Western News: April 27, 2023

Thursday April 27 2023 3
Sensors to monitor water quality
in real-time along the Avon River
NEW SMART sensors will
measure water quality every 15
minutes at four sites along the
Ōtākaro Avon River.
Monitoring sites have been
set up in Riccarton Drain,
Addington Brook, Dudley Creek
and near Gloucester St and will
test for a range of water health
indicators in real-time.
Smart Christchurch has
teamed up with Spark IoT and
specialist environmental monitoring
company Adroit to install
the sensors, which will enable
the city council to respond more
quickly to contamination events.
Each station is
powered by its
own solar panel
and takes water
measurements
every 15 minutes.
The data is then
Michael
Healy
uploaded to the
Adroit Cloud platform
via the Spark
DATA: Smart sensors will measure the water quality every 15 minutes at four sites along
the Ōtākaro Avon River.
PHOTO: NEWSLINE
Cat-M1 network.
The city council already monitors
river water quality, but this
has largely been done through
monthly grab sampling from 47
sites across the city 13 of which
are located on the Ōtākaro-Avon
River.
“There is currently up to a twoweek
delay in between taking
manual samples, testing them
and responding,” said the city
council’s Smart Christchurch
manager Michael Healy.
“What we’re hoping to see
from the introduction of Adroit
water quality monitoring is the
ability to see pollution events
unfold in real-time and potentially
take preventative action.”
Urban streams and stormwater
networks experience particularly
variable water quality due to
rapid run-off from roads and
paved surfaces after rain.
“We were looking for a continuous
water quality monitoring solution
that allows for the capture
and identification of water quality
variation that might otherwise be
missed,” said Healy.
“In the longer-term, as we
do more riparian planting and
other initiatives to enhance the
waterway, we can track the efficacy
of those measures and see
how we’re doing with the health
of our rivers.
“Our goal is to help restore a
healthy waterway that provides
a place for the whole community
to swim, fish and enjoy the environment.”
Both processes
will run in parallel
initially, to
enable the city
council to measure
the effectiveness
of the new
real-time sensors
in comparison to
manual testing.
Michelle
Wong
“Sustainability is front of mind
for a lot of people at the moment,
so it’s very pleasing to work on a
project like this, that can really
make a difference,” said Spark
IoT lead Michele Wong.
“By effectively monitoring
the river, water quality can
be improved, allowing the
Christchurch community to
enjoy our waterways as they were
intended.”
• You can check the water
quality on https://smartview.
ccc.govt.nz/environment/
androit
A word from Ilam MP
Sarah
Pallett
We’ve listened to feedback and
announced major changes to our
affordable water reforms, to deliver big
cost savings to Canterbury households
while also making sure that the work is
led and delivered at a regional level.
It’s no secret that our neglected water
services are facing a crisis and without
immediate action, households could
face annual rate increases of over
$4,000 - $9,000 per year in the future.
As a Government, we’re not prepared
to put this extra cost on Kiwis. That’s
why we’ve taken another look at our
water reform programme and come up
with a pragmatic solution.
Our affordable water reforms will fix
New Zealand’s water infrastructure and
make sure that households don’t foot
the bill through huge rate increases. It’s
a plan that will save families thousands
of dollars, with projected savings of
around $2,860 for households here in
Christchurch City in the future.
These changes strike a balance between
saving households from ballooning
costs while also being more locally led.
We’ve extended the number of publicly
owned water entities from four to
ten. That means every council, and
therefore every community, will have
a say over their local water services
entities. By setting up more water
entities, we’re making sure that the
needs of every community, including
small rural towns, are heard and met.
The water entities will be publicly
owned, and regionally led by industry
professionals who will be appointed by
local representatives.
Our plan will make sure that
New Zealanders, no matter where
they live, can access safe, reliable, and
affordable drinking water now, and into
the future.
If you want to find out more, visit
waterservicesreform.govt.nz
Funded by Parliamentary Service. Authorised by Sarah Pallett MP, Parliament Buildings, Wellington.
Bin Good with
recycling
By putting the right clean items in the yellow bin,
you’re helping to reduce waste going to landfill.
These are the only items that can go in the
yellow bin:
Remember:
Give your bottles
and containers a rinse
and make sure they
are loose.
Plastic bottles & containers
numbered 1, 2 and 5
(3 litres and under and put lids
in the red bin)
Flattened cardboard
and paper
(no smaller than a standard envelope)
Glass bottles and jars
(put lids in the red bin)
Aluminium cans
and metal tins
(please don’t squash)
Thanks for
bin good
If you need more
info download our
handy Christchurch
Bins app
ccc.govt.nz/bin-app