Water New Zealand has just launched a major survey which it hopes will help the water sector grapple with the growing challenges around planning and managing the country’s water resources.
It is the first national comprehensive survey of its type and aims to gauge New Zealanders’ attitudes and concerns about water issues – from sustainability and quality issues to how to manage aging infrastructure and increasing urbanisation.
Water New Zealand Chief Executive John Pfahlert says the country’s future prosperity is inextricably linked to how well our water resources will meet the needs of a growing population, diversified industries and protection of the environment.
He says recent events such as the Havelock North water contamination have helped focus attention on what is an essential resource that most of us take for granted.
“Water is one of the most essential services that local authorities provide to customers every day yet it is a service that most people don’t fully understand and that means there is a risk that they can lose trust in a provider.
“In general, New Zealanders get great service from their water service providers at very little cost, but it is important that those providers remain responsive to communities’ needs and expectations.
“Those of us in the business of providing water services need to understand what customers and communities think, including their values, how satisfied they are with the level and cost of infrastructure and whether water quality issues are being adequately addressed.”
He says the information gathered will be used by water providers and utilities to help in future planning and ensuring customers’ needs are being met.
The survey is expected to run for about six weeks and it is hoped that the findings will be presented at the Water New Zealand Conference in September.
Go to www.nzwatersurvey.co.nz to take part in the survey.
Water quality is the life blood of a country.
National and MSM are treating us like morons, by referring to rivers as wadeable, swimmable, drinkable ?
All water standards should have chemical and biological measurements/standards measuring nitrogen and phosphate levels, e coli levels etc and if they do not meet these standards it needs to be sorted out.
Allowing Councils to discharge effluent into our rivers, streams and habours is deplorable and we are just trashing the environment for future generations including creating a potential Public Health Risk.
Farmers discharging effluent and allowing run off into streams and waterways should also be brought to account, however it appears Councils and Government organisations are reluctant to do their jobs properly ?
NZ Water Quality = JOKE
Water quality is the life blood of a country.
National and MSM are treating us like morons, by referring to rivers as wadeable, swimmable, drinkable ?
All water standards should have chemical and biological measurements/standards measuring nitrogen and phosphate levels, e coli levels etc and if they do not meet these standards it needs to be sorted out.
Allowing Councils to discharge effluent into our rivers, streams and habours is deplorable and we are just trashing the environment for future generations including creating a potential Public Health Risk.
Farmers discharging effluent and allowing run off into streams and waterways should also be brought to account, however it appears Councils and Government organisations are reluctant to do their jobs properly ?
NZ Water Quality = JOKE
Excellently put Jack.
Road pollution runoff of tyre dust oil exhaust and brake contaminants are pouring into our steams and lakes rives and ocean now.
So a constant chemical analysis must be carried out monthly in water and more importantly now by scrapping some of the under water sediment and laboratory mass spectrometry (GCMS) analysis must be also surveyed for these toxic “inert” petroleum based contaminants that cause cancer and other serious diseases.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231014003732
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1469526/
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