People in two coastal Otago towns are furious over the length of time it took authorities to warn them about toxic levels of lead in their water. A mining company says it is not the source of the lead that has contaminated the drinking water supplies of two Otago towns. The Otago Regional Council also retested the Waikouaiti River, where the township’s water was sourced, on Thursday. The company tested water around the mining site each month for multiple trace elements, including lead. The operation had not recorded any results even close to the New Zealand drinking water standard of 0.01g/m3, she said.

Source: Stuff February 05, 2021 01:30 UTC