Ashburton District Council is encouraging all residents who draw their drinking water from private wells to ensure the water is regularly tested by a laboratory.

Council is responsible for ensuring residents connected to its public drinking water supplies receive water that is safe to drink, and that it complies with the national drinking water standards, but property owners with private wells must test their own.

Drinking water can be tested for nitrates and E. Coli, as well as metals and chemicals.

Council Chief Executive Hamish Riach said Council was aware drinking water in some parts of the district, like north-east Ashburton, might exceed recommended safe levels of nitrates.

“Along with community members, Council is concerned about the quality of the water in some areas and would like to remind residents of the need to have drinking water from private wells tested.

“Council supplies water to about 70 per cent of the district’s population and these reticulated public supplies are tested for a number of things, including nitrate, to look for any trends and to ensure the levels are safe and that the supplies are compliant with nitrate levels in the national drinking water standards.”

Council does not monitor the water quality of people who have their own water supply, but it provides on its website information about safe and healthy private water supplies and information about the risks from nitrates in groundwater.

You can get information about safe and healthy private water supplies from the Ministry of Health and information about the risks from nitrates in groundwater from Community and Public Health and Environment Canterbury.

Laboratories that supply a water testing service in Canterbury are:

• Eurofins Rolleston phone 03 343 5227
• Hills Chemistry phone 03 377 7176
• Analytica Laboratories phone 03 662 9357