In a service delivery committee meeting agenda, council infrastructure strategy manager Russell Bond reported that as the water services maintenance contract would be renewed in the coming year, the council would expect to see an increase in the plant operations area to ensure it was managed correctly.
It was a requirement for the council to have a water safety plan and identify ways to minimise potential risks at treatment plants.
Stage one of the Havelock North drinking water inquiry was released in May and Mr Bond provided a section of the report to the council for information purposes.
Mr Bond said while the design of the Havelock North water supply was not unique, the Clutha district did not have any water supplies that were not chlorinated.
''Even in our smaller plants with minimal treatment, we've already got chlorine dosing.''
This reduced the risk of water being affected by bacteria such as campylobacter or salmonella.
However, four of the Clutha district's water supplies - Evans Flat, Glenkenich, Owaka and Clydevale Pomahaka - relied solely on chlorination as a treatment process.
In terms of public health risk, Evans Flat and Glenkenich posed the greatest risk because they were sourced from a stream within rural catchments and did not have the filtering effects of a bore source.
''They [the two treatment plants] do have a lower level of treatment than some of our other plants and those treatments are a barrier of protection to clean the water to a higher level.''
There were plans to upgrade the plants to reduce the risk.
Mr Bond believed the upgrade projects would be completed in the next 12 months.
A second stage of the inquiry into the Havelock North incident was anticipated closer to Christmas.
Mr Bond did not know what the inquiry would reveal or how it would impact the council and the Clutha district.
One of the difficulties identified in Havelock North was understanding risks associated with the drinking water supply as well as managing and monitoring the risks and events as they developed.
