2 Why Measure Water Takes?
This section reviews the rationale for water measuring at an individual, regional and national level.
Improving the efficiency of water use is a key outcome sought by the Water Programme of Action. Water is a public resource and the permission to take is granted through a resource consent [Resource consent is not needed for an individual's reasonable domestic needs or the reasonable needs of an individual's animals for drinking water. Water for these purposes is provided for under section 14 of the Resource Management Act provided there are no adverse effects on the environment. Water for fire fighting purposes can also be taken without resource consent under section 14 of the RMA.] (also referred to as a water permit) or a rule in a regional plan. Associated with that permission is a public expectation that the water will be used efficiently and will not be wasted - an expectation that can be better met if the actual amounts of water taken are accurately monitored. Measuring actual water used is part of demonstrating and measuring progress towards more efficient water use.
End users of the water measuring data range from individual water users to organisations reporting at a national level. Therefore, introducing or extending measuring systems serves many more purposes than resource consent compliance alone. The following sections provide more detail about the actual and potential benefits of consistent and accurate water measuring.
2.1 Regional and catchment resource management
Good resource management decisions are based on a good understanding of all aspects of the hydrological cycle - including current demand and actual water taken, and the implications for future demand.
Regional policy statements and regional plans can include state anticipated environmental results. For councils, having accurate information on the actual volumes of water abstracted, in relation to predetermined levels of availability or allocation limits can help determine the state of the resource and the effectiveness of their planning provisions.
Good knowledge of actual water take is especially beneficial in areas of high demand for water, where there are frequent challenges to consents or consent conditions at both a council and Environment Court level. Better knowledge of actual water take can help resolve such issues and reduce differences of opinion based on estimated figures. Moreover, in such areas, a lack of information on the level of water takes may have contributed to water resources being over-allocated.
Water take data is critical information for those managing the resource at the local level (such as a collective of irrigators), as well as those working at a regional or national level. Information obtained from measuring water takes can be used to support many aspects of water resource management, including:
- real time management during periods of water shortages
- quantifying and enabling access to any unused water
- collective management of takes by groups of water users
- monitoring compliance with resource consent conditions
- improved understanding of water resources and ecosystem responses (based on actual amounts taken)
- informing planning for future economic growth for communities.
2.2 Individual water management
Improving the efficiency of water use may require changes by water users. Users themselves are best placed to determine how their practices can change, but to do so they need relevant information to understand the inputs and costs at an individual business level. Consistent measuring will help users share and compare water take trends with other water users, councils and industry groups. It will also help water measuring device manufacturers better design meters for the New Zealand market. Water measuring can also assist individuals and businesses in the following ways:
- efficiency of water use (including application efficiency)
- compliance with consent or regional plan conditions
- identification of operating costs associated with water delivery
- integrity of the delivery system (for example, finding leaks)
- transfer of unused water within catchments.
2.3 National natural resource accounting
As a member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, New Zealand must provide environmental indicators for sustainable development. Information on the use and distribution of water resources is one such indicator. Similarly, as New Zealand is a member state of the United Nations, our water use is included in reports such as the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and statistics on freshwater management.
At a national level, the Department of Statistics compiles data for natural resource accounts, and the stock account for water includes an abstraction component. To date, all these figures have been provided based on estimates of varying validity. A National Environmental Standard on water measuring devices would provide the necessary tools to collect a consistent and comprehensive data set.
