Building for Auckland’s growing water needs

We have released a map to provide greater clarity to developers on where there is capacity in its water and wastewater networks to support new housing, and where capacity is constrained.

Chief strategy and planning officer Priyan Perera says while the company can support growth in most parts of Auckland, some areas are not so straightforward.

“Our infrastructure programme aligns with Auckland Council’s Future Development Strategy and will see us investing $13.7b in water and wastewater infrastructure in the next decade, which includes $6.8 billion in projects to support housing growth.

“When we took over the region’s water and wastewater services in 2010, we inherited a few micro treatment plants that were designed to service very small communities and we’re not planning to expand them.

“However, there are other areas that need new or upgraded infrastructure to support growth – for example, in Warkworth, where we’re currently undertaking a $300+ million project to overhaul the area’s wastewater services.

“We want to provide greater transparency to people wanting to build in Auckland, so we’ve published a map that shows where there is capacity in our networks to support new housing, and where capacity is constrained.

“Areas where there is limited capacity don’t necessarily have a blanket no-connections rule, and for the most part we assess applications on a case-by-case basis.

“Our message to people wanting to build in areas with constraints is to please get in touch with us. We can help them to understand if their project is likely to be impacted.”

Perera briefed Acting Mayor Desley Simpson on the network capacity map.

Simpson says: "I’d like to congratulate Watercare on the release of their map, which I know the development community is calling for. The map provides developers with a clear view of where there is capacity to support housing growth and where there is not.

“Watercare is committed to making it easier for the development community to plan and build. Their level of transparency is appreciated."

We will review and update the map regularly. It’s accompanied by tables that show when the company plans to address the constraints.

Perera says the map highlights areas where there is limited capacity at a town or suburb level rather than at a street level.

“While there is plenty of capacity to support growth in most of the network, we do have some very localised constraints. For example, some individual streets have limited capacity due to bottlenecks in the local water or wastewater pipes.”

How we support growth in Tāmaki Makaurau

Perera says the company's capital expenditure has been steadily growing over the past 14 years.

“Between 2010 and 2019, our investment ranged from $200m to $400m a year. This grew to between $600m and $800m through to 2023, and in the 2023/2024 financial year, topped $1 billion for the first time.

“Even with this record expenditure, we must balance the desire to enable growth with the need to comply with regulations to protect the health of Aucklanders and the environment.”

Anyone with questions about what capacity constraints might mean for their development can email [email protected].