Councils across Waikato on water alert as summer heats up
28 Jan, 2021 04:45 AM
5 minutes to read
Waikato News
By: Danielle Zollickhofer
Councils around the Waikato are urging residents and visitors to conserve water as summer heats up and everyone prepares to enjoy two long weekends.
Water restrictions are already in place in some places and households relying on tank water are advised to arrange a top-up soon.
Whitianga recorded its warmest January temperature with 31.8 deg C on January 6, the warmest since records began in 1962.
Thames-Coromandel District Council has already announced water alert level 3 in some areas and put a sprinkler ban in place.
“This means they were hatched on Mt Pirongia but weren’t recorded,” she said. “We’re absolutely thrilled to see nesting success for a pair of unbanded kōkako here, which are obviously the offspring of some of those first kōkako we translocated just 3 years ago.”
DOC/Supplied
The Pirongia te Aroaro o Kahu Restoration Society is working to increase the kōkako population in the Waikato. Rogers said the kōkako breeding success means the population is now in its third generation and growing. The number of kōkako breeding pairs have more than doubled in the last year.
GO NZ: Te Araroa changed my life walking the length of New Zealand
24 Dec, 2020 05:13 PM
6 minutes to read
Laura Waters, pictured at Masons Hut, the last hut in the South Island on the Te Araroa Trail. Photo / Laura Waters
NZ Herald
By: Laura Waters
I get misty eyed when I think about the time I walked from Cape Reinga to Bluff. Here she goes again, friends no doubt think as I wax on about the joys, tribulations and wondrous sights encountered during that 3000km journey down the length of the country. As far as once in a lifetime trips go, tramping Te Araroa was spectacularly transformative, and the long-lasting effect it had on my life only made it even more memorable. With the world s current challenges, escaping into the wilds is looking a tempting option again.
Hamilton and Waipa will move to Water Alert Level One restrictions from Thursday 17 December 2020.
Moving to Water Alert Level One means sprinklers must only be used between 6am to 8am and 6pm to 8pm daily, while hand-held hosing can still be done at any time.
Hamilton City Council’s City Waters Manager Maire Porter says a number of factors are considered before water alert levels are put in place. We closely monitor water use, weather predictions and trends from previous summers to guide how we manage water, says Porter.
NIWA projections for the upcoming summer in the Waikato region are for hot and humid weather and with a severe meteorological drought earlier this year and less rainfall in 2020, the two councils have opted to take a proactive approach this summer.
Victoria Road Bridge over the Waikato River in Cambridge. Climate change is expected to bring longer and more intense droughts, as rising temperatures make New Zealand s climate more turbulent. Waipā District Council Water Services Manager Martin Mould said the decision to move early into the alert levels was prompted by last summer’s experience, when Te Awamutu, Pirongia and Ōhaupō moved into alert level four for the first time. Neighbouring Matamata-Piako has already moved to level 1 restrictions. The Taupō District also went to level 1 on Wednesday. Level four is the most severe alert and dictates a total outdoor watering ban.