The town has been plagued by issues with nitrate levels rendering the water undrinkable twice in the last three and a-half years.
Construction of the new water intake structure is happening concurrently with the installation of a new 4.3km raw water main between Bells Pond and the existing Ferry Rd bore site.
Waimate District Council chief executive Stuart Duncan said the work, which began earlier this month, ‘‘has provided a feeling of great relief as opposed to excitement’’.
‘‘I told our district that I am excited to be working towards putting this prickly issue behind us.
‘‘Council takes its responsibility to provide safe drinking water extremely seriously. The past few years have been distressing for the Lower Waihao consumers, we are glad that a solution is on the horizon.
‘‘The commencement of the project is a credit to the council assets and 3 Waters team.’’
The pipeline is expected to take three months to complete, but he did not give a timeline for the construction of the new water intake.
The next step in the process, after these two projects, is to upgrade the water treatment plant.
Mr Duncan said that work could take a year to complete ‘‘but there isn’t a confirmed commencement or completion date’’. ‘‘We are awaiting further details and undertaking financial due diligence.’’
