Where our water comes from

Akaroa and Takamātua are supplied from a reticulated water network using local water sources and treatment.

Water for the Akaroa water supply scheme is taken from four streams; Aylmers, Grehan, Balguerie and Takamātua, and two wells, one at Settlers Hill Road (41 metres deep) and one at Aylmers Valley (138 metres deep).

Water is piped from these sources to the L'Aube Hill water treatment plant located above the L’aube Hill Reserve. The raw water is stored in a reservoir that was originally constructed in the early 1900s to provide water for the Akaroa hydro-power generator that first provided electricity to the community.  The power station was located on Rue Pompallier and is preserved by the Akaroa Hydro Generating Set Trust.

The water is then treated using membrane filtration and chlorination. Membrane backflushes, washdown and service water is discharged to the Akaroa wastewater network.

The treated water is primarily stored at the L’aube Hill site to gravity feed most of Akaroa. Water is also stored at two other main treated water reservoirs supplied from L’aube Hill. One at the top of Old Coach Road which supplies Takamātua and the other at a former water treatment plant site on Aylmers Valley Road. There are also four smaller reservoir sites in the network which are fed by small pump stations. These supply small areas that are too high to gravity feed from the L’aube Hill, Aylmers Valley or Old Coach Road reservoirs. 

An upgrade project is currently underway to install new monitoring equipment to make the plant compliant with the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules introduced in 2022. Two new reservoirs (1,000,000 litre capacity each) to store treated water are also being constructed.

Water for the Birdlings Flat water supply is sourced from a well located on Jones Road and is pumped to the Bridlings Flat water treatment plant, which is located between Baileys Road and Poranui Beach Road.

Water from the well is stored in above-ground tanks at the treatment plant. It is then filtered to remove any sediment from the bore, disinfected with UV light and finally dosed with chlorine to provide distribution disinfection.

The treated water is then pumped into the reticulation network.

The Birdlings Flat water supply is a restricted water supply. Each property is required to have a private storage tank and can receive up to 1,000 litres of water per day.

An upgrade project is currently underway to install new monitoring equipment to make the plant compliant with the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules introduced in 2022. Whilst this work is underway other works at the site will be undertaken to provide additional resilience to the supply and carry out planned equipment replacements.

Water for the Duvauchelle water supply is sourced from Pipers Stream. Surface water abstracted from the stream is piped by gravity to the treatment plant located on Okains Bay Road. 

At the treatment plant, the stream water passes through a series of filters before being disinfected with UV light and dosed with chlorine. Treated water then passes into the treated water reservoir at the treatment plant site.

Treated water then flows by gravity into the township or is pumped up to the Ngaio Point subdivision.

Because the current treatment plant is unable to effectively treat raw water with high levels of turbidity and soluble organics issues arise during periods of high rainfall when these contaminants are mobilised. When this occurs, the plant is unable to operate adequately and water is tankered in from another Council supply. Normally from Akaroa.

An upgrade project is currently underway to replace the existing treatment equipment with a membrane filtration plant. This new plant will be able to treat water with high turbidity and levels of organics. It is expected that this plant will be commissioned by the end of 2028.

Water for the Duvauchelle water supply is sourced from Pipers Stream. Surface water abstracted from the stream is piped by gravity to the treatment plant located on Okains Bay Road. 

At the treatment plant, the stream water passes through a series of filters before being disinfected with UV light and dosed with chlorine. Treated water then passes into the treated water reservoir at the treatment plant site.

Treated water then flows by gravity into the township or is pumped up to the Ngaio Point subdivision.

Because the current treatment plant is unable to effectively treat raw water with high levels of turbidity and soluble organics issues arise during periods of high rainfall when these contaminants are mobilised. When this occurs, the plant is unable to operate adequately and water is tankered in from another Council supply. Normally from Akaroa.

An upgrade project is currently underway to replace the existing treatment equipment with a membrane filtration plant. This new plant will be able to treat water with high turbidity and levels of organics. It is expected that this plant will be commissioned by the end of 2028.

Water for the Little River water supply comes from two sources; a stream intake above Little River on Police Creek and a bore near the lower end of Council Hill Road.

The site normally operates on stream water which is piped from the Police Creek intake and passed through a pair of slow sand filtration tanks before being UV disinfected and chlorine treated.

Treated water is then stored at the treatment plant reservoir before being reticulated into Little River.

During periods of heavy rain, the turbidity of the surface water abstracted from Police Creek can rise above the level that the sand filters can treat. At these times, groundwater is sourced from a 115-meter-deep well located at the bottom of Council Hill Road. This water is then pumped up to the treatment plant where it is treated by UV disinfection before being dosed by chlorine and passing into the treated water storage reservoir.

The bore is sometimes used in very dry periods when the flows in Police Creek are very low.

Water is reticulated throughout Little River as well as branches that extend into Cooptown.

The Little River water supply is a restricted water supply. Each property is required to have a private storage tank and can receive up to 1,000 litres of water per day.

An upgrade project is currently underway to install new monitoring equipment to make the plant compliant with the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules introduced in 2022. Whilst this work is underway other works at the site will be undertaken to provide additional resilience to the supply and carry out planned equipment replacements.

Water for the Pigeon Bay supply is sourced from a spring above Dick Stream and passes through four settlement tanks to remove sediment before flowing by gravity to the treatment plant on Pigeon Bay Road.

At the treatment plant, the raw water passes through a filter before being disinfected with UV light and dosed with chlorine. It then enters the reticulation network.

Treated water is stored in three small reservoirs spread through Pigeon Bay.

The Pigeon Bay water supply is a restricted water supply. Each property is required to have a private storage tank and can receive up to 1,000 litres of water per day.

An upgrade project is currently underway to install new monitoring equipment to make the plant compliant with the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules introduced in 2022. Whilst this work is underway other works at the site will be undertaken to provide additional resilience to the supply and carry out planned equipment replacements.

Water for the Wainui water supply is sourced from a 92-metre-deep well located on Wainui Valley Road. Water pumped from the well is chlorinated before entering the reticulation network.

Treated water is stored at two treated water reservoir sites, one at the top of Wainui Valley Road and the other near the top of Warnerville Road.

The Wainui water supply is a restricted water supply. Each property is required to have a private storage tank and can receive up to 1,000 litres of water per day.

An upgrade project is currently underway to install new monitoring equipment to make the plant compliant with the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules introduced in 2022. Whilst this work is underway other upgrades to the site will be undertaken, including the installation of a generator at the treatment plant to provide additional resilience to the supply in the event of a power outage.