Water restrictions on

Water restrictions began in Te Awamutu and Pirongia on Saturday, but other parts of the district are without restrictions — for now.

Waipa¯ District Council has advised Water Alert Level 1 is in place, meaning sprinklers can only be used between 6-8am and 6-8pm. Hand-held hosing is still allowed at any time.

“Other parts of the district, including Cambridge and Kihikihi, do not face restrictions yet, but the situation could quickly change,” said water services manager Tony Hale. “Te Awamutu and Pirongia’s water comes from the Mangauika Stream.

“In the summer months, the stream struggles to keep up with demand. Despite rainfall in the past week, we haven’t seen enough rain near the stream’s catchment and it’s already looking low for this time of year.

“Cambridge is in a far better situation than previous summers and Kihikihi’s water comes from two underground bores.”

Tony said upgrades to Cambridge’s water treatment plant were completed earlier in the year and its increased capacity is keeping up with demand.

Water meters had also played a huge part in reducing consumption across the district, driving use down by 20 per cent.

“That’s not to say the rest of the district should feel they can use water recklessly. We’re in for a long, hot summer and we all need to consider how much water we are using.”

Tony asked Te Awamutu and Pirongia to “bear with us” for a bit longer as the Council already has a programme and funding in place to address water supply issues.

The work will also address taste and odour issues sometimes experienced during the summer.

“We’ve got plans for a pipeline to connect Te Awamutu to the Cambridge supply which is scheduled for completion in 2021. This will increase capacity for the western side, but we need to keep water use down while that work is done.”