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Hokitika, New Zealand

Water alert status

Find out about current water alerts in Westland.

See the table below for a current status of our water restrictions for the Westland District.

Alert Level Alert Description Locations

Conservation:

Residents are advised that the water supply is expected to come under duress. 

Please reduce non-essential water usage and be aware that this alert level may increase.

 NIL

Water on alternate days

The water supply is under considerable pressure and large water savings are necessary.

Hoses, sprinklers and garden irrigation systems can only be used on alternate days (even street numbers on even days; odd street numbers on odd days).

 NIL

Sprinkler Ban

The water supply is under extreme pressure.

Hand held hoses should only be used on alternate days (even street numbers on even days; odd street numbers on odd days).

Sprinklers, garden irrigation systems, water blasting and other non-essential water use is banned.

 NIL

Total Watering Ban

The water supply level is critical.

All use of water outside the house is banned (except for emergency purposes e.g. firefighting).

Take all practical steps to reduce water usage immediately.

 NIL

 

Why might I need to conserve water?

With high rainfall on the West Coast, you may think why do I even need to save water? Unfortunately, it doesn’t always rain in the right place at the right time! Over the last few summers we have faced drought conditions more frequently due to drier, hotter weather. Higher water demands have also places stress on the water treatment processes required by legislation.

Keep an emergency water supply of drinking water

There are times when water supply may be interrupted for one reason or another, so we recommend that households store nine litres of water per person. This will enable households to survive for three days without township supplied water should this be necessary (for example, in the event of a Civil Defence emergency).

Household water saving tips

Did you know water use in the bathroom makes up about 20 to 30% of household water use? Here are some easy ways to cut down. 

Shower 

  • One minute in the shower can use up to 18 litres of water. Keep it quick in the shower (about as long as a song) and make every minute count, with an efficient shower head. Find them at your local hardware store. 
  • Brushing your teeth? Turn off the tap! A bathroom tap uses around 6 litres of water per minute. 

Toilet 

  • Stick to the half-flush and save the full flush for when you really, really need it.  
  • If your whānau or flatmates don’t mind, ‘if it’s yellow, let it mellow’. 
  • Ignoring that slow drip in the loo? It could be using up to 28 litres of wai per day – get it checked out by a plumber.  
  • Not sure if there’s a leak? Put a few drops of food colouring in the cistern. If the colouring appears in the toilet bowl without flushing, you have a leak (you may need to wait an hour or two for the food colouring to leak into the bowl). 

A washing machine can use more than 120 litres of water per load! Cutting down your use is simple.

  • Only do full loads of laundry.
  • Be an outfit repeater! Got an outfit with no visible stains? If it passes the sniff test, hang it up and wear it again later in the week.  
  • If you’re in the market for a new washing machine, front-loaders can use significantly less water. 

Dishwashers don’t use as much water as you might think, but leaving a high-pressure kitchen tap running can use up to 12 litres per minute.    

  • Skip the pre-rinse - scrape off food into the compost/bin instead.  
  • Handwashing your dishes? Fill your sink rather than washing under a running tap. 

Around 25% of household water use is done in the garden – reduce use and maximise results with these handy tips! 

Hand watering 

  • Add mulch (old leaves or grass clippings after mowing) to your garden. This helps stop wind and sun drying out the soil, cutting evaporation by up to 70% and puts nutrients back in the soil. 
  • The middle of the day is when the sun is hottest – and evaporation happens fast. Water in the early morning or evening, so your garden gets the maximum benefit.   
  • In dry weather, check your garden every 4-7 days. If your soil is moist 10cm below the surface, don’t worry about watering.
  • Water close to the ground at a rate the soil can absorb. Slow watering and not over-watering your garden is important.  

 Sprinklers & irrigation:  

  • IN: Deep soakings once or twice a week. OUT: Frequent light water sprinklings. Deep soakings encourage feeder roots to grow and help your plants survive short term drought conditions. 
  • Use drippers or directional sprinkler heads. These make sure water is going where you want it, not wasted on your paths or fences.  

Water Supply Bylaw 2016

Westland District Council’s Water Supply Bylaw 2016 (PDF 553.16KB)   outlines the permissible usages of the town water supplies and activities that are not allowed.

We would like to remind members of the public that:

  • it is an offence to take water from any stock effluent site. This includes taking water to fill water vessels or hosing vehicles down
  • no persons are permitted to interfere with the town water supplies or make unauthorised connections to these supplies
  • town water supplies are provided for general household consumption. Extra-ordinary users of town water supplies (those that draw excessively high levels of water for non-household usage) may be subject to additional water charges.