Pond eels will need to get a wriggle on

An estimated 80,000 eels will need to be rehomed when new sewage ponds are completed outside Masterton.

The eels are resident in the old sewage ponds, and must be shifted to the new ponds as a switch to the new sewage treatment plant approaches.

Masterton District Council special projects manager Ian Steer has been charged with helping the eels squirm across dry land to their new home.

"What we plan to do is slowly wind back the flow into the old ponds over three to six months and with the aerators off the oxygen levels will drop," Mr Steer said.

"That should encourage the eels to migrate over land to the new ponds and take up residence there."

The eels would need to travel 10m to 15m to the new ponds.

Eels move on land by bending their bodies into waves, and generally travel at night to use dew to aid their movement.

"I am hoping they will get the message that a much better home is nearby, but if some eels remain as the water dries up, and the sludge remains, we will get contractors to draw nets across the old ponds, capture them and convey them to the new ponds."

Mr Steer said the eel numbers were based on farm-dam estimates.

"It is generally accepted that a farm dam contains 3500 eels per hectare, so with 23ha of sewage ponds we would expect 80,000 eels."

The eels are welcome residents, as they help with "biological processes".

The old ponds are likely to be empty by around May or June next year.