Coronavirus toilet paper shortages trigger waste water spill in Bendigo Creek

Last Sunday a blocked drain left 20,000 litres of waste water spilling into the Bendigo Creek in Long Gully.

The blockage was caused by a combination of wet wipes and toilet paper.

It triggered a clean up operation that would be expensive to clean, managing director Damian Wells said.

"It's hard to specify an exact figure ... but when you take into account staff costs, work to fix the blockage and monitoring it afterwards you can appreciate it could cost somewhere in the region of $10,000," he said.

That cost was not just one for the water corporation. It would also impact customers, customer operations manager Steve Dunlop said.

"We know they all look flushable, but the reality is, not all paper is created equally. Most of these products are designed to absorb water, not break down," he said.

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Tissues, wet wipes and towels are made from robust weaves and are not designed to disintegrate easily.

If people could only use those kinds of products because of shortages they should chuck them in the bin, not the toilet bowl, Mr Wells said.

"I know that might sound gross and disgusting but most of us have changed a child's nappy and then thrown them out without being too conscious about it," he said.

"What we would suggest is that you put it in one of the green kitchen compost bags all households in Bendigo are provided."

Mr Wells said most people were doing the right thing.

Recent "three p's" publicity campaigns about only flushing paper, pee and poo down the dunny has led to a 66 per cent drop in blockages.

"So this is really people at the margins," Mr Wells said.

He said the wider security of the water system was secure and that Coliban Water was thinking through its rostering to manage during the crisis. Mr Wells also wanted people to know much of its water treatment work was already automated

"We are confident it (tap water) will remain safe to drink so people do not need to go out and stockpile bottled water," Mr Wells said.

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