Whaka penny divers told to avoid stream

Whakarewarewa Village's iconic penny divers have been told to stay out of Puarenga Stream because it could be polluted.
Children have been diving in the stream for pennies thrown into the water by tourists for nearly 100 years and carry the coins in their mouths. They have been warned to stay out of the stream which Tuhourangi spokesman Wally Lee says has been tested and shown to be contaminated. Bay of Plenty Regional Council has conducted further tests and is awaiting the results.
Mr Lee featured on Maori Television's current affairs show Native Affairs claiming the water in the stream, which runs through Whakarewarewa Village to Lake Rotorua, contains high levels of PCP and E coli.
Antisapstain chemical pentachlorophenol (PCP) was used to treat timber at the former Waipa Mill before it was banned in the late 1980s.
Symptoms of PCP exposure may include stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, rapid breathing, fever, sweating and weakness and the body temperature may rise to high levels. There is also the risk of a severe skin condition, chloracne, like acne in appearance but often more widespread.
Mr Lee says other waterways which run into Puarenga also capture rubbish and run-off, further contaminating the stream.
He has made a submission to the Rotorua District Council's draft Annual Plan 2011/12 about the quality of the water in the stream.
In his submission, Mr Lee said the Puarenga Catchment was made up of several streams which converge at the Hemo Gorge, forming the Puarenga Stream. The streams are the Tureporepo Stream, which flows past the Rotorua Landfill and the Kauaka Stream, which runs along State Highway 5.
Mr Lee said the streams captured "untold amounts" of rubbish and run-off from both the road and industries in the area which then flowed into the Puarenga Stream and Lake Rotorua.
Tests undertaken by Maori Television showed 0.1 parts per billion (PPB) of PCP and 610 of E coli per 100ml in water 4km upstream from the penny divers.
Mr Lee said on the current affairs programme this was not a new problem and the water quality in the stream had been deteriorating for several years.
The stream water is not used for drinking but concerns residents because the children often swallow water when swimming and penny diving.
The show reported children in the area had been told not to use the stream for fear of getting sick.
Rotorua's Josh Clarke, 20, told The Daily Post he used to be a penny diver when he was about 10 and it was so clear then, he could see the bottom of the stream.
He had heard about issues with the water being polluted.
"It's not good if the kids are swimming in polluted water," he said.
Mr Clarke said the source of the problem needed to be found.
Waiariki MP Te Ururoa Flavell said the results of the tests were concerning and that the agencies concerned need to work together to fix the problem.
"The whanau from Whakarewarewa Village have approached me for help and I'll be supporting their calls, not just to heal and make the stream safe, to ensure the water quality is monitored properly and independently and research is done on alternatives so we don't see a repeat of this," he said.
"I'm very disappointed that the authorities responsible for monitoring the stream failed to pick up what a current affairs programme did and I'm saddened to hear that the children, who we call the penny divers, have been led to believe for so many years now that the stream was safe when in actual fact it wasn't."
Mr Flavell said with the Rugby World Cup approaching the contaminated water was not a good look for Rotorua or New Zealand.
He said local government, the company, public health authorities and tourism groups must work with Tuhourangi to fix the problem.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council lake operations manager Andy Bruere said water quality in waterways across Rotorua was an issue which was being fixed.
He said the $2 million restoration which was happening region-wide would help clean up Rotorua's waterways.
"These allegations would likely be caused by historic allegations of PCP dumping," he said.
"There have also been some recent allegations which we are looking into."
Mr Bruere said it would be foolish to advise people to continue swimming in the stream until an investigation was complete.
"We have taken samples and will be doing an investigation," he said.