As summer fun beckons, the Otago Regional Council has added four new sites to its recreational water monitoring programme.
The new sites are Pinders Pond in Roxburgh, the Clutha River boat ramp at Dunorling St in Alexandra, a bridge at the former Graves dam site on the Waianakarua River in North Otago and a site in Oamaru harbour.
This means 31 swimming sites across Otago will be tested weekly for bacteria and 11 sites will be tested for toxic algae.
Council senior scientist, water quality and programme lead Rachel Ozanne said every year the council’s water scientists checked popular swimming spots around Otago to see if those rivers, lakes and streams were safe to swim in.
"In recent years, we’ve added more sites to provide more certainty to more people across Otago, by covering the more well-used summer recreational areas."
The weekly sample result was a "snapshot in time," Ms Ozanne said.
"It tells you what the water quality was like at the time of sampling."
