Open day to happen at upgraded Pukekohe Water Treatment Plant

In March, we will be hosting an event for the community to check out the upgraded Pukekohe Water Treatment Plant.

The free event is open to the public and will be held at the Pukekohe Water Treatment Plant, 148 Seddon St, on Saturday, March 8, between 10am and 2pm.

This event is an opportunity for the community to tour the plant and understand its role in Auckland’s integrated metropolitan water network.

We will also be hosting a free sausage sizzle and giving away spot prizes at the open day.

At the event, people will get to see the results of the work our team and our contractors have put in to bring the plant back into service.

Design and construction manager Johan Gerritsen says the treatment plant was taken offline during the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods.

“The floods destroyed most of the plant’s critical infrastructure like the chemical dosing systems, drives for the pumps and the electrical equipment in the control room.

“However, instead of building it back straight away, we took the time with our contractors to redesign and reconfigure the plant to reduce its future flood risk.

"Some of the ways we did this was by moving critical components like the control room to higher ground and installing all major electricity cables underground to protect them from flooding.”

Head of water Sharon Danks says while the plant was out of service, most of Pukekohe’s water supply came from the Waikato River, treated at the Waikato Water Treatment Plant.

“Since we brought the treatment plant back into service in December, it’s been effectively treating water from two bores at Hickey’s Recreation Reserve.

“The plant is supplying up to five million litres of water per day to customers in Pukekohe and Buckland and is helping to ease demand on the wider metropolitan network that serves Auckland.”

We plan to introduce a new self-generating chemical dosing system that will replace the liquid dosing system that’s currently used at the plant.

Says Danks: “Construction for the new dosing facility will begin later in March, after the open day.

“We’re aiming to have the new dosing system integrated into the treatment process at the plant by mid-year.”