $145 in this year’s rates. Mr Watson said the total caoital cost of the system will be about $105,000. of which Government subsidies wili cover about $20,0Q0. The County Treasurer (Mr W. G. Brixton) said the payment on rates on Kirwee properties would probably remain at about the same level for the next six years, to cover servicing charges on loans raised by the council for the system and maintenance costs.

The system’s introduction follows 10 years of study over alternative scheme;; for improving the water supply in Kirwee. Earlier pronosals for attempting to purify the stock water race for domestic use and laying mains from Darfield, four kilometres away, were ruled out on the grounds of cost.