Napier chlorination to stay for 3 months

Napier’s previously untreated drinking water will remain chlorinated for at least the next three months as the city loses its ‘‘secure bore’’ status.

The city’s supplies have been chlorinated for the past 10 weeks and will continue to be treated after a meeting between the Napier City Council, the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board and its drinking water assessors this week.

The council said the agencies agreed chlorination should continue, particularly since the drinking water assessors had revoked the council’s secure bore status. This status was in place when water supply bores were protected from any possible contamination.

The council’s chief executive, Wayne Jack, said last year’s water contamination crisis in Havelock North, and a subsequent government inquiry, had thrown a spotlight on water infrastructure across the country.

‘‘The goal posts have shifted and practices and infrastructure that were once considered acceptable are now being reassessed.’’ Planned maintenance would be fast-tracked, Jack said.

‘‘We began our works programme two months ago and it should take a further three to four months to finish it.’’

With bore heads on the 10 bores across Napier below ground, the bore chambers will be modified to mitigate the risk of any pooling of water, which can be a potential source of contamination, the council said. Eventually it wanted to lift all bore heads above ground.

Jack said Napier’s infrastructure was “not up to scratch” when evaluated against stricter compliance measures.

Napier Mayor Bill Dalton said continued chlorination was “the right thing to do”.