A protest rally was held outside Hawkesbury Council last night over the death of fish, eels and reptiles after a toxic spill in South Creek.
State candidates for Hawkesbury, Danielle Wheeler (Greens), Kate Mackaness (Independent) and Barry Calvert (Labor) were slated to speak at the rally, along with Greens MP John Kaye and a spokesperson from South Creek Bass Club.
Runoff from a fire at a Dunheved oil processing plant has been blamed for the spill, where at least 50 fish have been seen floating in South Creek between St Marys and Windsor.
South Creek Bass Club members claim the death toll is much higher.
Western Sydney Conservation Alliance president Geoff Brown described the incident as an ‘‘ecological disaster’’.
‘‘People have had long held fears for South Creek because of the location of industrial estates,’’ he said.
‘‘Councils have been in a rush to develop western Sydney. They’ve got to look at the big picture and ensure this doesn’t happen again.’’
Hawkesbury and Penrith councils are working closely with the EPA, NSW Health, Sydney Water and the Office of Water to monitor pollution levels.
Water users are advised to use an alternative water source until further notice.
Club member and Oakhurst resident Dale Ward was at the creek in St Marys the day after the January 17 fire.
‘‘The quality of the water was disgraceful and that’s when I knew there was a problem,’’ he said.
‘‘There was a film on the surface that had a pungent smell similar to a chemical. You could taste the acid in the air, which was still in my mouth when I got home. I went back a few days later and there was an abundance of dead fish floating on the surface.’’
Penrith Council’s environmental health department carried out tests for grease and oil and chemical oxygen at Eighth Avenue, Shanes Park and the causeway at St Marys Road, Berkshire Park on January 22 and 27. The January 22 results showed grease and oil below detection limits and pH was satisfactory, however EPA tests showed the contamination was primarily made up of cooking oil.
Mr Ward doesn’t believe the contamination is cooking oil.
‘‘I’ve never seen fish so discoloured,’’ he said.
‘‘There was a chemical burnt odour. It affects the stretch between Twins Creek Golf Club [at Luddenham] through to Windsor. Everything upstream is alive and kicking.’’
Anglers says a similar spill occurred a year ago.
‘‘No-one will give us an explanation or a listening,’’ Mr Ward said. ‘‘It’s been two weeks since the fire and the creek is not getting any better.’’
It’s also believed the fish could have died due to a ‘blackwater incident’, common in lowland creeks during summer floods where organic material and high temperatures heat the water and cause oxygen levels to drop.
While not related to the spill, concerns over CSG mining flowback water being processed at a South Windsor facility was also to be addressed at the rally.
The outcome of the rally will be in next week's Gazette.