Sprinkler ban for Ōmanaia-Rāwene to protect Petaka Stream

A ban on the use of outdoor sprinklers or irrigation systems will apply from Monday 22 January for Ōmanaia-Rāwene households to reduce demand and help preserve the supply’s only water source.

Drier weather conditions in recent weeks, coupled with increased visitor numbers over the summer, have resulted in strong water demand in Rāwene and Ōmanaia.

Both communities rely on raw water taken from Petaka Stream, which has limited water flows and is very vulnerable to dry weather. Northland Regional Council’s resource consent limits the amount of water the council can take each day, and the communities rely on storage reservoirs being refilled overnight when demand is low.

Summer demand has seen high water consumption and production at the Ōmanaia water treatment plant. This means that either demand must be reduced or the take from Petaka Stream will need to be increased. The rain experienced in the last week has not changed the Petaka Stream conditions.

While rain is predicted by MetService over the next 10 days, Level 2 water restrictions will remain in place to ensure flows in the stream do not drop below consent levels. The longer term forecast is for a dry February and March.

The Level 2 water restrictions apply only to Ōmanaia and Rāwene. The Far North’s seven other water sources are at healthy levels and remain at Level 1. This includes Ōpononi-Ōmapere (also in the Hokianga but not connected to the Petaka Stream source). At Level 1 there is no limit to water use, but customers should always use water sensibly.

The council’s Water Shortage Management Committee continues to monitor levels for all Far North water sources and will meet again in two weeks to review the situation. A recent Northland Regional Council report assessing the likelihood of drought in the Far North said there were no concerns for drought in January.

A $2.8 million water treatment plant and storage tank project near Ōmanaia was completed in 2019 to increase the resilience of water supplies to Ōmanaia and Rāwene. The upgrade means Level 2 water restrictions are no longer applied automatically to the communities each December.