Christchurch losing 38 million litres of water a day
Leaks from ageing pipes now account for 27% of the city’s water use and they’re going to deteriorate faster than they can be repaired
Mōrena and welcome to The Bulletin for Friday, March 3, by Anna Rawhiti-Connell. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.
In today’s edition: outgoing health chair Rob Campbell reveals plan for ‘many hundreds’ of job cuts in health sector; how the money donated to the Red Cross Cyclone Gabrielle fund will be distributed; are widening company profit margins the real reason behind the country’s inflation issues?; but first, 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water lost in Christchurch everyday
15 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water lost in Christchurch everyday
More Olympic-sized swimming pool comparisons but it’s leaking, not falling from the sky
Yesterday I shared the report on the volume of rain that fell every minute for six hours in Esk Valley during Cyclone Gabrielle. It was enough rain to fill 72 Olympic-sized swimming pools. This morning, Stuff’s Tina Law reports that water leaks in Christchurch are continuing to grow as 38 million litres a day is lost from the city’s pipes — that’s about 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water.
Christchurch mayor discovers a leak
It all feels incredibly on the nose as people continue to deal with the impacts of decrepit infrastructure after extreme amounts of water fell from the sky. Bridges first designed during World War 2 will be installed across the North Island to reconnect communities still cut off after the cyclone and the Auckland floods. Law writes that leaks from ageing pipes in Christchurch now account for 27% of the city’s water use. Mayor Phil Mauger is just one resident of the city that recently discovered a leak, and it’s the literal kind. His two-person household was using 2,726 litres a day for 95 days. The maximum allowance is 700 litres, though the council is considering changing that to 900 litres.
Not as bad as Wellington
As reported in December, Wellington loses roughly the equivalent of 27 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water to degraded water infrastructure each day. About 40% of Wellington’s water use can be attributed to over 5000 leaks from the region’s pipes. Wellington mayor Tory Whanau has this week acknowledged that the forecast 12% rate hike for homeowners in the region “is tough”. Whanau said the capital had decades of under-investment in water, infrastructure and housing. She said about $3m would go to Wellington Water for work on pipes and that sum would increase significantly in the next long-term plan. The estimated cost of fixing Wellington’s water infrastructure is in the billions.
Three Waters reforms likely to improve financial outcomes for most, but not all, councils
I noted the S&P Global report on the impact of the government’s current Three Waters reform plans on councils' financial ratings yesterday. interest.co.nz has further detail. S&P say they still don’t have enough information to accurately forecast how the reforms would affect debt and costs carried by local councils but they have come up with a couple of scenarios. The reforms are likely to improve financial outcomes and reduce debt burdens for most, but not all, rated councils. The report also noted how profitable water services are for councils. “Across our rated portfolio, water-related activities account for 21% of operating revenues and only 17% of total operating expenditure.”
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Outgoing health chair reveals plan for ‘many hundreds’ of job cuts in health sector
Former Health NZ chair Rob Campbell has disclosed to Newsroom (paywalled) that Te Whatu Ora is preparing a full restructuring proposal that will impact a lot of its 80,000 staff, as well as contractors and staff in funded agencies. Te Whatu Ora provided Newsroom with a statement last night saying the restructuring proposal has not yet gone out to staff for consultation and it was working speedily on Friday morning to advise staff, to coincide with the article. Campbell is not going quietly, that is for sure.
Red Cross explains plans for Cyclone Gabrielle donations
More than $10m has been donated to the Red Cross Cyclone Gabrielle fund already. Red Cross New Zealand Secretary General Sarah Stuart-Black spoke to RNZ’s Checkpoint last night about its plans for the donations. Worth noting that these kinds of special appeals don’t end up covering administrative costs so every dollar donated reaches those in need. The Red Cross response began immediately after the cyclone and more than $600k has already been spent in the past week. Stuart-Black said that in deciding where to distribute more assistance, three factors would be considered including ongoing immediate response; ensuring they don’t duplicate the work of other services, but support it; and longer term investment in supporting affected communities.
Is corporate greed the real culprit behind inflation?
Who is really winning from skyrocketing inflation? National Party finance spokesperson Nicola Willis went head to head with Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr this week, blaming him and the government for being an active contributor to inflation by printing mass amounts of money during the COVID response. However, another factor may be to blame - corporate price gouging. Bernard Hickey explores how widening company profit margins may be the real reason behind the countries inflation issues in the latest episode of When the Facts Change.
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Students calling for cheaper e-bikes at today’s School Strike 4 Climate
Some freight railway lines will remain closed for months due to Cyclone Gabrielle damage
Mike Pence declines to support Donald Trump if he’s the Republican party’s 2024 presidential nominee saying ‘I’m confident we’ll have better choices’
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It’s Friday so…
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