District council chief engineer Ulrich Glasner said the council's proposed 10-year long-term plan will be put out for public consultation in late March or early April. It will include a proposal to have only one Wanaka freshwater intake and installing a multi-barrier treatment.
At present, Wanaka has two freshwater intakes, one at West Wanaka on the north shore of Roys Bay and the other at Beacon Point.
Chlorination is the only treatment used on Wanaka water.
Mr Ulrich said decommissioning the West Wanaka intake and consolidating to one freshwater intake would significantly reduce the council's capital costs as it would require the council to build only one water treatment plant.
He said the proposed multi-barrier filtration treatment plus chlorination would bring
Wanaka water up to compliance with drinking water standards.
It would also address low water pressure issues affecting households in Heaton Park and in Mt Aspiring Rd, it would meet the increasing demand for more water for Wanaka's expanding subdivisions and ``it would filter out the algae so it is not ending up at the customer's gate so to speak'', he said.
Scientists have confirmed lake snow does not present a health risk, but it can cause a nuisance by blocking up water filters at commercial premises and in residential appliances such as dishwashers and washing machines.
QLDC deputy mayor Calum MacLeod said money had been set aside for the project and it was scheduled for the second to fourth year of the proposed LTP.
