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Kaipara District Council is asking Mangawhai house owners and residents on the wastewater system to flush water through their drains, toilets and showers to prevent gases from backing up into their homes.
Recent monitoring at pumpstations has detected elevated levels of hydrogen sulphide in the pipes coming from houses and the wastewater network. Hydrogen sulphide is the key odour contaminant from wastewater systems – in low concentrations it has the distinctive smell of rotten eggs.
While elevated levels of the gas are not unusual, it has triggered Council to ask residents, and bach owners in particular, to run water through their systems and make sure their p-traps are working as they should.
“If you have been away for a while and smell odour, we ask that you open up windows and doors when you arrive, and do a quick run of all your taps, showers, baths, flush the toilets, anything with a drain that connects to the system,” acting general manager for infrastructure services Anin Nama says.
Nama believes the elevated levels are due in part to some house connections not being used often, causing wastewater to stagnate in some pipes and release hydrogen sulphide as it breaks down. Breathing high levels of hydrogen sulphide in confined spaces can be fatal.
“We’re keen that people know how important a functioning p-trap is so they can take their own preventative measures. We’re keeping a close eye on the hydrogen sulphide levels and are taking necessary actions to reduce the gas to an acceptable level.”
