Local water done well

Local Water Done Well introduces new regulatory standards for water services that all council must meet, as well as mandatory planning and accountability mechanisms for new water organisations.

What are the ‘three waters’ that are talked about

The three waters are

  • Drinking Water (which comes to us from a variety of sources)

  • Wastewater (aka ‘sewage’ which in Wellington is sent to Moa Point for processing)

  • Stormwater (aka fresh stream water - rain water from rooves, gutter and road
    runoff then mixes into it and it then empties untreated into the harbour)

    From WCC Document Kōrero Mai/Have Your Say - Consultation Document 20 March–21 April 2025
    “Each day, about 350 litres of water is used per person per day in the Wellington region … Our region’s water is best thought of as an interconnected system, rather than defined by city boundaries. … When you turn on your tap for a drink in Wellington city, you’re drinking water from the Hutt River. When you flush your toilet in Johnsonville, your wastewater will travel to Porirua for treatment … You might live in Upper Hutt and work in Wellington city, so the wastewater from your morning shower is processed in Seaview and the water for your coffee travels along Wellington city pipes and out of the tap at your office. …

What is the consultation about?.

Central government requires that our local councils (Wellington City Council (WCC) and Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) provide options for local residents to consider.

This feedback, plus their own thinking, will be discussed in April-June this year (2025).
The results will lead to making a proposal about the preferred water system to central government.

What’s happening now?

Currently our water is managed through a multi-council organisation called Wellington Water.

  • “Wellington Water is a council-controlled organization (CCO)
    that manages the drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater services for the Wellington region    ,
    owned and funded by Wellington City Council, Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council, Upper Hutt City Council,
    Greater Wellington Regional Council, and South Wairarapa District Council.”     

Options 1 & 2 (below) would see Wellington Water disappear and be replaced by the recommended organisation.
The process of replacement would then start soon - from 4 September this year - and the new approach would run things from July 2026.

For info, the current relationship between WCC and GWRC includes, for example, WCC ‘buying’ its water from the GWRC, and GWRC also being the water quality regulator. This mix of relationships could change depending on the options presented for consultation.

What are the options?
Go to this page for full picture, and
this page for a breakdown of the options.

  • The future of water services in the Wellington region is at a crossroads. To ensure clean, safe, and sustainable water for generations to come, we are considering three options for reform which we are seeking feedback from you on.

This following is our back of an envelope understanding:

Central government has a water strategy called Local Water Done Well. The Council is inviting us all to share what we want to happen with the water that we use every day.

Background
When the new government came in, it scrapped the previous government’s ’Three Waters’ plan.

This meant that local councils and regional councils needed to follow the new government’s direction and come up with a new approach.

  • Option 1:
    A multi-council water organisation co-owned by Wellington City, Upper Hutt City, Hutt City, Porirua City and Greater Wellington Regional councils
    This is the Council’s preferred option.
    It recognises that our water sources are regional so why not work with the other councils who are part of the picture, and can share the costs.
    It enables the councils to access loans from the Local Government Funding Agency.

    • From the WCC consultation document

    • Option 1: Co-owned with four other councils.

    • Assets are owned by the new organisation (eg pipes, pump stations, resevoirs, waste water treatment plants etc)

    • Your water services would be provided by the new organisation; they would be your point of contact for all questions, concerns or reports of problems. (not the Council)

    • You would be billed separately for water by the new water organisation

    • Items in your Council rates bill that cover water services delivery would be removed (except the Sludge Minimisation Levy)

    • Water is going to cost more than it has previously

    • Water meters would likely be introduced to assist with leak detection – saving you money and helping to conserve our precious water supply

    • Water assets will remain in public ownership


  • Option 2:
    A Wellington City Council sole ownership water organisation
    Wellington City Council would own the water organisation, ie not have shared ownership with other councils
    It would set up a new independent organisation up by Wellington City Council.
    It enables the council to access loans from the Local Government Funding Agency.

    • From the WCC consultation document:

    • Option 2: Solely owned by Wellington City Council.

    • Your water services would be provided by the new organisation; they would be your point of contact for all questions, concerns or reports of problems. (not the Council)

    • Assets are owned by the new organisation (eg pipes, pump stations, resevoirs, waste water treatment plants etc)

    • You would be billed separately for water by the new water organisation

    • Items in your Council rates bill that cover water services delivery would be removed (except the Sludge Minimisation Levy)

    • Water is going to cost more than it has previously

    • Water meters would likely be introduced to assist with leak detection – saving you money and helping to conserve our precious water supply

    • Water assets will remain in public ownership

  • Option 3:
    Continuing with existing arrangements with Wellington Water Ltd (modified to meet government legislation)
    The status quo, ie the current organisation, would continue but would be updated to meet the Government.
    Water assets are individually owned by councils, and services are contracted out.
    The council would not have access to access loans from the Local Government Funding Agency.
    This option means that:

    • The shareholders are the individual councils.

    • Assets are owned by the individual councils (eg pipes, pump stations, resevoirs, waste water treatment plants etc)

    • a modified version of Wellington Water where asset ownership and investment decisions remain with each individual council.

      As the existing Wellington Water model would not comply with all aspects of the new legislation, this option has been updated to comply with legislation.

What happens with the rates?

Under options 1 & 2, the rates bill from the council should go down.
This is because the water aspect will have moved to the new organisation
(except for the sludge minimisation levy which would still be in our rates).

The new organisation would then separately bill us for our water. We don’t know how much this will be right now.

Water meters have been discussed as part of the future. Two reasons for this are put forward

  • just like what happens with our power bills, the cost will be for what is actually used, and

  • to better identify where water loss might be happening (which could lead to better fixing of leaks, and perhaps less water needing to be ‘bought’ from the Greater Wellington Regional Council which could reduce costs).


What next?

As residents, we all have the power to say what options we want. All we need to do is:

Otherwise, as some folks might say - if you don’t ask, you won’t get what you want - you’ll just get what you’re given.