Water quality affected by Bushfires.

Part 1 The bushfires have caused significant damage to water storage sites around the ACT. These sites include Bendora, Corin and Cotter reservoirs. After the firestorm swept through the catchment areas in January, the ground covers were severely burnt with much of the catchment vegetation burnt away. The soils surrounding the reservoirs became unstable by being exposed to intense heat and the loss of plant roots which left the catchments vulnerable to erosion and sediment accumulation. …

…did severely affect the quality of the Cotter reservoir. The water was extremely dirty as a result of water and wind run-off of the debris left by the firestorm. The results show no indication that the fires affected Googongs water quality and that Googongs water was within the guidelines for Australian standards of drinking water. The water quality from the Cotter was not within these guidelines displaying it is not yet fit for normal use.