Bay Harbour: July 25, 2018

PAGE 8 Wednesday July 25 2018
BAY HARBOUR
Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi
News
Akaroa firefighters
turn out to
smoking chimneys
• By Sarla Donovan
THE AKAROA Volunteer Fire
Brigade has been called to two
chimney fires in Duvauchelle over
the past week.
An elderly woman phoned
the brigade at about 8.30am on
Monday morning when her house
filled with smoke. The woman had
begun lighting her woodburner
when smoke began billowing out.
Chief fire officer Mark Thomson
said the woman had done “all the
right things” by closing doors and
going outside.
The brigade took 10min to arrive
and there was no damage to the
house, however the house needed
to be ventilated.
Mr Thomson said the chimney
was clean and the cause was
likely to be atmospheric conditions
causing a back draft to blow back
down.
A similar situation triggered a
call out to the Duvauchelle Hotel
last week. Smoke detectors were
triggered when the fire was lit and
smoke filled the room.
“I think what happens is when
they turn the Xpelair on in the
kitchen, if they don’t have a
window open it sucks the smoke
back down the chimney,” said Mr
Thomson.
By the time the brigade arrived
the smoke had already been cleared.
Local
News
Now
Satellites pinpoint 8000 springs
• By Stacey Bryan
RESEARCHERS HAVE used
satellite imagery to discover
more than 8000 springs on
Banks Peninsula – far more
than the 42 previously recorded.
The communities of Banks
Peninsula are completely
reliant on rain
water, which is
absorbed into
the ground and
comes to the
surface at the
springs.
Canterbury
Fiona Nicol
University
lecturer Sam
Hampton presented his research
on the hydrogeology of the peninsula
in Lyttelton last week.
Dr Hampton worked with a
team of students from Frontiers
Abroad Aotearoa and other
university scientists, mapping
the geology and hydrology of
the peninsula.
Environment Canterbury
had previously mapped only
42 springs in the area, but
the local community always
thought there were a lot more
than that.
ECan’s chief scientist Tim
Davie said Dr Hampton’s
research had substantially
improved their understanding
of water sources on Banks
Peninsula.
His findings gave a “better
idea of how to protect water
quality in the source area of
the spring water so that we can
maintain really good water
quality for Banks Peninsula.”
As well as coming up with
an accurate map of springs,
the researchers also found that
springs located in forested areas
had higher flow rates than those
in grassy areas, and suggested
ways to improve and protect
spring water sources.
The springs are fed by rain
water and Dr Hampton said
where there was more forest
cover, there seemed to be more
precipitation and therefore more
recharge.
“What we’re potentially seeing
here is [that] deforestation has
had a massive influence in terms
of the flow rate and output of
the springs.”
Given the findings, Dr
Hampton said springs could be
a secure, good-quality source of
Fire rages, homes at risk
RESEARCH:
Canterbury
University
lecturer Sam
Hampton
presented
his research
on the
hydrogeology
of the
peninsula in
on Tuesday.
PHOTO:
STACEY
BRYAN ​
water on a smaller community
scale, but future water management
would need to be done on
a bay-by-bay basis.
Banks Peninsula Water Management
Zone Joint Committee
community representative Fiona
Nicol said peninsula communities
had managed spring water
well for the last 100 years and
the council could learn from
that.
“We can work with the council,”
she said, “but it has to be
community led.”
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