Tests on Riverton’s ‘hard’ water
An Australian company is testing Riverton’s water after some residents noticed a powder-like substance building up in jugs and water cylinders.
Southland District Council project and programme manager Bevan McKenzie said when residents started noticing the substance, the council decided to get further testing done on the supply.
It was aesthetic and having levels of calcium and magnesium in water was not a health concern, McKenzie said.
The current levels in the water gave Riverton residents a hardness level of 55-60 at the tap, while Invercargill was at about 50, he said.
‘‘[Hardness] is the level of calcium and magnesium in the water, it’s the combination of those two that gives us a rating. We shouldn’t be getting that build up at that level, that’s why we sent it away.’’
The samples had been sent to a water chemist to have a look at it in Australia, McKenzie said. The hardness level at the supply is about 180-200, which is at the higher end of the limits.
He wants the contractors to recommend remediation for the issue.
To fix the hardness might require dosing the water with a treatment but McKenzie would not be sure until the results came back from Australia.
Riverton Community Board chairman Blair Stewart said the water had been tested and was up to the national drinking water standards.
‘‘It isn’t harmful it is all within the government regulations.’’