Problems with the water supply for Lake Roxburgh village have cost the Roxburgh Community Board more than $6000 in seven months.
The supply is drawn from Lake Roxburgh and caters for 42 houses. Every time there is heavy rainfall in the headwaters, the water becomes discoloured, the village residents are advised to boil the water and tankers of clean water are provided.
Since September, Lake Roxburgh residents have had to boil their water on six occasions.
The Roxburgh Community Board was told on Monday its wastewater and water account was overspent by $6100 because of four of these incidents.
"Since then, there's been two more, so it'll end up costing us even more," board chairman Stephen Jeffery said.
Each time the board had to advertise the notice to boil water and hire a tanker to provide clean drinking water.
"Nobody wants to fix up this water supply more than us guys," Mr Jeffery said.
The Central Otago District Council's utility services manager, Peter Greenwood, said the council had applied for a government subsidy to upgrade the water supply, but it was still waiting to hear the outcome of that application.
Every time there was heavy rain in the Manuherikia, Clutha or Shotover rivers, there seemed to be problems with the Lake Roxburgh water supply being cloudy, Mr Greenwood said.
The problem remained for up to a week at a time.
The cost of providing water would have to be borne by the board until it could upgrade the water supply.
"Of course we can't tell people they can't have clean water, so providing a tanker is really the only option for now," he said.
