Poor Water Quality Making Canterbury Beaches not Suitable for Swimming
January 4, 2023
PHOTO: Supplied to RNZ / Ellen Rykers
Canterbury Regional Council says the grading of water as unsuitable for swimming at popular Christchurch beaches has been made to protect people’s health.
Several beaches in Whakaraupō/Lyttelton Harbour have been deemed unsuitable due to high levels of contaminants in the water.
Council water quality team leader Shirley Hayward said the water quality in these areas has consistently failed to meet Ministry of Health guidelines.
The grading was based on the past five years of data.
“But in particular last summer there was a number of rainfall events that probably affected the water quality, resulting in increased runoff of faecal bacteria,” she said.
“The difficulty we have is we can’t always identify the causes of faecal contamination.”
Corsair Bay, Cass Bay, Rāpaki Bay, Sandy Bay, Diamond Harbour Beach, Purau Beach and Akaroa Beach have all been deemed unsafe.