Central Government is reviewing the regulation and supply of drinking water, wastewater and stormwater (the three waters) in New Zealand.
Why do water services in NZ need reform?
Water reforms have been a hot topic for successive governments for many years. Across New Zealand, there are significant issues with the country's water assets - in particular, it is estimated that between $120 and $185 billion dollars of investment in three waters (drinking water, wastewater and stormwater) infrastructure will be needed over the next 30 years. That means reform that focuses on how infrastructure it is funded, who pays, and what regulatory and oversight changes are needed.
The current reforms are called Local Water Done Well.
Background
The Havelock North water contamination incident in 2016, was a wake-up call for the water sector and led to several changes in regulatory oversight and management of water infrastructure in New Zealand. This included the creation of Taumata Arowai, a new Water Services Regulator to oversee and enforce a new drinking water regulatory framework, with additional oversight of wastewater and stormwater networks.
The inquiry and reviews also led to work on structural changes to delivery of water services across the country. The government at the time started work on the Three Waters Reform, seeking to shift three waters assets and operations from 67 councils to larger regional entities (Ōpōtiki District fell into entity B together with 22 councils comprising of approximately 800,000 people). You can read previous information on council's community engagement, involvement and response to those reforms.
Those plans were put on hold with the 2023 general election and in November 2023, the new coalition government announced the repeal of the Three Waters reforms. It introduced new legislation and called its version Local Water Done Well. It aims to keep water assets council-owned and lets each council choose the best way to deliver water services for its community.
Council's water service delivery plan was submitted on 22 August 2025. It was assessed by the Department of Internal Affairs in accordance with s 20(1)(b) of the Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Act 2024 and accepted on 30 October 2025.
