Bulk water supply
Every day the people of greater Wellington have access to high quality drinking water at the turn of a tap; summer or winter, it's always there. A safe and reliable water supply is vital to the health and prosperity of our region.
Greater Wellington collects and treats all the tap water used in Lower Hutt, Porirua, Upper Hutt and Wellington. Once it's treated, we distribute the water to reservoirs owned by the four city councils, from where the cities supply to the public.
This summer, maintaining water supplies will be tougher than usual as one of our two water storage lakes is being upgraded. With a lake empty, it’s going to be a dry summer whatever the weather. But if everybody saves a bit more water, there’s a better chance of getting by without tough restrictions.
- Water supply situation update
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The water supply situation remains OK, but we advise continued care with water use
- Watering restrictions
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Watering restrictions are used by all the city and district councils within our region. They apply every year.
- Water conservation
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Saving water is especially important while the Stuart Macaskill water storage lakes are being upgraded. There are simple ways for everyone to save water that should see us through.
- Storage lake upgrade 2011
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We're upgrading the Stuart Macaskill water storage lakes in Te Marua to improve their strength in an earthquake and increase their capacity. The upgrade will take place over the next two to three years, requiring a lake to be empty each summer.
- Our role
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High quality water is essential for the health and wellbeing of our region. The ciites of Lower Hutt, Porirua, Upper Hutt and Wellington are all supplied by Greater Wellington's water treatment plants
- Bulk water supply - live
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The 'live' water map shows the current rate of water supply from Greater Wellington's water treatment plants to our region's four cities
- Water quality
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The water that comes out of our taps is of the highest possible standard. We constantly monitor our water supply to ensure that no bacteria, viruses or protozoa are present following our treatment processes
- Water use
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Our annual water supply typically varies between about 55-56,000 million litres, or just over 1,000 million litres in an average week. If Wellington's Westpac Stadium were a reservoir, this weekly volume would fill it completely
- Water treatment
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Water taken straight from rivers or underground sources may look clean, but it can contain nasty bugs that could make people sick. Our water treatment processes are designed to make sure that our water is clean and safe to drink
- Brief history
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Water supply in the greater Wellington region has come a long way since the early settlers gathered their water from rooftops, wells and streams
- Turning on the tap
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Turning on the tap is a new free educational resource that explores the issues around using tap water

