Health Warning for Ōpunakē Lake

South Taranaki District Council (STDC) regulatory manager, Chantelle Denton, has today issued a health warning for Ōpunakē Lake.

“Routine sampling by the Taranaki Regional Council has found high levels of Escherichia coli (E.coli) at this location. Visitors to this site should not collect shellfish and plant life or come into contact with the water,” says Chantelle.

“Keep your pets away from the water too as they can also be affected,” she says.

Warning signs have been erected.

Further water samples will be taken next week, and the warning signs will be removed when the levels are considered safe.

Chantelle reminds people that the general rule is to not swim after heavy rainfall.

“Heavy rain flushes contaminants from urban and rural land into waterways and we always advise people not to swim in streams/rivers for at least three days after heavy or prolonged rainfall – even if a site usually has good water quality.”