Paihia-Ōpua-Waitangi residents urged to conserve water

Residents connected to the council’s Paihia-Ōpua-Waitangi water supply are being asked to urgently reduce consumption until silt and debris can be cleared from the water treatment plant intake.

Ongoing heavy rains have shifted huge quantities of silt down the Waitangi River, blocking the water intake feeding the treatment plant at Haruru. Contractors are regularly backflushing the intake to clear the debris, but this halts water production for up to an hour each time. This enforced down time means that water consumption has outstripped the ability of the plant to recharge storage reservoirs that supply homes and businesses at Haruru, Waitangi, Paihia, Te Haumi and Ōpua. As a result, the main reservoir at Paihia is now 70 per cent of capacity. That equates to roughly one day of consumption.

Contractors are now attempting to resurrect a secondary water intake at Haruru that can be used while the primary intake is being cleared. However, this is only part of the solution. Water clarifying screens that capture fine silt and other particles suspended in the raw water have also been impacted and need to be cleaned more frequently, further reducing the rate that treated water can be produced.

To help preserve existing supplies, all households and businesses connected to the supply are being urged to reduce consumption for at least the next 24 hours. At the same time, the council has opted to isolate several smaller reservoirs in the system to ensure some supplies are held in reserve. This will reduce water pressure to some customers, especially homes and businesses in elevated locations.

To help conserve water, customers are being asked to take shorter showers, defer clothes and dish washing, and flush only when necessary.