Water costs rising as one in 10 ‘go hungry’

Andrew Mathieson
RISING living costs have left one-in-10 Geelong families unable to put food on the table, according to Victorian Council of Social Services.
And more pain is on the way after Barwon Water announced a 10 per cent hike in charges, with average household bills to rise $80 to $868 a year.
The council for social services has called on State Government to scrap caps on water concessions for low-income earners and pensioners to keep pace with the latest “massive” hikes in water prices, starting next Thursday.
VCOSS acting chief executive Carolyn Atkins said rapidly rising bills were “eating up more and more of people’s fixed incomes”.
“Already we have one-in-10 in Geelong have been unable to put food on the table in the past year because the household has run out of money,” she said.
“The (cost of) basic essential services should allow people to be able to live.
“We’ve had quite a cold snap over the past week and people have needed to use their gas or electricity to heat their homes.
“These are not luxuries – they are basic costs and essential services for people.”
VCOSS commissioned a study on the Geelong area last year, finding local households were under pressure from rising living costs.
Ms Atkins said the study proved the rising cost of living had become a “significant drain”.
“Many families are spending 30 or more per cent of their income on housing, so that doesn’t leave very much for water and energy bills, any health costs or just meeting school fees,” she said.
Ms Atkins said the squeeze on families was also increasing demand for counselling services while causing a spike in family violence and putting extra pressure on parents.
Barwon Water managing director Michael Malouf said further increases were in the pipeline.
The extra revenue would help the authority pay for a capital works program of more than $700 million, including around $130 million to connect Geelong to Melbourne’s water supply next year.
“All major capital works projects will result in a price increase,” Mr Malouf said.
He could not say how much extra local consumers would pay after the connection to Melbourne was complete.
Geelong users will pay more in line with additional costs in Melbourne for desalinated water.
“The amount will be determined once the pipeline is completed and operational,” Mr Malouf said.
Barwon Water hit customers with a 13.8 per cent increase last year, or about $100, to pay for fluoridation.