Saleyards raw water use a win-win

The Emerald Saleyards has started using raw river water for stock watering and dust suppression and has found the livestock prefer the raw water to our drinking water!

Chair of the Saleyard Coordination Committee Cr Christine Rolfe said the use of the raw water is cost efficient and benefits the animals.

‘With the current dry spell, the saleyards’ use of water for dust suppression has increased,’ she said.

‘We’ve also seen an increase of cattle going through the yards, further exacerbating the need to suppress dust.

‘Using the raw water we’ve effectively found a solution that avoids increasing the use of potable water.

‘It also seems that the livestock prefer to drink the raw water as we’ve seen much better uptake.’

While there is still a cost associated with supplying raw water, the cost saving is estimated to be around 50 percent.

‘It’s a win-win situation saving costs, reducing use of treated water and improving livestock health.’