Hepburn Pool, located off Sixth Avenue and filled with flows from Spring Creek, was first built by the owners of Grange Bellinzona for visitors to the spa district.

These days, the pool is maintained by the Hepburn Shire Council. General Manager Infrastructure Bruce Lucas said the low, muddy water conditions were caused by drought conditions.

Renowned Hepburn permaculturalist David Holmgren said creek flow had dried up toward the back of the pool.

He also said a leaking valve was partly to blame, which he said released water from the pool at the same rate as a constant garden hose along with “natural filtration and evaporation”.

“There are springs that rise up on Wombat Park estate at the head of that gully that would have, under normal conditions, sustained a trickle flow through the pool,” he said.

“There are a lot of very, very reliable springs around the town, some of which people have never seen dry...which are now dried up.

“It has of course been deliberately drained to clean it out a few times, but it’s the lowest I’ve seen it in terms of when it’s notionally full.”

Mr Holmgren said the pool’s brown colour reflected the stagnant water and high temperatures leading to poor quality, “and you wouldn’t want to swim in it certainly”.

He said the pool was unusual in that it was a constant body of water, which had some ecological benefits as opposed to dams that went up and down with the seasons.

Mr Lucas said no water to his knowledge was being diverted from the creek.

“There are a number of naturally-occurring springs that run all year round and we’re getting reports of those being dried up. It’s probably the driest it’s been in a couple of decades,” he said.

Mr Lucas said he had not received any queries or concerns about the valve, and also said the council had no plans to drain and clean the pool.

“We did remove some obstructions a few years ago. It’s not a recognised pool with lifeguards and we don‘t treat it as much; it’s a naturally-occurring body of water.”