Precautionary Health Warning - Mana Bay

Precautionary warning signs have been put up at Mana Bay and the Patea Boat ramp last night after a small amount of diluted wastewater was discharged into the Pātea River following yesterday’s heavy rainfall event.

South Taranaki District Council operations manager, Herbert Denton says the overflow was very dilute and occurred for a period less than 30 minutes, however warning signs have been put up as a precaution, advising people not to collect fish/shellfish and plant life or come into contact with the water.

The warning signs will remain up for a couple of days following Council’s standard procedure.

“As a general rule 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. That’s because heavy rain flushes contaminants from urban and rural land into waterways.”