Auckland, please reduce your outdoor water use

Auckland is in the ‘preparing for drought’ level in our Drought Management Plan. With the region experiencing the driest March in 15 years, and forecasts indicating that April may turn out to be drier than anticipated, we're encouraging everyone to use a trigger nozzle on garden hoses to prevent water wastage. If you don't have a garden you can still do your bit by reducing your shower time by one minute. By doing that you will save 12 litres of water.

Recent downpours welcome but we're still 'preparing for a drought'

The weather system that hit Auckland the week of 31 March saw our Waitākere Ranges catchments receive between 107 and 156 millimetres of rain, whereas our Hūnua Ranges catchments in the south-east received between 76 and 239 millimetres. That is more than what we’d normally expect for the entire month of April, so it was certainly a welcome boost. For the week commencing 7 April, we’re expecting a return to the drier than normal weather, with a few showers but mostly sunshine. The following week there’s a chance of rain, but at this stage, we’re not expecting it to be significant. As such, Auckland remains in the ‘preparing for drought’ zone.

Dam of the week

Upper Nihotupu Dam in the Waitākere Ranges

This is one of our smaller dams, so when a weather system hits it does fill up more quickly and noticeably than our larger dams. The downpours that hit Auckland the week of 31 March saw Upper Nihotupu's dam level go from 25.6% to 46.9% full in a week.

Note: The video below was filmed before the weather system hit.