New water regulations
Taumata Arowai is the regulator for New Zealand water suppliers.
This week they released the new rules and regulations for water suppliers.
A water supplier is deemed:
Any water piped from a source to more than one household. This includes piped supply to a school, Marae or community buildings.
If the water supply is town supplied water, the supplier is the local council, so if you are living or working when water is supplied by town supply, only the local council will need to change their policies.
These rules and regulations do not affect people who are in one house that has one supply.
There are a number of categories of suppliers and each one has different rules and regulations for treatment and monitoring.
Here are the categories:
a) Very Small Community (VSC). Drinking water supplies of any configuration or arrangement that provide drinking water to a population of up to 25 people (excluding a domestic self supplied home). In circumstances when the population supplied fluctuates, the population supplied may increase to up to 50 people for up to 60 days in any 12 month period. Compliant to VSC (monitoring every 6 months of E-Coli, total coliforms - reporting annually)
b) Level 1: Small 26 – 100 people. Varying Population module requirements can apply to this drinking water supply category. Compliant to Level 1 (monitoring every 3 months of E-Coli, total coliforms and turbidity - reporting annually). All water supplied must be treated via 5 micron filtration and Class A UV. Backflow and cross connection risk need to be eliminated and assessed.
c) Level 2: Medium 101 – 500 people. Varying Population module requirements can apply to this drinking water supply category. Compliant to Level 2 (monitoring every month on a number of items, reporting annually). A number of treatment processes needed.
d) Level 3: Large >500 people. Compliant to Level 3 (quite complex, ask for information)
The main point of the new rules and regulations is to ensure that all potable water is free from e-coli, total coliforms and meets drinking water quality and aesthetic standards. The most important component is water that is free from e-coli and total coliforms.
Generally there is a simple solution to your water purification so these standards are met.
Cloud Water Purification has established processes and filtration products to support these regulations and most of them are not overly expensive.
Here is the process:
Water testing - This needs to be completed by a registered IANZ lab. This includes Hill Laboratories who can send out a testing kit. We can also organise testing for a location and get it tested. Depending on your level of supply will depend on your testing/monitoring schedule.
Treatment - The test results will determine what is needed to be purified. Most of the time a standard 5 micron twin filter unit and UV filter are necessary. These start from $2220+GST fully installed.
Reporting - This most likely occurs once a year at the beginning of February depending on your level.
There will be a need to be registered with Taumata Arowai so that the reporting process is easily recognised and straight forward.
Some more information on our Three Waters page