Thanks to South Wairarapa residents keeping an eye on their water use, the district can shift down to Level 1 Water Restrictions on Tuesday April 22 at 12-01am. The shift follows the Ruamahanga River returning to acceptable levels and cooler temperatures contributing to a reduction in demand. 

“We’re happy to say that South Wairarapa residents can return to Level 1 Water Restrictions, after 8 weeks at Level 2” says Charles Barker, Chief Operating Officer at Wellington Water. “We want to thank Martinborough, Greytown, Featherston and the surrounding areas for following restrictions during the dry tail end of summer. Your efforts in reacting to tighter Water Restrictions by keeping an eye on your water use has helped make sure there’s enough water to go around for everyone.”

A return to Level 1 Water restrictions means that people can use sprinklers and irrigation systems on every second day, following the ‘odds and evens’ system. If you live in an even numbered house, you can use sprinklers or irrigation systems on even numbered days between 6-8am and 7-9pm. If you live in an odd numbered house, the same rules apply for odd numbered days.

This helps limit water evaporating in the heat of the day, spreads the load of daily water demand, and helps manage daily supply levels. You can use handheld watering devices any time, on any day, so long as you don’t leave them unattended.

Water Restriction Level 1 applies all year round for South Wairarapa, unless higher water restrictions are needed.