Far North facing water crisis

The Far North District Council is warning residents in Kaitaia, Rawene, Opononi-Omapere and Kaikohe that they must reduce water consumption immediately, or face ever more stringent restrictions.

Drought conditions forced the council to introduce water restrictions in Opononi-Omapere in January. Last week it extended them to residential and commercial properties connected to its Rawene, Kaitaia and Kaikohe water schemes. And now it is stepping up restrictions in Kaitaia, where river flows have continued to fall.

Level 2 restrictions are now in place in Opononi-Omapere, Rawene and Kaitaia, making it illegal to use a hose, wash vehicles or windows other than with a bucket or water blaster, put water into a swimming pool, or operate a commercial car wash that doesn't recycle water.

The Level 1 restrictions in Kaikohe prohibit use of a hose without a hand-held trigger attachment, use of a garden sprinkler or irrigation system unless for commercial purposes, fill swimming pools or operate a commercial car wash that doesn't recycle water.

Infrastructure and assets general manager David Penny said western areas of the district had had no significant rain since mid-December, and none was forecast for the next 14 days (although hopes of a tropical cyclone arriving later this week were growing yesterday).

The council had been advised that rain could be more than two weeks away, however.

The council would be asking bulk water users to make a 20 per cent reduction in their consumption, and would be taking a tough approach if that wasn't achieved.

"We're asking residents to limit water use to essential household purposes, and will have monitoring staff going door to door in some areas to check people are aware of the restrictions," Mr Penny said, warning that anyone who flouted the restrictions could face a fine of up to $20,000. It might also be necessary to introduce Level 3 restrictions, meaning households would only be allowed to use water for sanitary purposes associated with personal use and sustaining life, if consumption didn't fall.

"We hope this won't be necessary, and are counting on people to comply with the restrictions," he added.

"At this stage these[restrictions] only require them to be more thoughtful about how they use water, rather than make major sacrifices."

The council wasn't planning to restrict water at its other schemes, but was urging people to conserve water all the same.

"Our water supplies in eastern areas are in reasonably good shape, but that situation could change if we have a long, dry autumn. Our message to people in these areas is to save water now to avoid the need for more drastic water conservation measures later," he said.

Go to www.fndc.govt.nz for water-saving tips.