Waiuku Water Treatment and Reservoir Upgrade

Watercare is building a new water treatment plant to deal with the considerable growth expected in the Waiuku area as well as replacing the existing infrastructure which is aging and needing replacement.

Currently most water in Waiuku is sourced from two boreholes in Cornwall Road, and ones in Victoria and Waiupu Roads, which take water from an aquifer below the town.

The water is treated at treatment plants at each of the sites to ensure it is safe drink.

The project will upgrade the boreholes, and replace the existing treatment plants with a larger and much more modern treatment plant in Cornwall Road. In addition to the new treatment infrastructure a new reservoir is going to be built at 1471 Waiuku Road.

There will also be new pipes to connect the boreholes with the new treatment plant, and new pump machinery at the top of the bores.

The new facility will not draw more water from the aquifer than what is already consented.

How will this affect you?

Long term this will mean you can be confident that, even with an increase in demand due to the community’s growth, the Waiuku community will have safe clean water.

In the short term however, as with any infrastructure construction, there will be some disruption, which we will seek to minimise.

In particular, people should be aware that there will be work in the road space along the routes of the new pipes along Victoria Avenue, Colombo Road, Kitchener Road, Cornwall Road and Waiuku Road.

What is happening at the moment?

Waiuku Water Treatment Plant

The design stage is still progressing. In parallel, enabling works are expected to commence in late 2026 or early 2027, subject to the tender process. These works will focus on the 11 Cornwall Road site and will primarily involve earthworks and backfilling for ground improvement. Following completion of the enabling works, the main Waiuku Water Treatment Plant upgrade is expected to commence towards the end of 2027 and will include pipework within the road corridor.

Waiuku Reservoir

The design stage has been completed, and the project is now in the tender stage to select a contractor to carry out the work. Construction is anticipated to commence towards the end of 2026, with works mainly taking place at the reservoir site at 1471 Waiuku Road.

Waiuku Bores Upgrade

The design stage has been completed, and the project is now in the tender stage to procure a drilling contractor. Drilling work is anticipated to commence towards the end of 2026, with works mainly taking place at the reservoir site at 1471 Waiuku Road and 83a Victoria Avenue.