Excess water usage charges.
I had cause to contact the Council regarding excess water charges and whether the charge was still in force, as my meter has not been read since FEB 2023.
Plus, it was still in force to remind me of the justification behind it.
It turns out that it is still in place at 900ltrs per day and the reason given is:
"In two of the three previous summers, demand on our water supply network has been so high that it's been at risk of not being able to supply enough water to properties. If this happened, it could have serious impacts on public health, as well as public safety in the event of a significant fire.
Low water pressure in the pipes also causes other health and safety issues such as allowing groundwater to enter the network through breaks that would usually leak outwards under normal pressure. Groundwater can contain potentially harmful microbes that cause illness. Our Water Supply team then have to respond by increasing chlorination."
I pointed out that water saved in Halswell will not help the lack of water pressure in Fendalton or the hospital. In fact, ONLY the facilities in the areas with smaller piping and older systems, suffer from this problem. Charging the rest of the city to encourage them to reduce their usage does NOTHING to stop the drop in water pressure in other Zones.
With this system, we do not SAVE water, as water that is not used today, goes to the sea, there is no huge tank below the ground that today's water can be stored in, until tomorrow.
There is plenty of water or we would not be building new subdivisions.
A relatively small area of the city will suffer water pressure problems on hot summer days during peak demand times, even if the rest of the city turned their water OFF.
The Manager of the Water Division explained it to me.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we're having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Poll: When should the tree go up? 🎄
From what we've heard, some Christmas trees are already being assembled and decorated.
What are your thoughts on the best time to get your Christmas tree up?
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4.7% Second half of November
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43.6% 1st December
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17.4% A week before Christmas
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33.2% Whenever you wish
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1.1% Other - I'll share below
What's your favourite tomato recipe?
Kia ora neighbours. We know your tomato plants are still growing, but we're looking ahead to the harvest already! If you've got a family recipe for tomatoes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine to share with our readers. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our February 2025 issue.
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