STACY SQUIRES/Things
A spokesman for the Timaru district council said on Sunday that demand for water in the district was higher than expected on Saturday. (File photo)
An urgent plea to conserve water on Timaru’s stock seemed to work Sunday, but there is no immediate end in sight to the conservation declaration.
Consumers on the Timaru offering were first warned about an emerging problem a week ago and it was upgraded to a “urgent water saving message” on Friday because the stock was running out.
A council spokesman said on Sunday that while demand for water in the district was higher than expected on Saturday, “currently a little more treated water is coming into the reservoir than is being taken out, so that’s a positive sign that people are getting this started.” and contribute their part”.
“Things are going in the right direction at the moment, but it is important that people continue to save on water.
“It just takes another storm to get through and cloud our resources to go back to the beginning, so the more treated water we have stored, the better.”
When asked how long the conservation statement is expected to last, the spokesman said “as long as necessary” and it would depend on the weather and the quality of the rivers.
The Council has previously warned that if the conservation plea is not followed, it will be forced to impose a boiling water notice for the scheme.
The spokesman said municipal staff are doing their best to fill the reservoir as quickly as possible, but they need the community to help by reducing the amount they withdraw.
“The drinking water that comes out of people’s taps meets the required standards at all times.
“The raw water from the Pareora well has been improved so that we can now treat it and meet the required drinking water standards.
“The treatment plant has been in operation since yesterday (Saturday) evening and is filling the treated water reservoir, but it remains very low.”
They said this is a critical time when they still need the help of the community.
“There are limits to how quickly we can treat our water, so the less demand we have, the faster we can refill the reservoir and the more we can store in case of another weather event.
“We want to take this opportunity to thank the community for what they’ve done so far, and ask them to keep going a little longer so we can get through this.”
The spokesperson said there were no official reports of people using water outdoors, which they hope is a sign that people are taking this seriously.