Drought Proofing Maungaturotos Water Supply

Maungaturoto’s water supply will be drought proofed for the foreseeable future through a project involving Kaipara District Council, Fonterra and the owners of an irrigation dam, which will see water from the dam piped 6.2 kilometres to the town’s raw water line.

The work is being funded by Fonterra and will not impact Maungaturoto rates or water supply charges.

Maungaturoto’s existing supply comes from three sources in the Brynderwyn hills and is delivered through a water line running alongside State Highway 12. However, it comes under pressure during dry spells and for five years Council and Fonterra, which uses about 60 percent of the water, have been searching for a way to boost the supply in summer.

The solution is an agreement to take water from a 21 hectare farm irrigation dam on Baldrock Road, pump it over a low ridge and then gravitate it through a new 6.2 kilometre line to the existing water line near the Brynderwyn corner. The project includes fencing the dam and planting around its margins.

All the land access agreements needed for the project have been finalized and on Wednesday 29 April, Kaipara District Council agreed to execute two agreements to supply and take water and to award Fulton Hogan a $1.382 million contract for the job.

Work is starting immediately and is expected to be finished by October. It will not cause disruption to Maungaturoto’s water supply.

Much of the 180 milimetre diameter pipe will be laid by dragging it through a drilled tunnel instead of laying it in a trench, resulting in minimum disruption and inconvenience.

In addition to assuring adequacy of supply the project will result in improved quality water arriving at the treatment plant and will also allow Fonterra to relinquish a consent to take water from the Wairau River as an emergency supply.

Council’s new infrastructure portfolio holder, Councillor Graham Taylor says it is fantastic for the Maungaturoto community to gain this security of supply.

“Any growing community can be held back by lack of infrastructure and we have seen instances of this, he says. “It is great to see the three parties agree on a long term solution which benefits the community as well as commercial interests. “Fonterra is a major entity in the area and to see this degree of commitment is reassuring.“

“Water supply concerns caused by dry weather should be a thing of the past now.”

Peter Wilding, Fonterra Regional Projects Manager – Northern, says the company has for a number of years been investigating a long term sustainable and secure water supply to its Maungaturoto site and has been working with Kaipara District Council and two of its supplier shareholders, John Anderson and Bill Bygrave, to utilise the surplus capacity from the Brooklands Irrigation Trust Dam.

“Whilst Fonterra is the major beneficiary of this new water supply, the Maungaturoto township will also benefit from this secure and higher quality water supply,” Mr Wilding says.

“Fonterra has demonstrated its ongoing commitment to the Maungaturoto community and manufacturing site by underwriting the funding for this project."