Total hosing ban in Tararua District
Water levels in rivers and streams in the Tararua District are very low after a long period of hot and dry drought-like weather across the entire Manawatu¯ Whanganui region.
In the Tararua District, a total hosing ban is in place.
Water levels in Dannevirke hit critically low levels recently and a letter drop was carried out on Friday 14 February to advise public of the severity of the situation and the urgent need for conservation. A copy of the information included in the letter drop is available on the Council website: www. tararuadc.govt.nz/water
Council is actively monitoring and managing other water supplies across the district as the drought-like weather continues.
Since the Dannevirke letter drop, there has been a reduction in the demand for water with businesses and households actively conserving water.
There is a very delicate point of balance of supply (water coming in) versus demand (water going out).
“Despite having reached this delicate balance, it is absolutely critical that people continue to conserve water wherever possible. The support of the community will be essential to managing this going forward as the weather is forecast to continue to be hot and dry,” according to Tararua District Council.
“One way to conserve water is to check your home for dripping taps and leaking toilets. Leaks are a major source of wasted water and we are encouraging people to contact a plumber to fix these as soon as possible.
“Council is taking a coordinated approach to this and will continue to provide updates as efficiently as we can. More information is available on the Council website, including tips on how to save water, visit www. tararuadc.govt.nz/water
■ Watering gardens: the use of buckets/watering cans is still permitted at this stage. Council advises watering your garden with greywater (recycled water) like bath water, washing machine and dishwasher water.
Also, watering the garden in the heat of the day can cause leaf burn and excessive evaporation. It’s best to wait until a cooler time of the day before watering plants or gardens.
■ Council will be able to lift restrictions once river levels have returned to sufficient flow levels. Small rain events will have very little impact and the rain will only help if it is a significant amount of rainfall.
■ Reduce your use: The biggest thing that residents can do to help is to conserve water as much as possible and abide by the total hosing ban while it is in effect.