I had asked some Auckland friends some months ago when we were discussing the ongoing drought and deteriorating levels of the lakes the city relies on for its water why they didn’t put in tanks and collect the free rain falling on their roof.
I was surprised to hear that along with the cost of the tank was that the council charges resource consent fees to put in a tank.
I was pleased sensible provincial councils aren’t that silly or hungry to squeeze ratepayers for a few extra dollars on the pretext this has some sort of impact on the environment.
Well, in a city it would have an impact, but it would be positive.
For a start hundreds of thousands of tanks collecting rain at the same time would significantly reduce the amount of runoff going into stormwater systems and taking vast quantities of vehicle emissions, petrochemicals, rubber, solvents and dog shit into their waterways and the ocean. And they would reduce the flooding difficulties the city often experiences.
Also, it would take the pressure off the existing water storage and save money treating and distributing a large amount of water.
It would also stop many complaining about the chlorine and fluoride put into their water supplies.
Though I see the council is not considering folk actually drinking this bounty from the skies but expects they will use it to wash their cars and water the gardens.
It’s true our own drinking water off the roof out here in the sticks would probably fail a few tests but it seems our gut is accustomed to the odd bit of bird shit and treats it as a bonus mineral.
I used the opportunity of the drought to clean out all our rain tanks and most of the stock water tanks this summer. I do the rain tanks at least every second year. I find while being in a perfect echo chamber that singing Harry Belafonte’s song Dayo (The Banana Boat Song) makes any voice including my own sound amazing. It also helps keep up spirits though climbing the ladder and pushing the bucket out of the manhole above your head to discard the sludge while it slops over you is the least enjoyable part of the process.
The Auckland council is also considering removing consenting requirements to install tanks and making water tanks a requirement for new developments.
It’s amazing how a crisis can bring such quick and sensible decision-making.
And it is a crisis.
We might enjoy poking a stick at Auckland but it is nearly 40% of our economy at $100 billion. Any larger and we would be in danger of being a city state.
Its storage dams are at only 44% and Niwa’s forecasts are for the winter and spring to remain drier than average.
We watched a water crisis unfold in Cape Town in 2017 and 2018 when the dams got down to 20% and they would have been in serious trouble at 15% but have since had a reasonable recovery when the drought finally broke.
If Auckland gets down into this territory the water restrictions and rationing will seriously impact their and, consequently, our economy as if things aren’t bad enough now with the pandemic effects. For example, no one making concrete, which is water intensive, means the building industry would come to a stop.
Their last water crisis in 1993-94 meant they started pumping water out of the Waikato River, which has grown to a third of their requirements, and we have been watching Mayor Phil Goff plead to the Waikato authorities for large increases in the take, only to be told to get stuffed.
Living in the country we are conditioned from childhood that water is a precious resource to be captured, stored then rationed when scarce. Our bathroom door is badly dented from me pounding on it over the decades telling miscreants their shower has been long enough.
What Aucklanders are going to have to get their heads around is that they will need more dams or have to extend the ones they already have.
Those who always have a visceral objection to the mere mention of dams will be the very ones calling for more water to be pumped from Waikato or increased dam storage if the alternative is to line up at hydrants with their buckets or see their jobs vanish because of a lack of water.
They haven’t been fans of dams like the proposed Ruataniwha but might now start seeing for themselves it is a wise move to capture excess water in times of plenty for when its not a rainy day.
