Summer water restrictions are now in place in Tauranga until February 28, 2023, as part of Tauranga City Council's Water Watchers Plan.
Home sprinklers and irrigation systems are now prohibited, but a revision to the plan to support growing vegetables at home means low volume micro/drip irrigation systems are now allowed for one hour of use on vegetable gardens between 7pm and 10pm.
If you want to fill a swimming pool or spa after December 1, you will need a Smart Water Plan, an exemption that is easy to apply for online.
Other limitations during this period include a complete ban on home use of water blasters and hoses to wash down houses and hard surfaces.
Water demand in Tauranga grows up to 30 per cent over summer, driven primarily by outdoor use. Last summer the Water Watchers Plan – which includes versions for at home, at work and in the community - helped to reduce this peak and ensure that the city remained sustainably supplied.
Community feedback and learnings from last summer has seen some revisions from last year's Water Watchers Plan, including extra allowance for watering vegetable gardens and a shorter peak water restriction period that ends at the end of February instead of March.
Tauranga City Council Water Services Manager Peter Bahrs says the Water Watchers Plan remains in place despite a winter of heavy rainfall and equally, will continue to remain in place even if we have a wet summer.
'People have asked why we need water restrictions after the wet winter we've had. Our water supply comes from two spring-fed streams which need groundwater levels to recharge before stream flows can improve. Despite recent rain, the Tautau Stream has not fully recovered and is still feeling the effects of years of dry summers.
"With our population increasing and our climate changing we need to establish good long-term water conservation practices; measures other cities around the world are accustomed to.”
The anticipated opening of the Waiāri water treatment plant this December will see a new water source for Tauranga.
It has been designed to meet water demand now, and over at least the next 30 years as more connections are made to existing pipe networks.
For more details and to see the At Home, At Work, and In the Community plans visit www.tauranga.govt.nz/waterwatchers
14 comments
Whatever
Posted on 04-12-2022 05:42 | By Slim Shady
My democratic rights have been removed. I therefore ignore TCC.
You are kidding, right?
Posted on 04-12-2022 06:30 | By The Professor
For a moment, I thought it was the 1st of April. After all the rain we have had this year.....probably one of the wettest on record, and we are being told to switch off sprinklers and irrigation systems......well you can guess what I will be doing!! What a complete friggin joke!! Sounds to me like we have too many people for our infrastructure in Tauranga.
For a mere $90 million...
Posted on 04-12-2022 11:30 | By morepork
...you would NEVER have to do this. There would be no arguments about water and land rights, and there would be NO INCREASE in what we already pay for water, EVER! The whole problem of water could be solved for Tauranga forever. It is less than a third of the cost for the current CBD pipe dream and it has much more practical use to everybody than that project. We have the Pacific Ocean on our doorstep; we need never run out of water or fight about who owns it. Why is desalinization not on the agenda for discussion?
Whaaat!
Posted on 04-12-2022 14:56 | By Shadow1
It’s easy to see Peter doesn’t have a garden. He also doesn’t care about ratepayers who do have gardens. So let’s see, the Waiari water treatment plant is starting up this month, the Te Tumu subdivision is dog tucker, and that was the main customer for that treatment station so there should be plenty of water for gardens, showering, flushing etc. so what’s going on Peter? Just flexing your muscles? Shadow1.
@ The Professor
Posted on 04-12-2022 15:00 | By Yadick
I'm with The Professor on this one. He spells it out well. I pay for my water, I pay for the upkeep of my lawn, I pay for my vegetable garden and other gardens, I pay my rates, I even pay for the upkeep of Councils grass verge. Just because TCC mismanage our money and have got their priorities screwed up doesn't mean I have to let my lawns and gardens die and my hard work go to waste . . . and I won't be. Slim Shady makes a very good point too.
Morepork
Posted on 04-12-2022 20:43 | By Wundrin
Your figures on building a desal plant are a bit on the light side, especially when you look at what other (current) infrastructure projects are costing. Equally, the cost of producing fresh water by this means is not cheap - and uses electricity that we don't have.
Stunning
Posted on 05-12-2022 06:44 | By Informed
Love that most of the comments show that the people haven't bothered to read the article. Our water comes from streams that are feed by aquifers, not directly by rain water. So it takes years for rain water to replenish them. As for the $90M idea. Last time they posted they said $50M and they are still miles off. Plus the massive cost to operate. Let's say we spent $250 on a plant. Would you be happy to pay three or four times the cost to waste all that drinking water on a garden.
You're Having A Laugh
Posted on 05-12-2022 07:06 | By Thats Nice
How much rain have we had and yet you still let it run off and don't collect it. There's no way I'll be letting my garden plants die over summer. Spot on Yaddick
Agree
Posted on 05-12-2022 07:53 | By Kancho
Last year was a disaster and I will not be repeating it by not watering. I'm hoping the rain we have enjoyed will continue but I'm also going to keep the garden alive as the cost last year was much more than years of water bills.
Useless
Posted on 05-12-2022 09:00 | By an_alias
Priorities are pushing through 3 waters for our govt appointed council and not it improving storage. It will be great when Maori pay 50% of all improvements aye......oh wait, no that isn't how it works they will just control it and be given it.......oh carry on JA and claim I chaired the comity on entrenchment but have no clue that was going to be in there.....
@Informed
Posted on 05-12-2022 13:08 | By morepork
I have never claimed $50M for a desal plant. Please read my response to Wundrin and follow the link if you are seriously interested and not just looking for an argument. BTW, The rest of the WORLD is moving in this direction due to the inevitable global water shortage that is on the way.
SORRY,
Posted on 05-12-2022 21:07 | By The Caveman
butso long as the TCC wants to charge me for water, I will USE it for my garden, washing my car, and everything else !!! About time they upped their game a got the summer water problem ( according to the TCC) sorted. $500,000,000 PLUS to be spent on "buildings" in the CDB, but they are saying that they cannot supply water to the Tga residents, without suggesting how they are going to supply water to their new CBD buildings !!!
@Wundrin
Posted on 06-12-2022 12:53 | By morepork
I responded to your mail and gave a link to the full details on desal costs (which have decreased as more and more plants are being ordered and built.) You made good points and I covered them. Unfortunately, it seems that Sun Live have not published the response. I don't know whether it is because it contained a link, or for some other Editorial reason. Anyway, thanks for responding.
@Wundrin & Informed
Posted on 07-12-2022 13:46 | By morepork
Google on "desalination" and you can find everything you want to know. The best single site I found was this: "https://www.advisian.com/en/global-perspectives/the-cost-of-desalination#" For Tauranga, we would need the 20 MGD level shown in figure 7. It is around $US70 million, and provides around 90 million litres per day. (We currently use 60 million.) Electricity consumption is a consideration, but that is another issue NZ will have to grasp in the future. Clean fusion nuclear might be the only option if we cannot burn fossil fuel and natural sources are insufficient. We fueled the Bluff smelter OK. The plant would pay for itself in 3 years and become a profit centre after that, easily covering the Opex. I believe we SHOULD be investigating and discussing it; the rest of the WORLD are... And the scarcity of water from the sky is only going to increase.
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