Since late September 2025, there have been 10 faecal incidents, forcing the facility to close for several hours at a time and costing ratepayers thousands of dollars.
Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson said there are significant financial and community impacts every time the Bluewater Lagoon is forced to close.
“Each incident costs about $3000 for plant room materials and labour, so already this financial year the cost of ‘code browns’ is $30,000,” Mayor Williamson said.
“There’s also the social impact of these unplanned closures – kid’s birthday parties, school events and family days out are all thrown into disarray.
“Each time the Bluewater Lagoon has to close for a faecal incident, it takes a minimum of six hours for our team to cycle and treat the water and re-open the facility.”
The new campaign, The Lowdown on Code Brown aims to educate residents and visitors about the impacts of faecal incidents and provides clear calls to action to reduce them.
“Simple things like making sure you have swim nappies on young children and ensuring swimmers take regular toilet breaks can make a big difference,” Mayor Williamson said.
Council has been offering free swim nappies at the Bluewater Lagoon since late 2025, with the initiative to continue until the scheduled winter closure in June 2026.
After the annual maintenance shutdown, nappies will be available to purchase at cost price from the café.
Venue manager, Kimberley Armstrong from Belgravia Leisure, said it’s been a popular initiative with families.
“More than 200 free nappies have been given out over the last two months, with medium sizes for children between nine and 14 kilograms, the most often used,” Ms Armstrong said.
“It shows us that toddlers or children that are toilet training are the ones that are most utilising the nappies, which is great because that’s the age group that often don’t tell parents and carers when they need to go to the toilet.
“It’s wonderful to see the community getting on board and doing what they can to reduce the chance of an accident when children are in the water.
“When families come in, we welcome them and check if they have nappies for young children and if not, we direct them to the café to get a free one. It gives staff a great opportunity to educate the community about the importance using swim nappies,” she said.
“This initiative has been very beneficial for the community and the operations of the Bluewater Lagoon.”