Story by STEPHEN POLLOCK
SPRINKLERS installed by Bayswater council on the foreshore are spewing water into the Swan River.
Mr Dave Gervas spotted the water-wastage at Maylands boat ramp while he was preparing for an early morning sailing trip.
“I couldn’t believe it, they were actually using sprinklers to water the river,” he says.
“The foreshore is a mess down there, the technical services water and fertilise the grass right up to the river’s edge.
“It’s water-logged and there’s no vegetation, plus the fertilisers seep into the river.“
Maylands MP Lisa Baker, a long-time Swan River guardian, says Bayswater council could be doing more to look after the river.
“The city of bayswater should be concerned about the obvious waste of water,” she says.
“I can certainly see room for improvement in the river bank vegetation.
“Grass would not be the best environmental alternative.”
Ms Baker says council need more funding from the WA government to maintain the river properly.
Bayswater Mayor Terry Kenyon says foreshore erosion is a problem that the council has inherited.
“The erosion at the boat ramp is a legacy issue resulting from a poor choice of materials that were used to reclaim the land and certainly not the result of watering the grass,” he says.
“However, I do agree the 360 sprinkler heads do need to be adjusted or changed so that they are just watering the grass and not the river as well.”
Mayor Kenyon denied the council were fertilising the grass: “The City does not use fertilisers on the grassed area around the Maylands boat ramp.”
“Tackling foreshore erosion is very expensive and few local governments within metropolitan Perth have the resources needed to tackle the problem.”
