The current dry conditions are steadily reducing the capacity of our District's water supply systems.

There are currently no formal restrictions in place.

Tuesday, 2 April - Latest Update

Heavy rain in the upper Whakatāne River catchment overnight has taken the river flow to more than 300 cubic metres a second, which should signal an end to salinity issues for the Whakatāne/Ōhope water supply for the foreseeable future. As a result, the we have lifted the call for voluntary water conservation. However, water restrictions signage will remain in place, for now.

That precautionary approach reflects the fact that the long range weather forecast indicates that further rain is unlikely until late next week. In the meantime, the Council will closely monitor river flows before a final call is made on the need for further conservation measures.

Simple tips for reducing water usage

• Bucket-wash cars or boats, if possible
• Don’t refill or top-up swimming pools
• If you know you have leaking taps, fix them now
• If you see a leaking water line, report it to the Council as soon as possible
• Flush toilets sparingly
• Avoid using your bath and cut your shower time down as much as possible
• While waiting for hot water to flow through to showers or taps, catch the unused water in a bucket for use in washing machines or for other purposes.

Previous Updates

Thursday, 29 March

The Whakatāne River flow has now increased to more than 30 cubic metres per second and with more rain forecast over the next few days, salinity issues at the water treatment plant are unlikely to be an immediate issue. If the forecast rain does arrive, the Whakatāne District Council will consider lifting the water conservation notice applying in Whakatāne and Ōhope early next week. The Council thanks residents for their voluntary water conservation efforts over the last two months, which have helped avoid the need for formal restrictions on hose and sprinkler use.

Monday, 25 March

The District has had some very welcome rain over the weekend, but no real change in the Whakatāne River flow as a result, which means that water conservation in Whakatāne and Ōhope is still required.

Water usage was good over the weekend, averaging a little under 7000 cubic metres a day, which meant reservoir storage has stayed around 80% full.

Looking at the weather forecast, we have showers predicted for much of this week and some heavier rain early next week. If that does arrive, it might signal an end to the low river flows - and a return to normal. 

Wednesday, 20 March

The Whakatāne/Ōhope water situation remains much the same and will probably stay that way till at least the end of next week. The river flow has dropped below 12 cubic metres/second, which means salinity is now a major issue either side of every high tide. As a result, our intake at the treatment plant is limited and we’re pumping water full-time from the upstream emergency intake, to keep up with demand.

Usage remains good at around 7000 cubic metres of water a day, but reservoir storage has dropped back to around 70% full, so that says we need to continue with our voluntary conservation measures for some time yet. The long-range forecast says we may get some showers in the early part of next week, with heavier rain later in the week. Fingers crossed that does arrive and that the river flow gets back to a level that will take salinity out of the picture.

In the meantime, thanks for your water conservation efforts thus far, and please keep the good work going until we come out the other side of this long dry spell.

Wednesday, 6 March

Water usage in Whakatāne and Ōhope has been good over recent days – well under 8,000 cubic metres a day on average – but despite that, our reservoir storage has dropped from around 80% full last week to 72% this morning. That reflects the limitations on water intake at the treatment plant, due to the very low river flow, which means salinity is a significant issue around high tides. In the meantime, we’re pumping continuously from the emergency upstream intake to keep up with demand.

The weather forecast indicates that we should get some rain from late-Thursday through to Friday evening, with some heavier falls possible on Friday. Let’s hope that does arrive, so that our gardens and lawns can get a good ‘drink’! The current conservation efforts will need to continue though, until we get enough rain in the upper Whakatāne River catchment to sustain the river flow at a level that supresses the tidal influence (consistently above 20 cubic metres/second). So until then, please keep conserving water wherever possible and if you do need to hand-water or sprinkle gardens, do it early in the morning or in the evening. Ngā mihi and keep up the good work.

Thursday, 28 February

Since our last water update, Whakatāne River flow has dropped from just over 16 cubic metres/second to just under 14 cubic metres/second. With MetService telling us there’s no rain on the horizon for the coming 10 days, our conservation efforts in Whakatāne and Ōhope will need to continue for some time yet. Please continue to use your water wisely while we get through this very dry period.

