This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Peak health bodies have called for urgent action on revelations that at least three remote communities in the Northern Territory were drinking water contaminated with high concentrations of uranium.

The central desert communities of Laramba, Wilora and Willowra have been found to have been drinking from water sources which have naturally elevated levels of the heavy metal for at least 10 years, ABC’s 730 revealed on Tuesday.

Northern Territory medical services held an emergency meeting on Wednesday morning.

“We can’t afford to drag this on any longer. People’s lives are at risk,” said John Paterson, chief executive of the Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance of the NT.

“We need to get that water to a drinkable level.”

Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noon

Residents in 7.30’s report questioned whether the response was muted because it was a remote community.

Paterson said the meeting called for a concerted response working with the community, similar to that for towns affected by PFAS contamination.

Power and Water’s annual report on the water quality in remote communities for 2015-16 – the most recent one publicly available – identified at least three with elevated uranium levels.

Laramba returned a level of 0.04064mg/L, far above the Australian drinking water guidelines of 0.017mg/L, which represent the maximum safe level over 50 years of consumption.

Willowra’s water had uranium levels of 0.0248mg/L, and Wilora 0.01883mg/L.

Willowra and Laramba had returned elevated levels at least as far back as 2008.

“Power and Water is investigating economically viable options to achieve uranium concentrations within [Australian drinking water guidelines] and projects are being prioritised based upon the [Indigenous essential services] safe water strategy,” its report said.

NT camp water still contaminated two weeks after alert Read more

Paterson said authorities needed to take immediate action.

“We appreciate the early work that’s been undertaken by Power and Water but we now call on the governments to appoint an independent expert to undertake a more thorough investigation and maybe broaden it as well,” he said.

“We just need a really good handle on how widespread the contamination is. Then come up with solutions.”

The Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance also called for greater transparency and openness about the testing, results and consequences with affected communities, including whether alternative drinking water sources were needed and who would supply them.

The Central Land Council director, David Ross, said successive NT governments had failed to address the problems, which were not new.

“We call on the current NT government to spell out in its land and sea action plan how it plans to improve water quality and availability in remote communities,” he said.

Power and Water told 7.30 it was investigating options for water treatment, and Laramba was “high on our list”.

“Power and Water has prioritised and is progressing $7m in works to upgrade disinfection capacity at 33 sites over the next two years,” it said.

Black lives are not safe in this country. What more do white people want? | Nayuka Gorrie Read more

7.30 reported an Arrernte elder, Bob Liddle, had partnered with a water purification company and spoken to the prime minister’s office in March 2016 and February 2017 because of the NT government’s inadequate action.

Liddle and the Melbourne-based company MemFlow were seeking $2.7m for a solar-powered treatment plant trial and health monitoring in remote communities.

The federal government said the problems were state and territory governments’ responsibilities, but MemFlow was probably eligible to apply for funding under the building better regions fund.

In a statement to 7.30 the NT community development and essential services minister, Gerry McCarthy, said providing a “uniform quality of supply” to all 72 remote communities was a significant challenge.

“Some remote communities have received advanced water treatment plants to treat high fluoride, nitrate and uranium levels in bore water,” he said.

“Naturally occurring elements, including uranium and fluoride, persist in some communities, particularly in central Australia. It is important to note that physical and chemical health parameters are water quality characteristics that may present a risk if the consumer is exposed to concentrations above [guideline] levels over a lifetime.”

The NT government has also been criticised for its handling of contaminated water at two town camps near Borroloola, in the Gulf of Carpentaria region, after unsafe levels of lead and manganese were detected.

