Frequently asked questions for: Public consultation
General
Q: What is Taumata Arowai?
Taumata Arowai is the new water services regulator for Aotearoa. We’re currently regulating drinking water and will have an oversight role in relation to wastewater and stormwater systems from 2023.
Taumata Arowai is a standalone Crown entity with a Minister-appointed Board. Alongside the independent Board is a Māori Advisory Group (Rōpū Māori) which advises on Māori interests and knowledge.
Q: What does Taumata Arowai do?
Taumata Arowai regulates drinking water suppliers to ensure they are satisfying their duty to provide safe drinking water. We develop Drinking Water Standards, Quality Assurance Rules, Aesthetic Values and Acceptable Solutions to help achieve this. We’ll also monitor and report on the environmental performance of wastewater and stormwater networks from 2023.
Q: Is Taumata Arowai involved in the Three Waters reform?
No. Taumata Arowai is not involved in the Three Waters Reform programme looking to create new regional water entities. Our role is to regulate rather than to determine any future changes to the water supply delivery system. We’ll work with drinking water suppliers in whichever form they take.
Q: What is Taumata Arowai consulting on?
We’re consulting on the following proposed documents, which will guide the way drinking water is supplied to people in Aotearoa in line with the Water Services Act 2021. These documents can be reviewed on our online consultation platform (te-puna-korero.taumataarowai.govt.nz):
- Draft Drinking Water Standards (the Standards)
- Draft Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules (the Rules)
- Draft Drinking Water Aesthetic Values
- Draft Drinking Water Acceptable Solution for Roof Water Supplies
- Draft Drinking Water Acceptable Solution for Rural Agricultural Drinking Water Supplies
- Draft Drinking Water Acceptable Solution for Spring and Bore Drinking Water Supplies
- Discussion document outlining our policy intent for drinking water network performance
Q: How does this consultation compare with the Ministry for the Environment’s consultation on the National Environmental Standards for Sources of Human Drinking Water (NES-DW)?
The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) and Taumata Arowai both play a role in contributing to the safety of drinking water and we work closely together.
MfE is responsible for the NES-DW which supports the protection of drinking water by managing activities around water sources that could impact the quality of the treated drinking water.
MfE is currently undertaking consultation on proposed changes to the NES-DW in three areas: standardising how source water areas are defined, strengthening the regulation of activities around water sources and including more water suppliers under the NES-DW.
As the water services regulator, our current focus is working with drinking water suppliers to make sure they provide safe drinking water. We’re currently consulting on several documents containing technical content, rules and standards that will guide the way drinking water is supplied. Our current consultation does not relate to the protection of source water.
MfE and Taumata Arowai will continue to work closely together to minimise any duplication and ensure the two regimes are aligned.
Q: How do I make a submission?
Submissions are open from 17 January to 28 March 2022. You can review the documents, access additional information and complete an online survey on our online consultation platform (te-puna-korero.taumataarowai.govt.nz). If you are unable to use the online platform you can also email your submission to korero@taumataarowai.govt.nz or post it to:
Taumata Arowai
PO Box 628
Wellington 6140
Drinking Water Standards
Q: What are the Standards?
The Drinking Water Standards (the Standards) are established to make sure that all drinking water is safe for consumers. They set Maximum Allowable Values (MAVs) for a range of different chemical, radiological and microbiological contaminants and factors that can affect the safety of drinking water.
Q: When will the new Standards apply from?
The likely date for the Standards to come into effect is 1 July 2022. Until then, the existing Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand 2005 (revised 2018) (DWSNZ) will apply.
Q: What’s a MAV?
A MAV (Maximum Acceptable Value) is the concentration for a substance below which there is no significant risk to health. For most chemicals this is based on the risk of drinking the water for a lifetime.
Q: Who/what do the new Standards apply to?
A: The Standards apply to all drinking water supplies, except those serving a single domestic dwelling or household. Drinking-water must meet the Standards at every point in a distribution system, from the point it is treated to the furthest tap or outlet. This ensures all consumers receive safe water.
Q: Why do we need new Standards?
The Standards have been updated to align with the latest guideline values set by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The current DWSNZ were issued by the Ministry of Health under the Health Act 1956. These new Standards will be issued under the Water Services Act 2021.
Q: How were the Standards developed and by who?
