News Release

Thursday 22 January 2014

Council urging locals to reduce water use during hot weather

With more warm, dry weather forecast and two long weekends coming up, Rotorua Lakes Council (RLC) is urging residents to help conserve water supplies by keeping water use to a minimum.

RLC Water Operations manager, Eric Cawte, said general consumption of water on the council’s supplies has been well in excess of the average as a result of the recent period of balmy summer weather.

He said the increase in water use can mostly be attributed to the widespread use of garden and lawn sprinklers and irrigation systems.

“On Sunday, the total consumption on our three urban supplies was 42,600m3, or 42% more than the average day for 2014. The Eastern supply which serves residential areas from Ngapuna to the airport, recorded a 71% increase over last year’s average.

“With continuing hot weather forecast and two long weekends approaching, we’re asking locals and visitors to be aware of the increased demand on water supplies, and to avoid any unnecessary use or wastage of water.”

Mr Cawte said that while Rotorua is blessed with a number of reliable and plentiful water sources, there are limits on how much water the council can take, pump and store on a daily basis.

“Water restrictions are not currently planned but if we continue to increase our use, as seen over the last few days, we may need to consider implementing restrictions.”

Rotorua Lakes Council suggests the following measures to avoid water wastage:

• Do not water lawns – let them go brown. They’ll recover quickly with the return of rainy weather.

• If you do water lawns and gardens, one or two good waterings per week is ample.

• Use a hand-held hose rather than sprinklers, and definitely do not leave sprinklers on overnight.

• Water only the areas where watering is needed.

• Avoid excessive use of hoses for washing down cars, houses or driveways, particularly in hot weather.

• Don’t waste water by unnecessarily running taps

• Fix any leaks on your property promptly.

[ENDS]

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