WA’s water and environmental department will begin an independent investigation into water quality at Mullaloo Beach after a health warning that it could cause gastrointestinal illness and throat burning.
As previously reported by The West Australian and PerthNow, Mullaloo Beach has been closed twice this year due to algal blooms, with the first discovery in mid-January.
The popular beach, which usually features picturesque blue waters, has struggled throughout the year, with murky brown plumes inundating the coastline.
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On Friday afternoon the Department of Health issued a warning for Mullaloo Beach.
“WA Health is advising visitors to Mullaloo Beach to avoid any discoloured water as it may be an algal bloom that was observed between Pinnaroo Point and the Ocean Reef Marina shorelines in recent months,” it said.
“The warning follows several reports from members of the public of skin irritation, ear infections, burning throat and gastrointestinal illness.
“Any person who comes into contact with discoloured water should immediately rinse it off with clean water and seek medical attention if they become unwell.”
The release said the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation would continue to analyse samples from the suspected algal bloom.
Local resident Kim Allen swims daily at Mullaloo Beach and previously told The West Australian about his concerns about nearby pipes releasing treated wastewater into the ocean just 2.5km north of Mullaloo Beach.
Mr Allen lives in Ocean Reef overlooking the marina development, where the outfall pipes from the Beenyup Wastewater Treatment Plant are located.
He has led a contingent of locals in raising their concerns of water quality issues and outfall pipes which he believes should be sunk deeper and further out from shore.
Hillarys MLA Caitlin Collins has facilitated meetings with Mr Allen and State Government officials, including a brief chat with Premier Roger Cook.
“Kim Allen, who is a constituent, got in touch with me over the last year or so about water quality issues at Mullaloo,” she said.
“Back in January, I held a meeting in my office with Kim and representatives from DWER and Water Corporation to discuss some of Kim’s concerns. The very next day, there was an algal bloom at Mullaloo Beach, and the beach was temporarily closed for three days.
“I’m really proud that I’ve got such a passionate community — it’s my local beach as well, and it’s incredible that we have such community advocates who are really well informed.
“They admit that they might not be scientists or know all of the details, but they are critical thinkers, and they are really keen to find answers around any water quality issues that there might be.”
Through the Facebook group Mullaloo Collective, which has more than 5600 members, locals have regularly monitored the brown plumes surrounding Ocean Reef Marina and Mullaloo Beach with drone footage and images taken from shore.
Last week, drone images also captured sediment spread from the Ocean Reef Marina development.
“The drone footage that was sent to me showed that there seems to be sediment coming out from Ocean Reef Marina, so DWER went down immediately to do an investigation and identify the source,” Ms Collins said.
“When works are taking place, there’s quite a lot of dredging and earthworks at the moment in the marina and there’s a huge silt curtain surrounding the development to stop sediment from escaping into the wider waters.
“There’s a float at the top of the silt curtain and if ever a jetski or boat drives over it, it completely breaks it.
“Divers went in and rectified the issue and it’s now operating as normal again.”
A statement by DWER said water tests on Thursday confirmed there was “no harmful phytoplankton species of concern and the majority of visible brown material in the water column was naturally occurring marine debris such as broken up seagrass”.
DWER said it would also engage an independent consultant to assess the marine environment at Mullaloo and Ocean Reef beaches while also engaging with the local community to understand their concerns and observations.
Ms Collins said it was important to allow the scientists and independent consultant to carry out their investigation and understand what is contributing to the changing water quality.
“Hopefully, we can try and quell some of the fear and anxieties that are in the public,” she said.
Despite the visible effects of the water from the construction of the $223 million Ocean Reef Marina, Ms Collins said she was still looking forward to its completion while keeping community concerns in consideration.
“The actual construction is coming along really well and is going to be a fantastic facility that will be utilised all over the northern suburbs once complete,” she said.
“Unfortunately, when you have a construction site, you can see issues in the surrounding areas.
“A lot of sediment and dust is causing issues at the moment, but once it’s complete, I think we’ll have an incredible marina.
“My sole job that I have is to listen to the community and so I’ve taken on all of their concerns and taken them directly to the agencies and the ministers. I’ve very much been part of the process of connecting the community with the relevant agencies so we can try and identify the issues.”