External technical experts assisted Taumata Arowai to develop the Standards. ESR (the Institute of Environmental Science and Research Limited) aligned MAVs with guideline values set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and re-calculated them for an average body weight of adults in New Zealand (70kg). We engaged the Cawthron Institute to review the MAVs for cyanotoxins as this is one of their areas of expertise. The Standards were then reviewed by sector reference groups established by Taumata Arowai, including representatives from small water suppliers, Māori communities and local authorities. Finally, they were reviewed by the Ministry of Health.
Q: What are you doing about the issue of nitrates in water?
As the water services regulator, our current focus is working with drinking water suppliers to make sure they provide safe drinking water, which complies with the Standards. We have proposed to set the Maximum Acceptable Value (MAV) for nitrate in drinking water at 50mg/L (sometimes reported as 11.3mg nitrate-nitrogen). This is in line with the guidelines from the World Health Organisation and other international standards including the European Union and Australia.
Taumata Arowai is working closely with the Ministry for the Environment and local authorities who are responsible for freshwater and regulating activities around water sources that could impact the quality of the treated drinking water.
Q: Is Fluoride included in the Standards?
According to section 47(3) of the Water Services Act 2021, drinking water standards must not include any requirement that fluoride be added to drinking water. However, above a certain level there is a health impact from fluoride. For this reason, both the current and draft drinking water standards have a Maximum Acceptable Value for fluoride in drinking water of 1.5mg/L. This is higher than the levels of fluoride added to drinking water for health reasons.
The Director-General of Health has the power to direct a local authority to add or not to add fluoride to drinking water (under the Health Act 1956, as amended by Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021).
Drinking-water Quality Assurance Rules (the Rules)
Q: What are the Rules for?
A: The Rules tell drinking water suppliers what they need to do to comply with the Standards. They outline minimum requirements for monitoring, reporting and other activities that assure the safety of drinking water.
Q: Who will the new Rules apply to?
A: The new Rules apply to all drinking water supplies that serve more than a single domestic dwelling. This reflects the increased scope of the Water Services Act 2021 (the Act). There will also be an option for some drinking-water suppliers to apply an Acceptable Solution as an alternative to complying with the Rules.
Q: When will the new Rules apply from?
The likely date for the new Rules to come into effect is 1 July 2022. Until then, the existing Drinking-Water Standards for New Zealand (revised 2018) (DWSNZ) will apply.
Q: How were the Rules developed and by who?
We’ve worked with sector reference groups from a variety of drinking water supply types across Aotearoa New Zealand to develop the new Rules. They were then reviewed by a national and international panel of experts, Watercare, Wellington Water and the Ministry of Health who provided useful feedback and refinements. The public consultation process will provide an opportunity to receive feedback from a wide range of stakeholders and make final refinements to each of the documents before they are finalised.
Q: How are the Rules different from the existing Drinking-water Standards for New Zealand 2005 (revised 2018) (DWSNZ)?
The Rules have been separated out from the Standards and are presented in a separate document.
Key changes from the current DWSNZ include:
- different levels of complexity to cater to the diversity of drinking water supplies
- a new format to make it easier for suppliers to find the rules that apply to their supplies
- a greater emphasis on testing to identify and help manage risks
- new requirements for source water testing and distribution system monitoring
- discontinued the secure bore water criteria. All water supplies will need some form of treatment unless an exemption is granted by Taumata Arowai
- a new chemical compliance requirement for large (serving more than 500 people) supplies.
Why are the Rules so complex?
There are many kinds of drinking water supplies in Aotearoa New Zealand with varying levels of risk and complexity. We have developed the Rules to provide for this diversity. The complexity of the rules increases with the size of the supply to recognise the increased risks of larger supplies. We’ve grouped the rules into modules to make it easier for suppliers to navigate the Rules. Rather than reading through extensive chapters, each drinking water supplier is assigned a small set of modules containing the rules that apply to them.
Drinking Water Acceptable Solutions
Q: What is an Acceptable Solution?
Acceptable Solutions are a new concept introduced in the Water Services Act 2021. They provide owners and operators of some types of drinking water supplies with an approved ready-made option to meet their compliance obligations.
Q: When can I apply an Acceptable Solution?
Acceptable Solutions will not come into effect until after consultation. The likely date is 1 July 2022.
We encourage water suppliers not to implement Acceptable Solutions until they are finalised and we can provide them with the process for ensuring they can be implemented to ensure safe drinking water. We will provide guidance on this.
