Once considered an occasional and somewhat extreme measure, water restrictions are now a fact of life in most parts of New Zealand. While some of our driest regions, including Central Otago, inland Canterbury and Hawkes Bay, have long faced the challenge of managing their water supplies, particularly during summer, the rest of the country is now getting used to constraints on their water use. Auckland, Northland and much of the South Island face water scarcity, and restrictions are one of the most effective ways to deal with this crisis.
Climate Change and a Drier Baseline
Climate change is seen as the primary reason behind our lack of water and the more stringent management of it. Stats NZ reported that the average annual rainfall for the five years to 2020 was 3.1% below the previous five-year average, and 10.7% below the five-year average for 1996 to 2000. Those percentages sound modest until you consider what they describe. This is not one dry summer that a catchment recovers from over the following winter. It is a drier baseline, sustained across years. Supply systems are planned around what a catchment can normally be expected to deliver, so when the normal itself moves, the headroom councils once relied on quietly disappears. These statistics clarify why councils enforce water restrictions more rigorously than ever before.
Ageing Infrastructure and Water Lost to Leaks
Climate change is not the only factor linked to increasingly frequent water restrictions. New Zealand's ageing infrastructure is at fault as well. In January 2024, the South Wairarapa District Council enforced limits on water use when more than 100 leaks were discovered in the public water network serving communities including Greytown, Featherston and Martinborough. The region lost nearly half of the water supplied from its reservoirs to leaks in the past financial year.
The fix seems simple: repair the leaks. But this is easier said than done when funding is not available. When the funds run as dry as the reservoirs, the problem becomes an ongoing one, and this is something currently being faced by most of New Zealand's councils. In major cities like Auckland and Wellington, infrastructure issues are as pressing as those encountered in smaller centres.
What Restrictions Mean for Farms
The impact of water restrictions is wide-ranging, and it starts on the land. New Zealand's agriculture sector depends on water for irrigation and stock welfare. Restrictions can affect crop yields and livestock, and a decrease in produce coming off the farm pushes up prices around the rest of the country. That is the part people miss: a limit applied in one catchment does not stay in that catchment. Stock water is not a discretionary use that can be deferred to a cooler month, and irrigation withheld at the wrong point in a growing season cannot be made up later. The cost of a dry season eventually reaches the supermarket shelf, which is why drought and price volatility travel together.
How Restrictions Reach Into the Home
Most New Zealanders live in towns and cities, and these urban areas are affected in their own way. In an average New Zealand urban dwelling, water consumption is spread fairly evenly between the toilet (30%), the bathroom (25%), laundry and kitchen (25%) and the garden (20%). No single use dominates, which is precisely why restrictions are felt everywhere at once. There is no one tap you can turn off to solve it. Urban restrictions limit household water usage so that everyday activities we take for granted, like bathing, gardening and washing, are significantly curtailed. In practice that means showers are shorter, toilets are not flushed after every use, and irrigation might only be allowed on certain days.
Stage-Based Restrictions: The Most Common Approach
New Zealand has several types of water restrictions, and they are often tailored to meet regional and local requirements. Stage-based restrictions are the most widely used. They range from voluntary water conservation in the home through to compulsory limits, and they tighten as conditions worsen. In most cases, residents are asked to reduce their water usage voluntarily first. If drought conditions persist or infrastructure fails, harsher rules may be implemented, including bans on watering or car washing. The staged design is deliberate. It gives a community the chance to solve the problem by choice before the council has to solve it by rule.
Allocation, Metering and Pricing
Stage-based rules are not the only tool. Allocation systems are used in some parts of the country: water usage permits are allocated to stakeholders, with farmers and industries being typical examples. The permits specify how much water can be used, with proponents saying it ensures fair and equal water distribution. Then there is water metering and pricing, which is widely used in Australia and is gradually being implemented in New Zealand. Water meters allow local councils to monitor consumption and apply pricing structures to promote sensible water use. For a household, that shifts water from something invisible into something on a bill, and it is worth knowing how to reduce your water rates bill before that happens.
What Households Are Already Doing
Many New Zealanders are taking steps to conserve water without prompting from authorities. Heightened awareness of the water scarcity crisis has seen more individuals taking responsibility for managing an increasingly rare resource. Common examples include:
- Investing in appliances, like washing machines and dishwashers, that are designed to use less water.
- Planting drought-tolerant plants in the garden.
- Fixing leaks around the home.
- Changing daily habits to save water: shorter showers, turning the tap off when brushing your teeth, or using a bucket instead of a hose to wash the car.
None of these steps are dramatic on their own. Their value is that they are permanent, and they hold whether or not a restriction is currently in force.
Rain Harvesting: Catching What Already Falls
Possibly the most effective solution is rain harvesting. When the rain falls, a tank ensures it is not wasted. It captures the rain off the roof and keeps it for future use. A storage tank does not have to be big to be effective. A Promax Slimline tank is a popular feature in many New Zealand backyards thanks to its discreet profile that easily fits into the most compact section. The Slimline tank, or any smaller tank, delivers a surprising amount of water throughout the year. The tank capacity might not be huge, but replenishment each time it rains makes it a reliable and ongoing source of water for use in and out of the home, which is why small tanks deliver a lot of value.
Learning to Live With Less Water
The world might think of New Zealand as a green and lush paradise, and in many ways it still is. But, like many other countries, one of our biggest challenges is learning to live with less water. Storing the rain that falls on our towns, cities and farms is one of the best ways to manage this most precious resource, and water tanks are worth their weight in gold in that respect. Conserving water is another way to make a difference during this water scarcity crisis. Possibly the most important thing we can do is to start appreciating water as a precious and rare resource that sustains life. Once we do that, things like rain harvesting in tanks and general water conservation will become commonplace, which needs to happen sooner rather than later.
If you want help with your water storage, talk to our expert team on 0800 77 66 29 or email sales@promax.co.nz with your enquiry.