How you can join the University and help save Wellington’s water this summer

Our wai can run dry. Wellington water is finite, and summer often means water restrictions for our region.

persons body with hand holding watering can
Right now we are at Level 1—but we need to prepare for tighter water restrictions as an institution, and as individuals.

The University will be sharing Wellington Water’s messages over the coming months, as well as doing everything we can to ensure that we use less water on our campuses and in our halls of residence.

Property Services has asked our groundskeepers, Bark, not to use sprinklers and to reduce hand-watering as much as possible on our campus grounds. We are also talking to our other contractors to ensure that there are no extra uses of water beyond what is required for cleaning. We have ceased all building cleans and are investigating other water-saving measures.

Like many parts of Wellington, we have some leaking pipes on our property. The two biggest ones are both on track to be fixed by the end of December.

Individual water usage at the University includes showers, kitchens, laboratories, and bathrooms. Please limit your use as much as possible and, as a priority, let us know immediately if you hear running water somewhere you wouldn’t expect—you can do this by calling Property Services on 0800 100 140. They will get someone out to check where it is coming from.

At Level 1, Wellington Water asks that those of you in odd-numbered houses only water their gardens on odd-numbered days, and even-numbered houses on even-numbered days. The focus at Level 1 is on outside water usage, but this will change if Wellington’s water runs low, and if we climb up the levels, to have more of an inside and individual focus.

Learn more about the levels from Wellington Water. Thank you for helping us conserve water this summer.