One of the reasons for Orange City Council’s recommendation to close the road to public thoroughfare is the threat of contamination it poses to Orange water supply security.  

To date a partially unsealed road has been used by the public to travel between Lone Pine Avenue and Shepherd Road.

This road crosses Gosling Creek immediately upstream and adjacent to Spring Creek Reservoir.

Spring Creek Reservoir is located in the Orange Drinking Water Supply Catchment. As quoted by Orange City Council: the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (ADWG 2011) is the authoritative document for drinking water management in Australia.

It contains information about management of drinking water systems from the catchment to consumer.

Within these guidelines it is recognised that the prevention of contamination is superior to the removal of contaminants by treatment.

The guidelines state that the most effective barrier is the protection of source water to the maximum degree and must never be compromised. 

It is interesting that this logic is utilised in this specific instance, but yet, when the proposal put forward by council to rezone 318 hectares in the Huntley-Spring Hill area to industrial, scant account is acknowledged of the fact that the location at Huntley-Spring Hill is right in the heart of the drinking water catchment for Orange.

Renowned for its abundance of water from this particular area, there are large volumes of water flows both into Suma Park Dam and Spring Creek Reservoir, originating from the district of many springs: Spring Hill, Spring Terrace and Springside.

What is the planning logic of council in rezoning an area that is so vital to the water security of Orange in terms of water supply?

Why not work regionally and find the best fit that does not threaten the Orange drinking water supply?

If a minor road threatens the water supply security, just imagine what pollution from heavy industrial development over a very large area could do.

Orange residents: start buying your water bottles now.

You may well need them.

IN a world often dominated by the 24-hour news cycle, I believe that it's very important to be able to differentiated between fact and opinion. It doesn't matter what the topic is or who is being reported.

It could be climate change (the top of my list) or our Prime Minister's policies and speeches (near the very bottom).

During my teaching years, I found that this could easily be taught and developed in primary school years, often in an amusing and light-hearted way.