Tauranga water supply still under threat despite rain

Be smart with your water usage, water supply is under pressure despite the rain. Photo/file

Don't let today's rain fool you - residents have been encouraged to continue being "smart" about water usage at home to avoid restrictions later.

Tauranga's water usage this summer was tracking well above the past two years (see graph), with water usage reaching above 50,000m3/day several times since January.

Water restrictions would be considered when water usage was sustained above 50,000m3/day, about 80 per cent of the city's capacity.

Graph shows how water demand is tracking. The 7-day rolling average smooths out any day-to-day water operations spikes.

Tauranga City Council said in a statement that summer rainfall often made residents think they could stop worrying about conserving water.

"In fact the opposite is true - if you're careful with your water when it's plentiful, it might just help stave off restrictions when the weather is hot and dry."

Council provided all urban and rural-residential properties in Tauranga with water. The city used an average of 36 million litres of water per day, but in summer this could rise to 54 million litres per day.

"Things like making sure your sprinkler waters your plants and not the patio, driveway or footpath or using timers, watering early in the morning and evening all help."

Council recommended installing rainwater tanks or a home irrigation system.

"Washing your car on the grass waters your lawn as well as prevents cleaning products going into the storm water system.

"Or, even better, be proud of a dirty car."

Growth was putting increasing pressure on the city's water supply capacity each year, especially along the coastal strip.

This trend was expected to continue until the Waiari Water Supply Scheme came online in 2021.

WATER IN TAURANGA

- Water is collected from the Tautau and Waiorohi streams. The water at the source is very clean but by the time it passes through several hectares of cattle country and land slips it needs some work before being suitable for drinking or bathing

- Water is treated at both the Oropi and Joyce Rd water processing plants. Micro filtration technology is used -- water passes through tiny holes and through millions of tiny straws that remove the nasty things

- Once filtered the water is chlorinated, leaving a small amount of chlorine in the water to kill off any contaminants

- The water is tested before being pumped across the city to your home

- There are 1200km of pipes to carry the water, 20 reservoirs and tanks to hold our supply and 52,000 water metres to measure how much we use

- Council is planning to build a third micro-filtration water processing plant along the Waiari Stream in Te Puke