Waimea Dam still not full as dry summer bites fruit growers, residents

The long-delayed Waimea Dam in the Tasman District is not finished nor full, but local residents and growers are likely to need water from it in the dry months ahead.

The controversial dam has had its share of delays and ballooning costs, but Waimea Water chief executive Mike Scott said it was now 95 percent complete - with the water level in the reservoir 1.5 metres from the top.

He said water could be released to shareholders - the Tasman District Council and Waimea Irrigators - if needed, but that would push out the reservoir filling and the dam's completion.

"The El Niño forecast essentially suggests we should expect a pretty dry January and February, so I am not counting on much rainfall and I would fully expect the shareholders to ask us to provide some water to keep the river levels up."

He said the dry weather and delays on what had been "a very challenging project" meant the dam was not full by December, as expected.

"It's certainly a juggling act between providing our shareholders with the water they paid for and finishing the project off."

Scott said further mechanical work was needed before the pipes and valves could be commissioned, which he expected to be complete by March.

The dry spell is also beginning to bite as apple and pear growers in the Tasman are getting ready to pick their crops.

Waimea Irrigators chair Murray King said while there were small amounts of rain up until Christmas and some rain a week ago, the subsoil on the Waimea Plains had reached critically dry levels.

"A wide range of crops are grown on the plains here, mostly high-value horticultural crops, ranging from vegetable crops through to berries, pip fruit and a small amount of pasture.

"Most irrigators plan for a dry summer, but of course, we have invested heavily in the Waimea Community Dam to make sure we avoid regular rationing through the dry summer months."

He said things were almost at wilting point - with most irrigators preparing to ramp up their water use given the severe moisture deficit.

"The plan was that the reservoir would have been full by now, but it is tantalising[ly] close and we just have to be patient.

"It's been a really important project ... it's just taken too long and costs too much."

Tasman District Council community infrastructure group manager Richard Kirby said residents in Richmond and the surrounding areas were feeling the pinch as well.

"It's certainly not as dry as it was back in 2018/2019 but we are still requiring people to conserve water because we are very close to our extraction limits for the urban water supplies."

Restrictions take effect

The council introduced phase D restrictions on 20 December for urban and rural water users. That meant only essential outdoor washing for safety reasons is allowed, cars can only be washed with recycled grey water and protected trees, fruit and vegetable plants can be watered only every second day.

It prohibits watering gardens and lawns, filling or topping up pools, spas or water features, or using water for play.

Kirby said there was some frustration among residents and affected businesses - with some flouting the rules.

"We have had people reporting to us that there are residents that are still irrigating at night, we haven't implemented severe monitoring at this point, though we have written letters to those we believe are irrigating asking them to cease."

He said the council was yet to take enforcement action and in serious cases, it could restrict water supply to certain properties, so they only received a trickle feed of water for essential purposes.

"It is a very extreme measure ... it would have to be pretty severe, we would visit the person first and talk to them about it and see what their attitude is and if they would change."

There could be some relief in sight, however. The council this week is seeking to increase its water extraction limits given recent growth in the district.

There has been almost a 4 percent population growth in Richmond over the nine years - meaning more demand on limited water supplies.

But if the Lee River began to dry up, Kirby said there would need to be discussions with Waimea Water about releasing some of the water stored in the dam.

"I think if the dam had been commissioned two years ago we probably wouldn't be in this position, but unfortunately we still are and we are doing our best to ease our abstraction limits so we can ease the restrictions in the next few days."