A global water leader who recently visited New Zealand issued sombre warnings about the potential effects of failures in water supply demand management and stormwater planning in many markets around the world, including New Zealand.

Warren Traves GHD’s global leader for water

Warren Traves, GHD’s global leader for water, met some of the company’s major water clients in Auckland, Palmerston North, Christchurch and Queenstown to understand more about New Zealand’s water market and where local government authorities see the market moving over the next 20 years.  The aim was to ensure GHD is in a position to help these authorities develop a future plan for water security.

New Zealand shares the somewhat complacent attitude to water supply of many developed countries, as evidenced by the current water shortage and civic restrictions in Northland coupled with the lowest summer rainfall in half a century. With many wondering how water shortage can be a problem in the land of the long white cloud, there is a growing sense of urgency about the need to create plans to avoid a recurrence.

Mr Traves has extensive experience in the Australian and other international water markets, including the worst drought-plagued regions and some markets that aren’t typically associated with water shortages. He understands the results of failure to address water supply and demand with sufficient foresight.

He noted that even the American city of Seattle, which is famous for its high rainfall, has identified potential problems with continuity of supply. He said this is because much of the water supply is dependent on snow-melt patterns, which are changing, and this has prompted city leaders to start planning differently.

“The Seattle case shows that supply is not about how much water is available per se, but how available it is for a specific use at a specific time. Local conditions are critical – it’s easy to think that there is lots of water available, but it’s critical to understand supply availability and demand on an ongoing basis.”

The major beast New Zealand needs to grapple with, Mr Traves said, is demand management. “New Zealand is generally believed to have an infinite supply of water, and people in certain areas of the country view it as their right to use as much water as they want within the cost of their rates.

“Due to economic factors and the relative cheapness of water in some areas, such as Christchurch, demand management is often deprioritised. However, as population growth continues there will be more demand for a limited resource.

Martin Smith GHD's South Island water manager

“In New Zealand, even if communities are reluctant to look at demand management, they should at the very least start to create the policies for the future such as Christchurch has done with its draft water strategy, and ensure that tools are in place to permanently record the data needed to understand how systems are operating and where issues are likely to arise in the future.”

GHD’s manager for water in the South Island, Martin Smith, said, “What’s measured is managed. Even without charging, the introduction of water meters has led to reductions in consumption of between 10% and 15% in parts of Australia, and since Tauranga City Council adopted universal metering and implemented volume charging in 2002, average per capita water consumption is now 25% lower than levels before metering. And with peak usage 30% lower in Nelson, that council has reduced peak demand over summer by at least 37%.”

He said that even areas with plentiful resources, such as Queenstown, are coming to grips with the business case behind managing water more efficiently and effectively. “Many councils are recognizing that fixing leakage can reduce the need for costs such as capital works down the track. There is a business case for demand management that ensure that water is managed with lower operating costs, reducing, deferring or avoiding capital costs where possible and balancing competing demands while serving growing populations.

“Water should be seen as a local/regional resource – it is too expensive to move long distances. It’s also about culture – in regions with plentiful supply, many residents don’t understand why they need to pay for water. However, if water management systems are applied correctly then the overall cost of supply should decrease as wastage is reduced and more efficient processes are established.