Drinking Water
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The Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand are the government issued regulatory requirements for the consumption of drinking water.
Drinking water quality will vary greatly depending on rainfall run-off and the land use of the surrounding catchment. It is always advisable to check whether your drinking water meets the requirements of the Water Services (Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand) Regulations 2022. This is especially important as water quality is largely impacted by the local environment and can be impacted by contaminants such as nitrates and E. coli.
We are an IANZ accredited Drinking Water laboratory allowing us to perform testing to meet the requirements of the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules 2022. For more information click here to link to Taumata Arowai
The Routine (Basic) Water Profile includes the following:
| TEST | TYPICAL RANGE | NZDWS 2005 Maximum Acceptable Value (MAV) | COMMENT |
| pH | 5.5 - 7.5 | 7.0 - 8.5 (Guideline Value) | Groundwater that is low in pH can attack copper piping leading to high levels of dissolved copper. |
| Conductivity | NA | <1500us/cm | Important for ion balance check and other parameter estimation. Used to calculate TDS. |
| TDS | 10-500mg/L | <1000 mg/L | Bores close to the ocean can have elevated levels. Water from limestone aquifers can also be high in TDS. |
| Alkalinity | NA | NA | Important for interpretation and other parameter estimation. |
| Calcium | NA | NA | Major ion, used to calculate hardness. |
| Magnesium | NA | NA | Major ion, used to calculate hardness. |
| Hardness | 0.1 - 2 mg/L | <200 mg/L | High hardness may cause scale deposition and scum formation. Water with low hardness (<100) may be more corrosive. |
| Sodium | NA | <200 mg/L | Major ion, indicative of salt water intrusion, can cause taste problems. |
| Potassium | NA | NA | Major ion. |
| Nitrate | NA | <11.3 mg/L | Important nutrient indicative of fertiliser application and other anthropogenic inputs, health concern (can cause methaemoglobinaemia in bottle fed infants) |
| Chloride | NA | <250 mg/L | Major ion, indicative of salt-water intrusion, can cause taste and corrosion problems. |
| Sulphate | NA | <250 mg/L | Major ion, can cause taste problems. |
| Boron | NA | <1.4 mg/L | Has been detected in some bores from Geothermal sources. |
| Iron | 0.1 - 2 mg/L | <0.2 mg/L | High iron is not a health issue, but can lead to staining of laundry and sanitary ware. |
| Manganese | <0.05 mg/L | <0.04 mg/L
<0.10 mg/L |
Staining of laundry
Taste Threshold |
| Copper | NA | <2 mg/L | Can be leached from copper piping by acidic/corrosive water. |
| Zinc | NA | <1.5 mg/L | Can be present due to galvanised metal piping. |
| EColi | Not usually detected | <1 in 100mL of sample | Generally not an issue for groundwater but can be detected in shallow bores. |
| Arsenic | NA | 0.01 mg/L | Arsenic may be naturally present at high levels in groundwater and is highly toxic in its inorganic form. |
| Lead | NA | 0.01 mg/L | Lead is a toxic metal whose widespread historical use (e.g. roof flashing, lead based paint and petrol additive) has caused extensive environmental contamination and health problems. |
| Turbidity | NA | 2.5 NTU (Guideline Value) | Elevated turbidity can affect the efficiency of domestic water treatment processes. |
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