Taranaki Whānui place rāhui on Wellington Harbour

The Team from Wellington Water

Taranaki Whānui have placed a rāhui on swimming in the harbour this afternoon following a major wastewater discharge into the Wellington Harbour.

The discharge is the result of a collapse in a tunnel that is part of the wastewater network in the CBD area. The wastewater is entering the harbour near the dive platform, and Whairepo lagoon near Te Papa.

Wellington Water has mobilised all our temporary systems to contain the wastewater but they will not be enough. Regrettably wastewater will enter the harbour at Frank Kitts Park/Taranaki Dive Platform by our emergency overflow point.

At this stage it is unknown how long this will last for, or the volumes of wastewater that will be discharged. We are working to try to divert the flows through other parts of the network.

We have staff currently out working with residents and businesses to advise how they can help by conserving water to reduce wastewater flows.

We are working with stakeholders and will be providing regular updates to ensure that they are able to keep the public informed.