Waihola & North Bruce – Boil water & advisory reminder

Two issues continue to affect the water supply for Waihola and the North Bruce Rural Water Scheme.

A boil water notice is in place and separately an aluminium advisory has been issued.

About the boil water notice

This scheme is on a long-term boil water notice until the new Milton to Waihola pipeline is commissioned, due to treatment problems at the plant which are affecting the quality of treated water.

Recommendations have been received by the independent process engineer to improve processes at the plant, and Council is working through these options.

The boil water notice for properties connected to the Waihola reservoir will be lifted when the new Milton to Waihola pipeline has been fully commissioned, including testing.

People on this scheme should ensure their tanks are flushed, serviced, and have sufficient capacity to hold a 2-day supply of water.

Council advices anyone using water from their tap for consumption (including teeth cleaning and food preparation such as washing fruit and vegetables) to boil it for 1 minute before it is used.

You can read our boil water FAQs at www.cluthadc.govt.nz/boil-water-faqs

You can fill your own clean containers with drinking water near the Waihola community hall.

About the aluminium advisory

An advisory is in place after a drinking water sample has returned results with an aluminium level exceeding the drinking water standard of 1mg/L.

This advisory will remain in place while treatment plant improvements are implemented. The most recent exceedance had reading of 1.23 mg/L on 7 October 2024 at North Bruce Circle Hill Road and a reading of 2.07 mg/L on 16 October 2024 at North Bruce Waihola Reservoir Inlet.

We recommend that you flush a mugful or two of water from your drinking water tap each morning prior to boiling your water for consumption.

Advice received is that no health effects would be expected at these levels of aluminium exposure, even if water was consumed over extended periods of time. This includes effects for people with kidney disease, infants, and children.

You can read more about the water advisory by visiting Council's frequently asked questions page

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