Pump may be temporary solution to water snag

Press, 13 November 1985, Page 7

Pump may be temporary solution to water snag

Horotane Valley’s water supply problems might be temporarily solved for this summer by installing another booster pump, according to the Heathcote County Council.

The council’s options for solving the valley’s low and sometimes non-existent water pressure in summer were discussed at a special meeting of the works and reserves committee yesterday.

The committee decided to have the council’s engineer, Mr David May, investigate whether a booster pump installed somewhere along the valley would help ease the problem. If it appeared it would, he would be authorised to proceed with the work as soon as possible.

No firm figures were available, but Mr May estimated a booster pump could cost between $4OOO and $lO,OOO. Cr F. R. Chapman voted against the decision and asked what the council would do if Mr May found

the booster pump idea would not work. He moved that the council continue with its plans to increase the valley’s water supply by piping from Chapmans Road, but this was defeated.

The committee appeared to feel an immediate solution was needed to get the valley’s residents through the summer with water, rather than having a longterm solution that would not help for some time. The council has had two projects under way to help the water-supply problem, but both have been delayed. In April, it decided to pipe water from Chapmans Road to link the valley with the council’s Hillsborough water supply, rather than using water bought from the Lyttelton Borough Council This work was expected to be finished before this summer.

But this plan was not acted upon because of another plan proposed by the Lyttelton Borough Council, said the committee’s chair-

man, Cr Peter McGrail, after the meeting. Lyttelton had planned to build a second reservoir to improve the quantity of water now supplied to the valley from one of its reservoirs. This work had been expected to be finished by December 1.

Lyttelton’s engineeer, Mr John Christensen, said last evening that his council had taken longer than expected to buy land for the job. The project was still not finally approved, as Lyttelton still had to hold a town-planning hearing to get final permission.

Cr McGrail said Heathcote had decided to go along with Lyttelton’s plans, “rather than pay out the capital and do our own plan.”

The situation now meant the committee’s resolution was a stopgap measure for this summer, and either or both of the original plans would still have to go ahead, he said. “Heathcote will lose all credibility if we cannot get

something done in the next 12 months.”

The council had changed the source of water for the residential area round Mauger Drive and Laing Crescent from the same supply as the Horotane Valley to the Hillsborough supply, which should help the problem, he said. Although there have been no shortages reported so far, Cr McGrail said Horotane residents, including himself, were worried that there would be a repeat of ‘last year’s fiasco.” “None of us had any water pressure for showers or baths for several days ... it wasn’t pleasant,” he said.

Another worry was the valley’s horticultural industry — apricots in particular. “Water is one of the main tools in this industry,” said Cr McGrail, who also grows apricots. “But the season so far this year has not been as dry as last year. Last year was one of the driest on record.”