Lake Ferry set to lose smelly problem

Problems with effluent contamination at the coastal settlement of Lake Ferry are a significant step closer to being remedied.
A contract for a wastewater treatment plant, part of a system that has been on the drawing boards for years, has been awarded to Innflow Technologies Limited, an Auckland company.
The other part of the system is for wastewater reticulation, the contract for which is still being worked on.
The new treatment and disposal methods involve storing solids on-site for periodic removal, pumping liquid effluent to a treatment plant built on higher ground, behind the settlement, where it will be biologically treated and disposed of into the soil by an underground drip line.
South Wairarapa district council works and services manager Ravi Mangar said the installation of the treatment plant should be done by early September, and the reticulation system by the end of the year.
"Work should be started and finished quite quickly, it doesn't take much time to install."
The need for an improved wastewater system at Lake Ferry arose when water quality testing at the settlement identified effluent contamination of shallow groundwater and surface water.
Such contaminations are considered a public health hazard.
Like most rural and small communities, Lake Ferry houses currently use septic tanks.
Mr Mangar said the lot sizes at Lake Ferry are not large enough to contain the effluent, and the soil quality is not very good for soakage.
This meant there was some seepage, which could be detected through smells being emitted from roadside drains.
He said getting the scheme this far has taken 11 years of work to achieve.
"It has taken a long time to come to this stage. It has taken since I arrived here in 1995, doing surveys and reports.
"We did surveys for all the coastal settlements, and Lake Ferry had more problems than the others. That is the way we've come to this stage."
He said the system they have chosen is made up of modular units that can be expanded quite easily if the need arises.
Lake Ferry resident and businesswoman Mary Tipoki said she was glad that after years of waiting things are finally starting to happen.
"I think it is more than 11 years ago that we were advised that a scheme was urgent. It's been pending for a long time, and no doubt the council has had a big job bringing it to fruition. They'll be pleased.
"I think it has grown awareness that sewage has to be dealt with differently than in the past."