The council, believed to be the town’s biggest landowner, was questioned this week about plunging real estate prices from the ongoing PFAS chemical contamination crisis.

Hundreds of residents have already joined a class action seeking compensation from Defence for the loss of their property values.

Council chief executive Rob Jennings told this week’s meeting legal action was not being considered.

Mr Jennings said council had received good responses from Defence over the issue, particularly in regards to the contaminated pool and ongoing discussions about a tourism campaign.

Some residents believe the council would have lost millions of dollars already from falling property prices.

As well, council rates are expected to be hit as they are linked to property values.

Shine Lawyers has hundreds of residents already signed up for the class action and believes the council should join them.

Special counsel Johua Aylward said council should join the class action against the Commonwealth as they will have the largest loss in the Katherine contamination zone.

“They have a duty to their residents to pursue the Commonwealth for the loss they’ve suffered,” Mr Aylward said.

“For the council to ‘go it alone’ against the Department of Defence, it would cost them millions in legal and expert fees and expose them to millions of dollars in adverse costs orders if they were to lose.

“For a relatively small local council, it could break them.”

Shine Lawyers returns to Katherine between January 29-31 at Knotts Crossing to further discuss the proposed class action.

Mr Aylward agreed the municipal councils in the other major contamination cases at Oakey in Queensland and Williamtown in NSW are unlikely to take part in class actions there.

“The Port Stephens Council (Williamtown) and the Toowoomba Regional Council (Oakey) have only nominal property in the contamination zones and are unlikely to be members of the class actions.”

Mr Aylward said the Government’s response to the contamination of soil and groundwater in Katherine is “too little, too late”.

“Whilst an interim water treatment plan has provided a Band-Aid fix, Katherine is still up to two years away from a permanent solution and residents say their concerns aren’t being taken seriously.

“For locals, the contamination is more than just a water problem. The uncertainty around the exposure has caused stress and anxiety within the community with fears of risk to human health.”