Council Pursues Groundwater Options
Two years ago as part of its water management strategy the council called on the skills of a water diviner to search for groundwater at Pahiatua as the first step toward looking elsewhere in the area.
Consecutive amounts of $50,000 were committed during 2006/07 and 2007/08 of the Long term Council Community Plan.
Recognising the challenges of a changing climate the council saw the need for an alternative water source to avoid total reliance on surface water supplies and the impact of competing uses on a finite resource, manager district assets Stephen Taylor said.
Other factors were deteriorating surface water quality, public demand, new drinking water standards and Horizon Regional council’s tougher approach to water take consents.
Over the last 12 months a suitable well site has been drilled at Pahiatua and tested for sustainability and quality. Development to put down the well to a depth of 90 meters will start next week.
Meanwhile the council has identified three sites at Woodville and intends to start drilling on the preferred option over the next four months as soon as the rig is available from Pahiatua.
“This means that Woodville should have a supplementary supply by next year,” Mr Taylor says.
This should be welcome news for the community which has been struggling with a critical shortage of water since February.
In other steps to mitigate the impact of drought on current water supplies the council has committed $250,000 in the Draft Annual Plan towards further investigation work.
It is also seeking variations to the Woodville and Eketahuna consents from Horizons Regional Council to reduce the effect of low river flows in the future.
Over the next 10 years a total of $7.2 million has been committed for improvements in water quality, storage and delivery throughout the district including Herbertville, Norsewood and Akitio along with the four main towns.
“The council has taken this drought very seriously and the total hosing ban imposed since January is a new experience,” Mr Taylor says.
In its recent submission to the Government’s National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management the council stated that “water management plans must consider the needs of future generations and the possibility that climate change and population growth could impact on the sustainability of the resource.
Mr Taylor said the council was not underestimating its responsibility to efficiently deliver a sustainable supply of acceptable quality water now or in the future.