Auckland drought: Waikato ripples over bid to fast-track river water take

Drought-hit Auckland has created ripples south of the Bombay Hills with its bid to get fast-track consent to more than double the water it can take from the Waikato River.

The chair of the Waikato Regional Council Russ Rimmington said he was “p…ed off” with Auckland Council’s sudden submission to a parliamentary select committee on Monday.

Auckland is in the grip of its most severe drought, and thousands of jobs could be at risk next summer if its water supply doesn’t bounce back during winter and spring, from a quarter-century low.

The council on Monday asked for its 2013 application to Waikato Regional Council to take an extra 200 million litres a day from the river, to be fast-tracked as a project under Covid-19 Recovery legislation.

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The select committee bid was not mentioned when a delegation led by the mayor Phil Goff, met Hamilton city and Waikato Region leaders on June 12.

“That was a bit naughty, – to have chosen another route that would be more permanent and more damaging (to the river) if granted,” Rimmington told Stuff.

Waikato-Tainui said it was surprised by the Monday morning move, which the iwi said was never raised in previous discussions.

A spokesperson for Goff said the mayor had spoken on Sunday evening by phone with both Rimmington and the mayor of Hamilton Paula Southgate, and had left a message with Waikato-Tainui chair Rukumoana Schaafhausen.

“We acknowledge the current low levels in Watercare’s storage system, but don’t support a short-term response that could cause long-term harm,” said Schaafhausen in a statement.

Schaafhausen said the Council’s latest move shows a lack of understanding about the importance of the river and Waikato-Tainui’s rights under its Treaty of Waitangi settlement.

Rimmington said that at the June 12 meeting, there was mention only at the end, that emergency procedures would be used by Auckland to gain immediate access to 15 million litres a day.

The chair said no mention was made of a planned bid to seek permanent consent for 200 million litres a day, something which Watercare had not envisaged needing for another decade.

Auckland’s storage lakes sit at a 25-year winter low of 45 per cent, with the MetService forecasting an unusually dry spring – a period that historically delivers significant rainfall to the city’s catchments.

“The long-range models are sending a clear signal for a much drier-than-normal spring period, between August and November, with a strong ridge of high pressure preventing the rain makers from crossing Auckland very often,” said meteorologist Georgina Griffiths.

“This is the driest outlook for the spring season we’ve seen since 2013, when a major drought affected the upper North Island.”

Watercare had hoped the lakes might rise to 50 per cent by the end of June, 55 per cent a month later, and reach 70-75 per cent by November, to put Auckland in a good supply position ahead of the summer.

The chief executive Raveen Jaduram said that forecast left the supply situation “critical”.

Mandatory restrictions in Auckland are at stage one, largely banning outdoor use, but from stage three would hit major users.

Analysis by Auckland Council’s chief economist David Norman suggested up to 14,000 jobs could be affected – either reduced or lost – under stage three or four restrictions.