Pahīatua still needs to conserve water

Watering the garden is off the menu for Pahīatua residents while water supply issues are being resolved. Photo / Mark Taylor

Nearly two weeks after an urgent request to Pahīatua residents to conserve water, the Tararua District Council says improvements in the output of the Pahīatua water treatment plant have been achieved, but water conservation must remain a focus.

The call to conserve water came as the treatment plant was found to be unable to treat enough water to service the town.

A replacement main valve was installed on Tuesday, increasing the plant’s capacity, but it was still running well below the amount of treated water needed to supply the town.

A council spokesperson said: “Our next steps rely on reaching 50 per cent treated water capacity in the reservoir. This equates to three days of supply.”

“Once this level is reached, then a further clean of the plant can be conducted with a new cleaning compound we have received that has been proven effective in other water treatment plants around the world. This is expected to improve the efficiency and longevity of our plant’s filters.”

Consumption by the town is currently around 1,300m cubic metres per day, while the water treatment plant is currently only producing approximately 1,000m cubic metres per day of treated water. The 300m cubic metres daily deficit is being made up from storage reserves.

The community is being asked to achieve a 25 per cent reduction in usage in order to continue providing treated water.

In an effort to achieve this, the Tararua District Council put a total ban on outdoor water useage in place for Pahīatua until further notice.

Under a Total Outdoor Ban water restriction, the following applies:

- Residents and businesses may not use sprinklers, soak hoses, irrigation systems, hose gardens, water blasters, nor wash vehicles, boats or buildings.

- Residents and businesses can use buckets and watering cans to water plants.

To further help reduce water usage, the council is asking Pahīatua residents to report water leaks in the streets and/or public spaces to their teams. The council also asks residents to please help to find and fix water leaks around the house or property, including leaking taps or toilets.

A letter drop was made to inform Pahīatua residents of the Total Outdoor Ban water restriction. Water conservation techniques can be found on the Tararua District Council website at: https://www.tararuadc.govt.nz/services/water-and-wastewater/water-conservation-tips.

In a statement, the council said: “We apologise that this has become necessary. Tararua District Council would like to thank Pahīatua residents and businesses for their co-operation in conserving water, understanding and patience.

“The water treatment plant is continuing to produce safe drinking water but the Pahiatua water supply remains vulnerable to plant shutdown or low production.

“The more water is conserved, the quicker the water restrictions can be taken off. Water conservation by all is key to building up resilience.”