Results from 2008-09

Key Points

· 22 coastal sites were safe for swimming 100% of the time

· 7 were safe on all but one occasion

· 12 safe on all but two occasions

· 2 freshwater sites safe for 100% of the time

· 5 safe on all but one occasion

· 5 sites safe less than 50% of the time

Results Summary

In 2008-09, 22 coastal sites were safe for swimming 100% of the time. A further seven were safe on all but one sampling occasion (90-99% compliance) and 12 were safe on all but two sampling occasions (75-89% compliance).

Two coastal sites were unsafe for swimming 50% of the time – Ngunguru at toilets and Tinopai below the creek. These two sites are both in enclosed coastal locations and have a freshwater input, which appears to be the source of contamination.

In 2008-09, two freshwater sites were safe for swimming 100% of the time; five were safe on all but one sampling occasion and seven on all but two sampling occasions. Five freshwater sites were safe for swimming for less than 50% of the time. These sites were Otaua Stream, Otamure Beach stream, Lang's Beach stream, Kerikeri River at the Stone Store and Coopers Beach stream.

In addition to sampling for swimming water quality, fifteen sites were also sampled in 2008-09 to test their suitability for recreational shellfish gathering. Of these fifteen sites only one, Oakura, was found to have water quality that complied with the recommended guidelines for shellfish gathering.