Touchstone

Touchstone The Touchstone Project is a direct action initiative to support those concerned about the Lake Wanaka water catchment and to help educate those who are not.

'Touchstone' - refers to the lake being an assimilator of all human activity in the surrounding catchment. Water bodies such as large lakes are often referred to as “touchstones” of the past. The Touchstone Project is a direct action initiative to support those concerned about the Lake Wanaka water catchment, raise awareness of impacts around the lake, and how you (yes you, you reading this) can h

ave a positive influence on the water in the lake. By working with people who 'do stuff' - those making tangible differences, and by starting to gather and understand information about what effects our lake we can start to carry out actions that directly improve the lakes values and support everything we like about living near lake Wanaka. The Lake is our ’Touchstone', as such we need to help manage it. Our Citizen Science Projects "What are we Swimming In?" and Down the Drains was supported by Curious Minds Funding.

“The secret of success is not in predicting the future; it is creating people who will thrive in a future that cannot be predicted” – Author Unknown –

Touchstone recently undertook another water quality check of the Wanaka Spring. All the past tests are available to view...
11/12/2025

Touchstone recently undertook another water quality check of the Wanaka Spring. All the past tests are available to view on one comparative document as a pdf download via the link on the Touchstone website.

'Water quality is very stable: no meaningful changes in microbiological safety, turbidity, or chemistry.
Slight increase in hardness and nitrate in the third sample, but both remain well within safe limits.
All trace metals remain below detection → no concern for heavy metal contamination.
Overall profile: consistent, clean, moderately hard, slightly alkaline water with very low nutrient loading'.

Full details via the link.
https://www.touchstone.org.nz/wanaka-spring

Waterfalls in the Matukituki Valley were busting today. Wish bone Falls
26/06/2025

Waterfalls in the Matukituki Valley were busting today. Wish bone Falls

We often see reference to the water quality from the Wanaka Spring on Lakeside Road. So, Touchstone did a Potable Water ...
28/05/2024

We often see reference to the water quality from the Wanaka Spring on Lakeside Road. So, Touchstone did a Potable Water test at the end of last month. The Spring water is absolutely excellent, as you all know. But here's confirmation.

The full press release from Touchstone can be found here: https://www.touchstone.org.nz/wanaka-spring along with the testing results.

"After a great deal of community interest in the Wanaka Spring, community focused group Touchstone, decided to fund a Potable Water test of the springs flow for the second time.

The latest test results are much the same as found in 2018. It tests for the presence of bacteria, metals, nitrates and details factors such as hardness and pH. Results are compared to 'Water Services (Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand) Regulations 2022'. These regulations contain “Maximal Allowable Values” that determine if the water quality is fit as a house hold drinking water supply.
​
In the case of the spring ALL the values are very low to non-detectable. Extremely low concentrations of metals and contaminants such as nitrate."

As stated above, the full press release and link to the test results can be further investigated: https://www.touchstone.org.nz/wanaka-spring

Image: Eddie Spearing of The Ruby - Lake Wanaka Swim Event, at the Wanaka Spring, with sample bottles on top of the wall.

And ditto.. as usual for Bremner Bay drain.
08/05/2023

And ditto.. as usual for Bremner Bay drain.

While rain at the moment is not uncommon... and run off expected... one of the Roys Bay final bastions of good water qua...
08/05/2023

While rain at the moment is not uncommon... and run off expected... one of the Roys Bay final bastions of good water quality - Waterfall Creek, is getting hammered by poor soil and land management. Sediment is one of the worst of all contaminants to our waterways. I've contacted ORC but hold little hope to any changes in practice.

For those interested in Tuna, this site provides an interesting story line on our Water Quality.
18/04/2023

For those interested in Tuna, this site provides an interesting story line on our Water Quality.

How healthy is te taiao from the perspective of tuna?

We have been supporting Wai Wanakas education programmes lately. https://www.facebook.com/851053448427724/posts/2192332...
05/03/2023

We have been supporting Wai Wanakas education programmes lately. https://www.facebook.com/851053448427724/posts/2192332767633112/

Our school value of kaitiakitanga means we strive to live sustainably by protecting our unique environment.

As part of this commitment, our Year 8 students are exploring this value and what it means to live it in practice as part of their kaitiakitanga unit of inquiry.

We are so grateful to the team at WAI Wānaka for sharing their knowledge and providing educational resources to support our teachers and students, including:

** providing large water tanks so our students can learn how to test water quality
** donating large interactive display boards
** planning farm visits for later this term.

Thank you to WAI Wānaka for the important work you do in empowering our students to understand their water, their environment and their impact so together we can build healthy ecosystems.

Photo credit: Bevan Ratcliffe

Address

Wanaka

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Touchstone posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category