Martinborough Township Outdoor Water Ban
South Wairarapa Mayor Alex Beijen is urging the community to immediately cease using water outside and to conserve water generally.
“On Monday evening, the pump on the township’s low-manganese bore faulted and is being urgently replaced. With no water being pumped the water reservoir reserves are going down."
Mayor Beijen said he had been advised that installing the spare pump could be done within a day, but until the reservoir levels have recovered and we know the replacement pump is working well, we must conserve water.
“It’s essential that the community immediately responds to this pressing need to conserve water. If the township uses more water than we can supply from the low-manganese bore, we will have to use the other bores as well. That could mean the town’s drinking water becoming discoloured.
“Although safe to drink, the water could lose its clarity due to the reaction between manganese and chlorine – we want to avoid discoloured water if we can.
“We’re addressing infrastructure replacement as fast as possible, and this is unfortunate timing of an equipment failure,” said Mayor Beijen.
Information on how to conserve water will be shared throughout the community – you can find out more at www.wellingtonwater.co.nz...
“We will update the community when more information is available,” Mr Beijen said.
Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
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Once again, Resene and NZ Gardener are on the hunt for New Zealand’s best shed! Send in the photos and the stories behind your man caves, she sheds, clever upcycled spaces, potty potting sheds and colourful chicken coops. The Resene Shed of the Year 2026 winner receives $1000 Resene ColorShop voucher, a $908 large Vegepod Starter Pack and a one-year subscription to NZ Gardener. To enter, tell us in writing (no more than 500 words) why your garden shed is New Zealand’s best, and send up to five high-quality photos by email to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. Entries close February 23, 2026.
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