Arabic version: مزرعة عائلية في تسمانيا تتعطل بسبب مياه الصرف ومواد PFAS
According to ABC News, a fifth-generation, 160-hectare family farm outside Launceston is at a standstill after its creeks and dams were affected by sewage and PFAS contamination. Kate Tucker said water on The Springs cannot be used for stock or crops, while her father, David Hughes, described the situation as “soul destroying”.
The nearby Western Junction Sewage Treatment Plant receives sewage from the Launceston Airport, the TRANSLink precinct and nearby households before discharging treated waste into a creek on the property and then the North Esk River. Designed to receive fewer than 100 kilolitres a day, the facility received an average 309kL a day in 2023-24 and 329kL a day in 2024-25, TasWater documents showed.
TasWater chief scientist Graham Hawke said the overloaded lagoon-based plant uses floating wetlands to remove pollutants and sunlight for UV treatment. He said TasWater was considering aerators, planned to de-sludge the ponds later in 2026, and expected sewage to be redirected to the Evandale Sewage Treatment Plant in about a decade.
Western Junction is one of 33 Tasmanian level-one sewage plants, which are designed for fewer than 100kL a day and are regulated by councils rather than the Environment Protection Authority. Northern Midlands Council has not issued the plant an environmental protection notice, though Mayor Mary Knowles said the council had engaged an environmental consultant and might do so. TasWater’s 2024-25 report identified Western Junction as one of four level-one plants rated high risk.
Ms Tucker said PFAS was detected in farm water after Airservices Australia alerted the family in 2022. Airservices said it completed remediation measures at Launceston Airport last year and was finalising a detailed investigation, while TasWater said it was testing the sewer network for potential PFAS sources. Ms Tucker wants the treatment plant decommissioned sooner and hopes restored waterways could expand future farming options.
