Temporary repairs made to Paihia water plant

The Paihia Water Treatment Plant is back in operation following successful provisional repairs overnight.

Work on a temporary pump and additional pipework was completed by contractors at 9pm and plant operators finally left the site at around 3am this morning satisfied the water treatment plant could meet demand.

General Manager – Infrastructure and Asset Management, Andy Finch says the priority now is to recharge storage reservoirs to ensure backup supplies are available in case of further unforeseen disruptions.

“I want to thank households and businesses for reducing water consumption yesterday. This helped get us through the immediate crisis. However, we still need all those connected to the Paihia supply from Waitangi to Opua to continue conserving water for the time being while reservoirs refill.”

He says it will take at least two days for the reservoirs to re-charge, particularly the large Paihia reservoir.

He also thanked contractors for quickly getting the treatment plant back on line yesterday. “The Far North Waters crew is already back on-site this morning continuing with permanent repairs to the intake and submersible pump.”

In further positive news, Mr Finch says ponds at the Russell Wastewater Treatment Plant are no longer overflowing and the treatment plant is working at full capacity to meet demand. “Yesterday’s break in the rain significantly reduced stormwater infiltration into the system. As long as there are no further heavy rainfalls, the plant will continue to recover.”

The Council has spoken to the Northland District Heath Board about the spill and it is advising people not to collect shellfish or swim in the wider Uruti Bay area for at least five days. It says all harbours in the District should be treated with caution following very heavy rains as waterways will likely be impacted by pollutants from various sources, such as farm runoff or private septic tanks inundated by flood waters.