Over the next few months, we are renewing another section of the Studholme Street water main, as part of our work to improve the reliability of Morrinsville’s water infrastructure.

Water and wastewater manager Darren Teulon says the Studholme Street water main renewal is an important step in improving resilience of the water supply. “Last August we replaced the water main and pipework at the intersection of Coronation Road, Snell Street and Studholme Street. We are now entering phase two, replacing old water pipe infrastructure between Coronation Road and Anderson Street.

The improvements, including the new $8.5M plant, are funded in the 2024-34 Long Term Plan. In response to the extreme drought in 2020, we brought forward plans for the construction of a new treatment plant at the Lockerbie subdivision and committed to building an additional water treatment plant in the future. The Lockerbie bore was completed in recent years, and the Lockerbie treatment plant was officially opened on 9 September 2024, supplying water to the northern households of Morrinsville.

“The new Lockerbie bore and plant enables us to ensure there is enough water for essential drinking and hygiene use year round, and provides enough water into the future to support the town’s growth,” says Teulon. Morrinsville previously relied on one water source and the Waterworks Road water treatment plant to supply the whole town. “While seasonal water restrictions are likely to still be required, we’re working hard to develop a more reliable and resilient water supply network in Morrinsville, so we’re pleased to see the next step of the Studholme Street water main replacement underway.”

While the additional water supply provides greater water security for the Morrinsville community, water restrictions are still important to ensure there is enough water for everyone, including essential services. “Water is not an unlimited resource, and our water take consents with Waikato Regional Council limit how much we can take at any given time,” says Teulon. “To ensure long-term sustainability of our water resources, we still need to use water restrictions when there’s a need to manage water use at peak times of the year, like this summer, which has been particularly hot and dry.” The district currently has Level 2 water restrictions in place, which means watering by hand or adjusting any sprinklers or irrigation to operate on alternate days between 6-8am and 6-8pm. 

Our contractor Odlum Group started preliminary work last week. A Studholme Street road closure is planned for late April and due to take six to eight weeks, with detours and traffic management in place. The Gull petrol station will remain open and be accessible via Page Street from Lorne Street. Regular Morrinsville road users are encouraged to view the site maps at mpdc.nz/road, plan their trips and allow more time to move through the town. There will be scheduled water shutdowns with notice given to affected households, through additional letters, Antenno and mpdc.nz/waternotices throughout construction.

Work on improving the resilience of our water network continues while Council considers the future of how it delivers water services in the future. The Government’s replaced the previous Three Waters reform with a new approach called Local Water Done Well, to address New Zealand’s current and future water infrastructure challenges (drinking water, wastewater and stormwater). The new approach still requires councils to make big changes to how we deliver our water services and new rules and regulations mean we can’t keep things the same.

By September this year, all councils must submit a Water Services Delivery Plan that shows how they will deliver safe, sustainable and affordable water services that meet the new rules. Consultation on our preferred model for delivering future water services opens on Monday 5 May, and closes Sunday 25 May. The decisions made now will shape how water is managed for generations to come.

Want to know more?

Join the conversations happening online and in person during May. We’ll be holding two online webinars, or you can come along to one of our information sessions to talk with elected members and staff in person in Matamata, Morrinsville and Te Aroha. For details head to mpdc.nz/waterdonewell.