Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Keep conserving water, Christchurch residents told

Keep conserving water, Christchurch residents told

NICOLE MATHEWSON
Last updated 05:00 16/03/2011
 
 
Christchurch residents are asked to continue conserving water, with much of the city's water and sewerage systems still "fragile".

Water has been restored to 94 per cent of households, but the Canterbury District Health Board has advised people to use water sparingly, including taking short showers and flushing toilets infrequently.

People should not water gardens and should turn off home irrigation systems, it said.

Water should be boiled, even if chlorine is present, or treated by adding one teaspoon of household bleach to 10 litres of water and left for 30 minutes.

Commercial operators, such as car-wash firms, have been given permission to resume trading.

The Emergency Operations Centre said commercial use was permitted, but it "strongly requests that organisations consider the fragile nature of the water-supply system in many parts of the city".

The Clean chief executive Duncan McEwan said his car-cleaning company was "extremely concerned" about conserving water and using the sewerage system to dispose of trade waste.

The company's three Christchurch sites were structurally sound after last month's earthquake but did not resume trading until given permission by the Christchurch City Council last week, he said.

The Christchurch International Airport site ran on a separate water supply from the rest of Christchurch City, and the Riccarton site did not use any water or trade-waste infrastructure. The company's Blenheim Rd site used city infrastructure.

EziWash in Addington has closed until further notice, with the company's website saying water and power conservation are key issues. Its Selwyn St site was damaged in the February 22 quake.

Espresso Carwash Cafe operate five sites around Christchurch. The company's sites at Ferrymead and The Palms are closed until further notice, but the Lincoln Rd, Northlands and Hornby sites have reopened.

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