New Zealand drinking water supply regulations

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New Zealand drinking water supplies

Give us a call: 02102837384

Taumata Arowai is the New Zealand water regulator for drinking water suppliers.

A supplier is where one pipe line supplies more than one house from any source of water.

The new regulations have now been published.

Water quality parameters have been set. These include Maximum Acceptable Values for water quality and Aesthetic quality values.

Check your water with a test, we can help arrange this. We do analysis on tests and provide recommendations to ensure your water meets the parameters set.

The parameters can be viewed here:

Water Quality Parameters

Water Aesthetic Values

The new Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules

Published July 25, 2022

Brief summary:

There are 3 components of a supplier:

1. source water abstraction
2. water treatment plant
3. distribution system

There are 4 main categories of supplier with two types of supply; networked and self supplied:

Networked means: Drinking water supplies that provide drinking water via a distribution system at a pressure and volume to meet consumer demand, or at a restricted flow and volume. These supplies may include storage facilities within the network to buffer demand.

Self supplied means: Self-supplied Buildings are water supplies which provide drinking water to up to ten buildings on one site (within the boundaries of one property, or within the boundaries of two or more properties with common ownership arrangements) and provide water to more than 25 people.

a) Very Small Community. Drinking water supplies of any configuration or arrangement that provide drinking water to a population of up to 25 people (excluding a domestic self supplied home). In circumstances when the population supplied fluctuates, the population supplied may increase to up to 50 people for up to 60 days in any 12 month period. Compliant to VSC (monitoring every 6 months of E-Coli, total coliforms - reporting annually)

b) Small 26 – 100 people. Varying Population module requirements can apply to this drinking water supply category. Compliant to Level 1 (monitoring every 3 months of E-Coli, total coliforms and turbidity - reporting annually).

All water supplied must be treated via 5 micron filtration and Class A UV. Backflow and cross connection risk need to be eliminated and assessed.

c) Medium 101 – 500 people. Varying Population module requirements can apply to this drinking water supply category. Compliant to Level 2 (monitoring every month on a number of items, reporting annually). A number of treatment processes needed.

d) Large >500 people. Compliant to Level 3 (quite complex, ask for information)

The Three Waters reform will simply ensure that national standards are adhered to. This includes treatment to include Chlorination and Fluoridation in all town supply water.
Regulations for suppliers have been set. If your home is supplied with water that supplies another home, then regular water testing needs to occur. Compliance fo treatment needs to be ensured.
If you water source only supplies your home, it is up to you to decide if you want to treat your water. We recommend a 3 stage filter that includes UV.
Taumata Arowai is the regulator for all water supply.
The town supply water you are drinking is deemed safe by the suppliers. Many people do not like chlorine or fluoridation so they put in their own filtration units to filter this out.
All private filtration units have nothing to do with Taumata Arowai, this is your choice as a user.
Taumata Arowai has recently published their quality parameters.
To find out if your water meets the standards, please request a water test and send though to us so we can analyse and provide feedback,
Taumata Arowai sets the standards for the supply of water.
Ask us fo more details, we have all the information available to give you.