Published 6/05/2024
Wellington to begin shift down water restriction levels
Thanks to Wellingtonian’s continued work to conserve water, the Wellington Metropolitan Region can begin to move down water restriction levels.
“We want to say a huge thank you to the people of Porirua, the Hutt Valley and Wellington. It’s been a tricky summer with a long dry autumn, and we really appreciate your efforts,” says Tonia Haskell, CE of Wellington Water. “We have seen a noticeable reduction in water use which has helped the region avoid tighter water restrictions.”
“While river levels are low for this time of year, they have stabilised and we don’t expect them to get any lower,” adds Charles Barker, Director of Regulatory Services. “With demand remaining steady, and shorter days and cooler weather reducing the risk of spikes in demand, we can gradually reduce water restrictions within the next week and a half.”
Wellington, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and Porirua will move to Level 1 on Wednesday May 8th, and if the situation remains stable, Wellington, Porirua, and Lower Hutt will move out of water restrictions entirely on Wednesday May 15th. Upper Hutt remains at Level 1 year-round.
This staggered approach ensures we don’t move too quickly. We will continue to monitor river levels to ensure we have enough water but leave enough for our environment to thrive.
With El Nino indicating long, dry summers ahead, we continue to work closely with our council owners to reduce the risk of tighter water restrictions moving forward. We’re committed to driving down water loss through a balance of leak repairs and pipe renewals across the network and increasing the resilience of the region’s water supply.
Even as we shift out of water restrictions, keeping an eye on your water use is a positive step all year long. Water is a precious, finite resource, and building healthy habits is the best way to do what's right for our environment and our community. We want to encourage people to love every drop, every day.
Editor notes
Wellington Water is owned and fully funded by Wellington City Council, Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council, and Upper Hutt City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and South Wairarapa District Council. All six councils are equal shareholders.
Our councils own the water infrastructure in the region, and they task us to manage the infrastructure and deliver water services to our communities.
Wellington Water is governed by a Board of Directors. The Board and our organisation receive overall leadership and direction from the Wellington Water Committee, which are also responsible for appointing members to the Board.
The Wellington Water Committee is made up of representatives from our council owners and mana whenua.