Bug may unleash flood of sewage

By Mathew Dearnaley and Geoff Cumming

A massive sewage-system failure faces New Zealand in the event of a year 2000-induced power collapse - and officials say some towns and cities are not safeguarding residents.

Much of the North Island, including its biggest cities, could have trouble flushing away sewage within four hours of an electricity failure caused by computer problems as the new millennium dawns.

Water supplies would generally last longer, according to a Local Government NZ survey out yesterday, but Hamilton could run dry in two hours given its total reliance on power.

Auckland's water supply would be expected to hold up for a day or more, but none of the region's local bodies could give an assurance of maintaining sewage systems for more than four hours without power.

Any longer, and sewage pumping stations would overflow, spilling raw human effluent and trade wastes into the nearest waterways and closing beaches.

Wellington and Hutt City would have only one hour's leeway.

Council planners in Auckland and Hamilton said yesterday they intended hiring backup generators for their sewage and water pumping stations but some smaller districts are making no such provision.

Although the local government report says that most of the country's 86 territorial authorities expect to be ready for the millennium, its authors are worried that 14 per cent will not be until the last quarter of this year.

Some councils claiming to be 100 per cent ready are found seriously lacking on closer scrutiny.

Transpower, the country's bulk electricity carrier, disclosed yesterday that it had already spent $4 million millennium-proofing its sprawling network, and expected to spend another $5 million.

But it would also have nine helicopters on standby for the first two days of January to rush to any remote sites knocked out of action.

Franklin District was identified among the 86 local councils as one least prepared. It had failed to make contingency plans for disruption to either sewage or water supply.

Kaipara and Waipa were also among six councils listed as not preparing to maintain sewage disposal if the power failed.

But Waipa rejected the criticism and Franklin's mayor, Heather Maloney, said her council had made good progress since the February survey.

It had spent $1 million preparing to head off computer failures, and had eight staff working full-time on the task, but she believed that fears about the year 2000 bug were over the top and an equipment supplier's dream.