Network environmental performance measures

The Water Services Act 2021 has mandatory requirements for certain public network operators to monitor and report on the environmental performance of their drinking water, wastewater and stormwater networks. 

These requirements only apply to: 

• networks operated by local councils or council-controlled organisations 
• government departments such as Department of Conservation, Ministry of Education, Corrections and the New Zealand Defence Force 
• people who operate a network on their behalf. 

The goal of monitoring and reporting is to provide transparency to the public and the sector about the performance of these networks and their operators.  

Robust data collection and reporting is key to providing a clear, detailed picture of our networks. It supports the ability of operators to effectively manage their networks and build a system that delivers safe drinking water and minimises potential impacts on the environment and public health. This reporting will contribute to the continuous improvement of the quality of water services across Aotearoa New Zealand. 

It’s about protecting the health of wai, tāngata and the taiao.

Network environmental performance measures 

These measures cover a range of topics, such as: 

• resource consents, rates of water-take from source water, and discharges from water treatment plants 
• environmental discharges, overflows, and by-products from water and wastewater treatment 
• condition of equipment, reliability and recovery of services – including water security and emergency preparedness 
• water losses and water restrictions  
• reasons for faults, and time taken to respond and repair them 
• energy use of treatment plants 
• disposal of biosolids  
• high-level information on operating costs and capital expenditure for upgrades. 

Network environmental performance report 

The data we receive on performance measures will be summarised in an annual network environmental performance report and published on our website. The report may also contain examples of best practice, specific risks or concerns that relate to network performance or practices, and insights on how different networks across the country are performing.  

Each annual report will cover the period from 1 July to 30 June in the following year. Our first report has been published. 

Reporting for 2023/24 year

The guide below includes the drinking water and new wastewater measures that you need to provide data on by 30 September 2024.  

This includes: 

• existing drinking water measures, which you need to report on for the year ending 30 June 2024 
• new ‘static’ wastewater measures, which you need to report on as at 1 July 2024.   

Here is a summary of the measures in the guide.

Thank you to those who joined our recent webinars for an overview of the new measures and template. If you missed these you can accesses all of our recorded webinars here.

We are also holding the following drop-in sessions, if you have any specific reporting issues and need help.

• Tuesday 20 August, 1pm – 1.30pm. Register here.
• Tuesday 10 September, 1pm – 1.30pm. Register here.
• Tuesday 24 September, 1pm – 1.30pm. Register here.

Network operators need to complete the new reporting template and send it to us at measures@taumataarowai.govt.nz by 30 September 2024.

If you have any questions, you can also contact us at measures@taumataarowai.govt.nz.

Reporting for 2024/25 year

The guide above also includes the measures you need to record from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 and provide data to us by 30 September 2025. You may need to set up monitoring systems to record these ‘continuous’ measures from 1 July 2024.

This includes:

• existing drinking water measures, which you need to report on for the year ending 30 June 2025
• ‘static’ and ‘continuous’ wastewater measures, which you need to report on for the year ending 30 June 2025.

A new reporting template will be available on this page of our website by 1 July 2025. We will email network operators when it is available.

Network operators need to complete the reporting template and send it to us at measures@taumataarowai.govt.nz by 30 September 2025.

Stormwater measures 

Currently, there are no mandatory requirements to report on the performance of stormwater networks. However, we intend to introduce stormwater measures in the future, and will consult with network operators on any proposed measures and then publish them on this page.

Archive

The Network Environmental Performance Measures and Guide 2024 replaces the following guides:

• Network Environmental Performance Measures and Guide June 2023.
• Drinking Water Network Environmental Performance Measures Guidance Material 2022.