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Published 23/01/2025

Leaks on the public network at a 4-year low in the Wellington metropolitan region

Recent data from Wellington Water shows leaks in the Wellington metropolitan region (Wellington City, Porirua, Lower Hutt and Upper Hutt) have hit a 4-year low this month, dropping from 1,720 leaks on January 1, 2024 to just under 400 leaks on January 6, 2025 on the public network – a reduction of over 75%. 

Council’s increased investment in leaks enabled Wellington Water to ramp up leak repairs, with all councils leaks at or nearing a sustainable level.  

COUNCIL 
Leaks (as of Jan 24) 
Leaks (as of Jan 25) 
Target Backlog 
Wellington City Council 
936 
206 
133 
Hutt City Council 
403 
92 
110 
Upper Hutt City Council 
275 
61 
44 
Porirua City Council 
106 
40 
38 
Total 
1720 
399 
325 
There will always be a certain level of leaks in any network. We’re focused on getting leaks down to a sustainable level, that keeps water loss to a minimum and enables efficient leak repairs, we refer to these as the target backlog. These target backlog figures are based on the average number of leaks reported to council every 10 days. 

 

“This is a fantastic result, and we’d like to thank our councils who worked with us and increased their investment. Once that was made available, we were able to quickly ramp up leak repairs across the region, which significantly reduced the risk of a water shortage and tighter water restrictions for this summer,” says Charles Barker, GM of Wellington Water’s Customer Operations Group.  

“This is a major milestone. Not only does this mean public leaks are the lowest they’ve been since October 2021, reducing the backlog also means that lower priority leaks are repaired faster, and we can get to those smaller long-term leaks that have been a source of frustration for the public.”   

This is a significant step forward from last summer, where the region faced a real risk of water shortages and tighter water restrictions, largely due to the high level of leaks in the public network. Combined with the impact of the ongoing treatment capacity upgrades at Te Mārua Water Treatment Plant, the risk of Water Restriction Level 2 has gone down from 100% last summer to 5% this summer, the risk of Level 3 from 70% to 1%, and Level 4 from 33% to under 1%. 

“Protecting the drinking water network is vital for our region, so it’s encouraging to see the impact of each council's additional investment” says Mayor Campbell Barry, Wellington Water Committee Chair. “While there’s still much more to be done – like keeping leaks at a sustainable level and increasing investment in pipe renewals to stop leaks happening in the first place - it’s important we recognise the efforts made over the past year to significantly reduce the number of leaks in the public network.” 

In 2024, Wellington Water fixed a total of 9,162 leaks on the public network, a 4-year high. “The sheer volume of leaks that we’ve had to fix is a symptom of our aging network. Every day, new leaks appear in aging pipes, so keeping the backlog down is a constant effort. This goes to show that we can’t take our foot off the pedal. The region needs to remain focused on the longer-term, sustainable solution,” adds Charles. 

“Leak fixes on the aging network are a band-aid, and it’s vital that they are balanced with increased replacement and renewal of pipes to reduce the risk for years to come. Additionally, we need to keep in mind our longer-term resilience as a region. 

“We’ve recently increased the production capacity of the Te Mārua Water Treatment Plant by 20 million litres per day, which means we can draw more water from the Macaskill Storage Lakes when needed. But using more water without renewing pipes and reducing water loss could lose the ground we’ve gained in the past year, and we could be back in an acute water shortage risk within 3 – 5 years. 

“That’s why we’re encouraged by our councils’ ongoing investigation into smart water meters, which are proven to help find leaks faster, and drive water conservation. 

“In the meantime, we continue to work with councils to keep leaks at a sustainable level and ask the public to keep an eye on their wai by following water restrictions and taking simple steps to reduce water waste at their place. Every choice counts, whether it’s turning the tap off when you’re brushing your teeth, hopping out of the shower a few minutes earlier, or finding and fixing leaks on your property.” 

Editor notes

Wellington Water is owned and fully funded by Wellington City Council, Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council, and Upper Hutt City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and South Wairarapa District Council. All six councils are equal shareholders.

Our councils own the water infrastructure in the region, and they task us to manage the infrastructure and deliver water services to our communities.

Wellington Water is governed by a Board of Directors. The Board and our organisation receive overall leadership and direction from the Wellington Water Committee, which are also responsible for appointing members to the Board.

The Wellington Water Committee is made up of representatives from our council owners and mana whenua.

Media Enquiries

Email address:  Media@wellingtonwater.co.nz

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