Napier residents have increasingly reported brown or black discoloured water coming out of their taps over the past year or so, with many growing increasingly frustrated at what they believe is a lack of action from Napier City Council (NCC) to fix the discolouration issues.
The lab test was completed by the Ministry of Health-recognised and IANZ-accredited Analytical Research Lab on December 10 after a resident became fed up with the quality of her tap water and decided to have it tested at her own cost.
The test results show a manganese level of 3.52mg/L in the water sampled – almost nine times higher than the Ministry of Health’s (MoH) Maximum Acceptable Value of 0.4mg/L, which is outlined in the Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand.
Mr Kingsford confirmed the discolouration of water in Napier is in fact being caused by high manganese and iron content contained in the biofilm being flushed out of the pipes.
He re-affirmed the council’s stance that the discoloured water is not likely to be harmful to human health, saying "discoloured water in public water pipes does not cause health issues".
"My main concern would be for infants on formula and would suggest that concerned residents use bottled water to prepare formula – formula can contain high levels of manganese normally and infants take up manganese more readily than adults so I would always err on the side of caution, but the risks are likely to be low.
The US state of Minnesota’s Department of Health said in March this year that "children and adults who drink water with high levels of manganese for a long time may have problems with memory, attention, and motor skills.
"Infants (babies under 1 year old) may develop learning and behavior problems if they drink water with too much manganese in it."
Many residents spoken to by 1 NEWS said they have lived in Napier for decades and have never had discolouration issues prior to the chlorination of the network in 2017.
"Council staff take great care in the work they do and are acutely aware of the impact the water supply operation can have on our community.