Water restrictions unlikely for Auckland – Watercare

Councils across the country are imposing water restrictions as dry weather begins to bite, but Auckland is unlikely to have to follow suit, despite a continuing spell of sweltering summer days.

Watercares Acting Chief Operations Officer, Shayne Cunis, says that while levels in the citys supply lakes are below the average for this time of year, Watercares system has sufficient flexibility to ensure ongoing security of supply to all areas serviced by the metropolitan network, which stretches from Orewa to Pukekohe.

Mr Cunis says Aucklanders deserve a large share of the credit for the lack of water restrictions, with the citys inhabitants using less water per head than anyone else in the country.

"However, with little if any relief expected from the current dry weather conditions, its important people continue to think about how they are using water, and whether they could do so more efficiently."

Thirty years ago, Aucklanders used more than 400 litres of water per person per day. By 2004, this had reduced to 298 Litres per person per day. In 2011, Watercare set itself the challenge of further reducing consumption to 253 litres per person per day by 2025.

"Currently, we are five litres per day ahead of the target line, and Aucklands per capita water use is the lowest in New Zealand, says Mr Cunis.

"And Watercare is keen to do whatever we can to maintain that rate of improvement.

"To that end, we run a proactive maintenance campaign that minimises the amount of water lost in our networks, we work closely with large commercial users to ensure they are operating as efficiently as possible, and we encourage householders to Be Waterwise."

Mr Cunis says Watercares metropolitan network draws water from dams in the Waitakere and Hunua ranges, an underground aquifer, and the Waikato River.

"We constantly alter the amount we take from each source to ensure we strike the right balance between minimising operating costs and ensuring security of supply," says Mr Cunis.

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Water restrictions unlikely for Auckland - Watercare