While national media attention is focused on the people of Raetihi after the September 27 Turoa diesel spill, the area's farmers are also feeling the strain.
Several farmers draw from the contaminated Makotuku Stream for their stock and irrigation and are receiving advice and assistance from the Ruapehu District Council, Civil Defence and the Ruapehu-Wanganui Rural Support Trust.
Lyn Neeson, trustee and co-ordinator for the trust, said she had been in touch with many farmers in and around Raetihi who have been coping well with the water shortage.
"Some have moved their stock off-farm or on to paddocks with an alternative water source. Some have been buying infrastructure - tanks, pumps etc - but that's mainly for house use," she said.
"The problems will probably come later, with having to clear the lines and troughs once the new water comes through, but we don't know how big that will be."