Wellington mayor Andy Foster calls meeting over city's water pipe problems

Tuesday, 18 February 2020

A high-level meeting has been called to tackle Wellington's water pipes problems.

Wellington City Council and Wellington Water Limited will meet on Wednesday to consider their options.

In a statement, Wellington mayor Andy Foster said while there would always be the occasional issue with the city's water pipes, there had been so many in recent months.

'We need to understand whether there are any systematic issues coming to light now. That will allow us to consider our options and take appropriate action.'

* Warning signs refused at Karori stream despite dangerously polluted water

Wellington mayor Andy Foster says there have been so many issues with the city's water pipes in recent months.

* Beach goers scram as Island Bay beach fills with murky water

* A 'tsunami of faeces' is overwhelming Wellington's urban streams**

A 'tsunami of faecal material' is coming down Owhiro stream, a resident says.

The council was taking the problems seriously and would be working on developing a plan.

In December, Wellingtonians were advised against swimming or fishing after a collapsed water pipe sent millions of litres of sewage into the harbour.

'Inevitably, with so many serious issues to manage and limited resource to do it, some lower level work is being deferred by Wellington Water.

'While this is not ideal, we do understand the reasons for it and ask people to be patient while we resolve the underlying issues.'

Earlier, Wellington Water refused to put up signs at Karori Stream warning of dangerously high levels of fecal contamination saying the same warning could apply to every stream in the city.

Contaminated water has also been flowing into Owhiro Bay which is more than 30 times above the safe swimming level.

Owhiro Bay resident Eugene Doyle called it a 'tsunami of faecal material' coming down the stream into the bay.

A collapsed wastewater pipe on Willis St and Dixon st sent millions of litres of sewage into Wellington harbour in December.

A rāhui, or temporary prohibition on water activities, was placed over the inner harbour. Wellingtonians were advised against swimming or fishing in the harbour.

In another high-profile failure of Wellington's pipes, a broken pipeline 200 metres underneath Mt Albert has forced Wellington Water to truck sewage 24 hours a day from Moa Point to Southern Landfill.