Wellingtonians have been taking their water
restrictions seriously which has resulted in a “much lower” daily
demand, the Greater Wellington Regional Council says.
Council chair Fran Wilde says daily demand for water
had decreased from 160 million litres per day three weeks ago to 130
million litres per day now.
She praised Wellingtonians for respecting the water restrictions, but says “we’re not out of the woods yet”.
“We need to take a precautionary approach and
continue our water conservation efforts, at least until the next
significant rainfall lifts river-flows again,” she says.
River flows were still
relatively low compared to previous March norms despite recent rainfall
and a total outdoor water use ban remains in Lower Hutt, Porirua, Upper
Hutt and Wellington.
Council water supply manager Chris Laidlow says the recent rain around Wellington was heavier than predicted.
The downpour meant more rain soaked into the ground which kept river levels higher for longer, he says.
“The
river levels are dropping more slowly than we thought, but could be
back to the levels they were two weeks ago if we don’t get more rain by
mid-April. Another couple of days of rain should put us in a good
position to consider lifting restrictions,” he says.
The
Greater Wellington Council says the 14-day weather outlook shows six
consecutive days of rainfall from April 5, but it was not counting on
the rain arriving.
3 News
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