Kāpiti Coast District Council is providing reassurance that its public water supplies are safe to drink in the wake of the gastro illness outbreak in Queenstown.

Kāpiti water treatment plants manager Bruce Nesbitt said all Council’s public water supplies are treated with high-intensity ultraviolet (UV) light, which creates a protective barrier against the protozoa cryptosporidium (crypto).

“Kāpiti locals have nothing to be concerned about, as all council water supplies in our district are continuously treated with UV light and have been for some time.

“Crypto is notoriously difficult to detect but we regularly test for E.coli, which can indicate if something more serious needs to be tested for. Thankfully, we have no problems with this either,” Mr Nesbitt said.

All our district’s water treatment plants fully comply with Taumata Arowai Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules 2022, he said.

Anyone travelling to the Queenstown area for the school holidays should only drink water that has been bottled or boiled, and practice good hand hygiene, especially after using the bathroom, changing baby nappies, handling animals or gardening, and before cooking or eating.

Crypto is a parasite found in the gut of infected animals and people. It is passed on in poo contaminating water supplies. It can also be spread by contaminated hands. The most common symptoms are smelly, watery diarrhoea and stomach cramps.

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