Q: How much will it cost to implement an Acceptable Solution?
The cost of implementing an Acceptable Solution will depend on many factors including source water quality, the location and what is already in place treatment wise. Most small water systems have specific designs. We are not currently able to provide costings.
Q: What if my water supply does not meet the requirements for an Acceptable Solution?
An Acceptable Solution is not the only way of complying with the Water Services Act 2021. If a water supplier is unable to apply an Acceptable Solution, they can follow the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules (the Rules). These first three Acceptable Solutions are only the beginning. We intend to work alongside small water suppliers to develop further Acceptable Solutions to respond to their needs.
Q: How were the Acceptable Solutions developed and by who?
We’ve worked with sector reference groups from a variety of drinking water supply types across Aotearoa New Zealand to develop the first three Acceptable Solutions. The reference groups included representatives from rural agricultural water supplies, Federated Farmers, Māori communities and local authorities.
Drinking water network environmental performance measures
Q: How will the new measures affect communities?
This change is about protecting the health of our people and environment. The state of Aotearoa New Zealand’s water infrastructure directly impacts the environment and public health.
Q: Why do you need this information and what will you do with the information I provide?
This information will help us perform our functions as the drinking water regulator. Our role is to improve the environmental and health outcomes of our drinking water systems. We need to know the state of drinking water networks to do this.
For this reason, environmental performance reporting was built into the Water Services Act 2021 (the Act) as a statutory requirement for network operators. The data we receive will be summarised in a public-facing Annual Report, containing examples of best practice and comparisons between different networks.
Q: Who do these changes apply to?
The new requirements only apply to networks and network operators. These terms have very specific definitions under the Act which means that only drinking water, wastewater and stormwater networks owned by, or operated on behalf of councils or government departments are captured. For drinking water, this is only a subset of drinking water suppliers.
Q: Is my supply considered a drinking water network?
Only a small subset of drinking water supplies are considered drinking water networks.
Network operators are limited to local authorities and council-controlled organisations, government departments (i.e., Department of Conservation or the Ministry of Education) and the New Zealand Defence Force.
Q: When will new measures be introduced?
We’re staggering the introduction of these measures across a period of three years to allow network operators time to adjust and develop capability. We’ll start with measures that are easy to report on and build from there.
Network operators will need to start collecting data from 1 July 2022 and will be required to report the first year of this data to Taumata Arowai towards the end of 2023.
Q: What are the benefits of collecting this information?
The data collected will help network operators with decision making, for example, investment decisions. It will also provide evidence to support resource consent applications.
Q: What is Te Mana o Te Wai and how does it relate to the new measures?
Te Mana o te Wai is a fundamental concept, focused on restoring and preserving the balance between water (wai), the wider environment (taiao) and people (tangata), now and in the future. It was first introduced in a government context as part of the Ministry for Environment’s National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. Under the Water Services Act 2021, Taumata Arowai is required, to give effect to Te Mana o te Wai. To do this, we first need to establish a clear picture of what is happening. Environmental performance monitoring will provide key data to build a holistic, whole-of-system view to protecting wai.
Q: What if network operators lack the capability to collect the data required?
We will work with network operators to ensure they are well-placed to fulfil their obligations. The staged commencement approach will allow additional time for measures that are more difficult to collect.
Q: What happens if I don’t provide the data by the date provided?
We will work with network operators to ensure they are well-placed to meet their obligations.
Environmental performance reporting is a statutory requirement for network operators and consequently there will be penalties for not providing the data required. We will provide more details about penalties following public consultation.
Q: Should I continue to work with Water New Zealand on National Performance Review Process?
Continuing to engage with the National Performance Review for all three waters will provide you with valuable ongoing information on how your assets are performing. It will also put network operators in a good position to comply when our reporting becomes mandatory.
Q: Why isn’t wastewater and stormwater being dealt with now?
Measures for wastewater and stormwater will be introduced on a longer timeframe (starting 2023), to reflect the staged commencement of those provisions in the Water Services Act.
Q: Why are government departments being treated differently to councils?
We are undertaking separate ongoing engagement with the New Zealand Defence Force and the government departments that will be required to monitor environmental performance. It’s likely that we’ll need to take a tailored approach to reflect the scale, complexity, and unique characteristics of their networks.
At this stage we consider networks operated by universities and hospitals will not be captured because while they are publicly operated networks, they are not operated by a government department.