Water quality results reinforce need for action
Hundreds of water samples taken from Ōtūwharekai Ashburton Lakes and streams over the past year confirm that water quality remains a concern, according to Environment Canterbury.
Dissolved iron in drinking water and reduced palatability can be a major problem, particularly for dairy farmers, who strive to get dairy cows to drink upwards of 70 litres of water per day for good production.
The Iron Out System from Longveld, based around a floating polymer media is capable of dealing with iron levels up to 50ppm, and producing from 12,000 to 200,000 litres of clean water per day.
In practice contaminated water is first passed through an aerator where hydrogen sulphide, the “bad egg” smell, and other gases are removed.
The aeration process causes the iron content to precipitate out as an insoluble compound, which is carried into the main separation area, and is trapped by the floating polymer filtering media. After passing through the media the “clean water” flows by gravity to a storage area.
Over time the media will become clogged and restrict water flow, which results in a drop in water level in the main tank, and an increase in the level of the main feed pipe, which in turn creates a vacuum, which instigates a “back-wash” cycle.
At this point flow is reversed and clean water flows back through the media and takes any collected impurities with it to a back wash collector, and away to waste. As the media is refreshed water flow increases, and the level rises and the cleaning cycle recommences.
As well as being fully automatic and very low maintenance, the process is chemically stable, impervious to bacteria, and the expected lifespan of the cleansing media is about 15 years.
'A lot of interest and positive responses' appears to be the way farmers are viewing the Government's initiative to hold a series of woolshed meetings around the country.
A Southland farming leader wants the regional council to delay a proposed regional rates hike, much of which is intended to fund flood protection works.
Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) says access to personal banking services in rural communities is fundamental to promoting outcomes that benefit Kiwi consumers.
A group set up to boost education and promotion of wool says it has made positive strides during the first year of its three-year strategy.
Meat processor ANZCO Foods says despite a challenging business environment, it has posted a net profit before tax of $61 million for 2023.
The deer industry is working on getting more venison into Asia.
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