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Lack of action will cost Ashburton district water consent-holders

Friday 7 October 2011, 9:37PM

By Environment Canterbury

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ASHBURTON

Ashburton district farmers face cost blowouts if they delay the installation of water measuring systems as required by the government’s National Regulations.

From 10 November 2012 water consent holders with takes of more than 20 litres per second need to have installed a water measuring and reporting system.

John Young, Environment Canterbury’s Team Leader Water Metering, said consent holders must comply with the Government’s regulations and need to act soon to avoid the expected rush for equipment and installations.

In the Ashburton Water Management Zone there are 2,095 water takes that require a water measuring device.

“To date, only around 14 per cent of the required installations for surface water takes have been carried out, and 39 per cent for ground water.

“One of the most urgent issues facing water consent holders is the installation of water measuring devices and the reporting of actual water usage.

“The government’s National Regulations are here to stay and there will be consequences for those who do not comply by the deadline.

“There are obvious cost advantages to getting organised and installing water measuring devices sooner, rather than later. If there is a last-minute rush this could result in a shortage of equipment and labour and require installers to contract out services and these costs could be passed on to farmers.

“If people get caught in the rush to install as the deadline draws closer it is possible they will be in breach of their consent conditions. We have a dedicated water metering team based in Ashburton that works closely with industry and the community to provide the necessary advice and guidance to make installing a measuring system as easy as possible,” he said.

In New Zealand there are around 12,000 consents that require water measuring devices to be installed. Approximately 42 per cent of these are in Canterbury – the highest regional proportion in New Zealand.

The National Regulations apply to all water consent holders with takes of five litres per second or more. Consents granted after November 10, 2010 are required to comply with the National Regulations immediately and consent holders must install a water measuring device providing continuous measurements, take daily readings, as well as provide annual records to their regional council.

Medium-sized consent holders (from 10 up to 20 litres per second) must comply by November 2014 and small consent holders (between 5 and 10 litres per second) have until November 2016.

John Young says there are obvious benefits to installing water measuring systems.

“Measuring water use will provide consent holders with the information they need to ensure they use water efficiently and optimise production, comply with resource consent conditions, as well as reducing irrigation and pumping costs.

“You wouldn’t run your car without measuring its fuel performance or speed and running your farm or business is no different. It is important to have the information required to ensure you are getting the best use out of your resource.

“The information is also important in assisting Environment Canterbury with the planning, allocation and management of the region’s ground and surface water,” he said.

Environment Canterbury has worked with Irrigation NZ, industry suppliers and farmer representatives to establish standards for the installation and verification of water measuring devices. There are around 40 companies in Canterbury which have been assessed and are authorised to provide water measuring services.

Consent holders should refer to their resource consent/s and review their conditions to determine whether the National Regulations apply, and if so whether they are in the two-year, four-year, or six-year compliance category.

Individual consent conditions can be viewed online here: Consent Search.

If consent holders do not have a copy of their consent or do not know their consent number they should call Customer Services on 03 353-9007 or 0800 324-636.

More information about water measuring services, approved installation companies and the implementation of the National Regulations can be found here: Water Metering and on the Ministry for the Environment website.

The deadlines for installing water measuring systems are:

Date Take size
10 November 2012 20 litres/second or more
10 November 2014 Between 10 and 20 litres/second
10 November 2016 Between 5 and 10 litres/second