In the first meeting back for Brisbane City Council after the winter recess, Brisbane Labor Opposition Leader Jared Cassidy moved that Brisbane City Council improve its water testing system in the city’s creeks and waterways, and to notify the community when there are dangerous amounts of microbial contamination enters the waterways.
Last month, Nine News revealed that enormous amounts of untreated, raw sewage was being dumped into the Brisbane River after significant rain events due to a complication with a pipe renewal project 18 months ago.
Currently, Council’s website warns residents not to enter waterways after rain events. While the website claims that testing is carried out every two weeks during summer and four weeks during winter at Oxley Creek and Cabbage Tree Creek, data published to the website reveals no testing was done between June and November 2024 at a variety of locations across Sandgate and Shorncliffe frequented by residents and their dogs.
Additionally, no tests were conducted during December 2024, February 2025 and April 2025.
Council’s website goes on to state that its role is to warn and advise people when there’s elevated levels of bacteria in the waterways.
Cr. Cassidy said in the meeting that there are two key issues: “if you can’t test, you can’t warn, and if you do test and identify an issue, you aren’t warning sufficiently and that’s what the community is saying.”
Testing methodology has not changed in 15 years, and the inconsistency in testing meant that Council was not meeting its obligations, Cr. Cassidy claimed.
“Can you imagine if by accident there’s a high level of enterococci detected, there’s no way of retesting to let people know it’s safe for people to get back into the water?”
Brisbane City Council is a joint stakeholder in Urban Utilities, receiving about $200 million per year in revenue and with the ability to appoint board members.
In rejecting the motion, the LNP Chair for Environment, Parks, and Sustainability, claimed that the testing program meets national standards and is not designed to provide real time updates.
But Cr. Cassidy corrected the administration by pointing out this is not what Council’s own website claims. The website states Council provides “up to date information to help you make decisions on where, when and how you can enjoy the water.”
The vote result was 5 Brisbane Labor Councillors voting in favour and 13 LNP Councillors voting against.
