Water for farms

Welcome to our District and Community

Helpful Things to Know

1. Water Consents:
   • TKWA owns the water rights for the water it reticulates. Therefore, not other consent is required for your water supply.
   • If your property has an existing entitlement, you can immediately commence to use the water upon advising TKWA of your contact details. No fees are required.
   • If you require more than your entitlement refer to Entitlements below.
2. How Much Water Will You Use?
   • This of course, depends entirely on the activity you intend to undertake on your land. However, the availability of a good supply of water at a reasonable pressure at all times creates options that may not usually be considered.
   • Any farming option can be more intense limited by feed rather than water.
   • Orchards, vineyards, vegetables can yield good returns and diversify risk.
   • Irrigation supply can be negotiated at rates less than available elsewhere.
   • The maisn constraint is the capacity of the reticulation but even this can be increased in some locations.
3. The Local Climate:
   • The North Waikato has a propensity for long dry summers that are sometimes declared droughts. From November through to April (that's 6 months) there is often very little effective rainfall - drizzle doesn't count!
   • The Te Kauwhata "ridge" running eastwards from the Waikato River between Rangiriri and Hampton Downs also creates a drier microclimate.
   • Warm days combined with the prevailing westerly winds rapidly dry out the soils. This severely limits growth of new plantings. The soils will take on the consistency of concrete! Without supplementary water, die back of even mature plantings can occur.
   • Warm days combined with the prevailing westerly winds rapidly dry out the soils. This severely limits growth of new plantings. The soils will take on the consistency of concrete! Without supplementary water, die back of even mature plantings can occur.
4. Warm days combined with the prevailing westerly winds rapidly dry out the soils. This severely limits growth of new plantings. The soils will take on the consistency of concrete! Without supplementary water, die back of even mature plantings can occur.
5. The TKWA Water Supply:
   • This water is not potable!!
   • It is an "outdoor" water supply - just think about washing the cars, cleaning the boat, enjoying fresh vegetables from the garden, the kids playing on a green lawn in summer, filling the pool, playing with the water blaster, water for the animals, an orchard, hydroponics, anything that uses water, etc., etc. If it uses water, this is the answer.
   • This water requires treatment to ensure it is safe to drink. Refer to the "Treatment" notes below.
   • The water is sourced from the Waikato River at our pump house on Churchill East Road. It is filtered, pumped up to the Hall Road header tank and then gravity fed through 40km of reticulation. This means the quality of the water varies both with each season and the state of the river.
   • The water is filtered to 135microns.
   • This results in a residual sediment load consisting mainly of very fine clays - the main reason the water is discoloured.
   • A very small dose of chlorine (1ppm) is added to inhibit algae growth inside the pipes. This has virtually no effect on improving the quality of the water.
   • The water pressure at the mains is usually >50psi (>3bar). That is a very useful pressure.
   • Repeat - This water is not potable!!
6. Water Entitlement and Connections:
   • If you are considering a property, obtain confirmation of the existing entitlement. This should be confirmed by contacting the Association.
   • Before you can get a connection (i.e. a meter), the property must have an entitlement to access this water.
   • The "Daily Supply Entitlement" (known as DSE) is expressed in cubic meters per day starting at 2.00m³ for lifestyle sections and increasing for larger properties
   • Having DSE means in terms of the Rules you are automatically a "Member" of the Association whether or not you have a connection or use TKWA water. Check the rules
   • A DSE of 2.00m³ is a supply of 2,000 litres each day or 182,000 litres every 3 months - the billing period. (Most large plastic storage tanks hold about 25,000 litres so that is more than 7 full tanks.)
   • The DSE belongs to the property. Additional DSE can purchased with a one-off payment but the total DSE permitted for any property is limited by its size. Our pricing
   • Special arrangements (i.e. leasing additional DSE and bulk pricing) can be made to assist seasonally large volume users eg: Those owners wishing to irrigate orchards, crops or pasture.
   • After the DSE is verified, a connection can be made. A standard connection involves the installation of a turnout from the mains, an isolating valve, 25mm meter and box. For larger properties where more volume is required a 50mm meter is usually fitted. Our pricing
   • A connection can usually be made in less than 14 working days of the confirmation/invoice unless additional installation works are required.
   • Once you start taking water, you become a "User" and will be billed every quarter.
   • As the owner, you are responsible for everything that happens beyond the meter!!
   • Note: If your property has been subdivided from a larger block, seek assurance from the vendor that the on-farm reticulation has been re-aligned.