Why we should all care about Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River

Friday, 30 December 2022

Senior reporter Nicholas Boyack casts a historical eye over the health of Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River and examines how it was allowed to get so bad.

It should be our pride and joy but as a Lower Hutt resident I am embarrassed by the state of the Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River.

Over the past 30 to 40 years it has gone from a river with many deep holes to little more than an open gutter that in summer becomes dangerous to use, due to toxic algae.

It is not just algae, however, that tells the story of how little respect there is for the river.

**READ MORE:

* Parts of Hutt River off limits as toxic algae reaches red alert levels

* Wellington region slapped with sprinkler ban as water usage soars

* Wellington's high water use is bad news for the environment and climate change

* Wellington Water reiterates need for conservation as dry spell continues

* $11 million pipeline required to fix Lower Hutt drinking water

**

The Greater Wellington Regional Council regularly has to remove such things as old tyres, cars and other junk.

On Thursday, while doing a story on toxic algae, I checked out Taitā Rock. The car park was a mess, with used baby wipes, broken bottles and nappies littering the ground.

As the price of using the Silverstream Landfill has increased, the river has become a dumping ground.

Take a walk on the Hutt River Trail and you will observe numerous weeds, everything from gorse to blackberry and tree lucerne.

There is the odd patch of trees planted by the council or some well-intentioned community group, but generally the river corridor has been stripped of natives.

There are some positives – the presence of a healthy population of brown trout and local councils no longer pouring untreated sewage into the river, as they did until the 1950s. The Hutt River Trail has also been a huge hit with cyclists and walkers.

Hutt City is driving a $700m project, RiverLink, to turn the central city back towards the river. Its ambitious design aims to create park-like areas, where residents can enjoy the river.

But what does that really mean? In the 1960s and 70s groups like Scouts used to hold regular races with homemade rafts. In summer, the river now gets so low you can barely float a rubber duck.

In 2016, a reporter wrote: “The Hutt River was so low on Boxing Day that it was almost possible to skip across from Marsden St to the Lower Hutt city centre without getting wet feet.”

To understand the current state of the river, you have to take a look at the region’s approach to drinking water.

The region has three sources of water – the Hutt River (about 40% of Wellington’s water), the aquifer that flows under Lower Hutt and the Wainuiomata Catchment.

In summer, it is heavily reliant on the Hutt River (which also feeds the aquifer) for water.

Wellington Water is consented to take 150 million litres of water a day from the river, provided an adequate flow is maintained.

As the region has grown and failed to increase its storage capacity or introduce meters, there has been pressure on the agency to take more water from the river. It can, however, only process 80 million litres a day.

Wellington Water boss Colin Crampton​ recently noted that under an agreement with manua whenua, the health of the river is the number one priority. He said the community must understand we all need to conserve water to protect the health of the river.

The most obvious threat to its health is algae.

A flick through the archives of the Hutt News provides an interesting perspective on the algae and how quickly it has changed the way we use the river.

It first appeared in 2005, when five dogs were reported to have died.

Initially, farming got the blame but with relatively little farming near the river or its tributaries, suspicion soon fell on low water levels and the amount being taken out of the river for thirsty Wellingtonians.

By 2012, algae was appearing every year and there were increasing calls to do more.

This year algae first appeared in November, prompting a warning to swimmers and dog owners to stay clear.

On Thursday, I met Milan Lukich,​ who had taken his dog for a swim without realising Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River was dangerous for Pandora.

He made the remark that he was aware of New Zealand’s “dirty little secret” a reference to the dire state of waterways throughout New Zealand.

Originally from South Africa, he said he knew many of our rivers are badly polluted and he was horrified that what looked to be a pristine river was not safe for his dog.

What he did not know was that for 20 years, politicians had discussed the solution to Wellington’s water woes – building a dam, water meters and fixing leaky pipes – but had consistently put the various solutions in the too-hard basket.

Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River facts

• 56 kilometres long

• Runs through the Hutt Valley from Kaitoke to Wellington Harbour

• Catchment size: 655 square kilometres – nearly seven times Wellington Harbour

• Four main tributaries: Akatarawa, Mangaroa, Pakuratahi and Whakatiki

• More than one million users each year for walking, running, cycling, fishing and swimming

• Māori folklore likened it to a taniwha’s tail, whipping from side to side and unpredictable

• The catchment is home to 13 native fish species – more than half are at risk or threatened