Dam levels across Northland healthy but use water wisely

WDC operations' engineer James Kennedy checks water purity at the Whau Valley Dam which is tracking better than at this time last year. Photo / Tania Whyte Photo / Tania Whyte

Northland's territorial authorities are pleading with the public to continue using water wisely during the cooler months despite there being no restrictions in place.

Except for Dargaville and Baylys Beach, there are currently no water restrictions around Northland and recent sporadic rain, coupled with an absence of overseas tourists, have helped water levels in dams.

In Whangārei, the Whau Valley Dam is currently sitting at 66 per cent capacity and Wilsons Dam, which supplies Bream Bay, is at 72 per cent - both higher than at this time last year.

Whangārei District Council water services' manager Andrew Venmore said the Whau Valley Dam which supplied the city was tracking at 46 per cent on April 19 last year, which meant the dam was quite a lot better off at present.

"The forecast is for average rainfall so the level should slowly begin climbing back up. Rain wise, while we didn't have a good spring, rain we've had during summer and the beginning of autumn kept us going.

"We've also upgraded the Hatea pipeline so we were able to run harder and earlier. We're also taking more water from Poroti Springs. So while there are no restrictions at present, people need to be sensible around water use," he said.

Venmore said WDC was focusing on next year and making sure the dams recovered well and tracked at more than 90 per cent capacity by the end of this year.

There are currently no water restrictions in place at eight water supplies run by the Far North District Council.

Whau Valley Dam is sitting at 66 per cent capacity, which is way better than at this time last year when it dipped below 50 per cent. Photo / Tania Whyte

It means there are no limits to water use, although people are advised to always use water sensibly.

A substantial dump of autumn rain across Northland late last month saw water flows in the Awanui River stabilise and prompted FNDC to lift water restrictions on April 1.

Work on a new groundwater supply for Kaitāia is expected to be operational by next summer and a completed second bore at Tokareireia (Monument Hill) in Kaikohe that will supplement supplies from Wairoro Stream, should be complete by summer.

Kaipara District Council has seen big spikes in water catchments after recent rain but said people still needed to be mindful of the amount of water they were using.