Wednesday, 20 February

Water usage in Whakatāne/Ōhope yesterday was very good – a touch under 7400 cubic metres. The river flow continues to drop and we’re pumping continuously from the emergency upriver intake to help maintain our intake volumes at the treatment plant. Reservoir storage was also good at around 80% full this morning.

Murupara’s water storage was good this morning at around 87% full – keep up the good work, your conservation efforts are really helping.

Keep up the good work everyone - rain is forecast for Friday and Saturday.

Monday, 18 February

Water usage in Whakatāne and Ōhope has been reasonably steady over the weekend at around 8000 cubic metres a day, on average. The river flow is now just over 13 cubic metres/second, which means that salinity at the water treatment plant intake is limiting processing for several hours around high tides. Thanks to the emergency upriver intake, we're managing to keep up with demand, at the moment, and reservoir storage has been maintained at or just under 80% full at the start of each day. That says that our voluntary water reduction measures are helping us avoid the need to introduce formal water use restrictions, so well done and keep up the good work!

The long range weather forecast predicts rain late next week - fingers crossed there's enough of it to boost the river flow to somewhere near normal!

Water demand in Murupara also dropped dramatically over the weekend - down by around 25% on the usage recorded late last week. That has allowed the reservoir storage levels to recover to around 85% full at the start of each day. Please keep your water conservation efforts going in the meantime though, so we can ensure there's enough storage to cover any emergency situation, such as firefighting, or a pump failure. We'll keep posting updates until the current dry spell ends and usage returns to a normal pattern.

Friday, 15 February

Water storage in the Whakatāne / Ōhope supply is holding but only just. With the Whakatāne River flow continuing to fall, salinity at the water treatment plant is becoming more of an issue each day, increasing our reliance on the emergency upriver intake to supply water for treatment.

High water usage in Murupara is putting pressure on the water supply, and as a result reservoir storage levels are lower than we would like.

Usage has crept up over recent days, so consumers are asked to think about what they can do to reduce their water use, until the current dry spell ends. Our aim is to avoid the need for formal restrictions on hose or sprinkler use, but that will only work if our voluntary water conservation efforts are successful.

Thursday, 7 February

The Whakatāne River flow rate is steadily dropping, but salt water intrusion hasn't yet caused problems at the water treatment plant. 

This could change as we have 'king tides" due next week. In anticipation of this, we're installing our upriver emergency intake, which will allow us to continue extracting water for treatment from higher up stream (approx 900m), but at a lower than normal volume.

• Water usage in Whakatāne and Ōhope dipped below 8000 cubic metres yesterday, which has meant reservoir storage has been maintained at a good, safe level.
• Matatā’s water storage has also been maintained above 80%, which means we have good capacity for coping with emergency situations. 
• Murupara’s storage is down a bit, but still looking quite good.
• Thanks go to everyone who is voluntarily conserving water - keep up the good work, because it looks like the current dry spell could go on for some time yet.

Monday, 4 February

Water storage in Whakatane/Ohope, Matata and Murupara is holding nicely at the moment. The Whakatane River flow is now approaching the level where we can expect salinity at the treatment plant intake to start affecting processing capacity; and with no sign of any significant rain in the long-range weather forecast, that means we'll need to keep usage down for some time yet.

In the meantime, thanks everyone for your conservation efforts - we want to avoid the need to introduce restrictions on hose and sprinkler use, so your contributions are much-appreciated.

Tuesday, 29 January 2019 - Whakatāne, Ōhope and Matatā residents asked to conserve water

The current dry conditions are steadily reducing the Whakatāne River flow and if there is no significant rainfall in the next week, we'll reach a point where salt water intrusion will begin to restrict our intake from the Whakatāne River around high tides. While we can address that to a degree, any voluntary conservation measures the community implements will help us to keep pace with demand and maintain reservoir storage at a level which can cope with emergency situations, such as firefighting requirements or major pipe failures.

Read the full media release requesting Whakatāne, Ōhope and Matatā residents to conserve water.