Water Corp CEO Pat Donovan has acknowledged the challenge of maintaining 54,000 kilometres of pipes across Western Australia, following complaints from residents about a leaking water tank in the wheatbelt that has been wasting water for two years. The tank, located near Southern Cross, about 400 kilometres from Perth, supplies water from the Goldfields pipeline and has been leaking into the ground, frustrating locals who say their reports to the utility went unanswered.
Linda Rose, a resident south of Southern Cross, said she and her neighbours have watched the rusty tank leak for years. “It's just so frustrating,” she told ABC Radio Perth. “The locals have actually seen the Water Corporation checking on the tank. What they're saying is that they can't actually do anything just in case the tank ruptures, and there's not enough money in the budget to fix the tank.” The ground around the tank is now waterlogged and cannot absorb more water.
Donovan said the leak became more serious in May and that it took time to find a contractor. “We've been working since then to find a suitably qualified contractor with availability to do the work. We managed to secure one late last week,” he said. He added that the scale of the network makes it impossible to fix every leak quickly, with repairs prioritised based on safety and customer supply impacts.
Another resident, Christine from Wagin, described seeing a water main patched with wooden wedges. “When there's a leak, if it's a small leak, they come along and they put a wedge of pine wood in there, and the wood absorbs the water and swells and blocks the hole. I have counted one hole with 13 wedges, and that eventually burst,” she said.
In recent months, Water Corp has faced other incidents, including a major sewage spill in Spearwood in June 2025 that covered a park and left homes uninhabitable, and a sewerage blockage at Fremantle Markets this month that caused raw sewage to spill into nearby dwellings. Residents have expressed dissatisfaction with the response.
Despite the admission of maintenance challenges, the state minister responsible for water has denied any neglect, stating that the utility is managing its vast infrastructure responsibly. However, critics argue that chronic underfunding and delayed repairs are leading to environmental and public health risks.
