Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Local Government Act 2002

Specific obligations and restrictions on local authorities and other persons - Specific obligations to make assessments of drinking water, wastewater, and sanitary services and to ensure communities have access to safe drinking water

125: Requirement to assess drinking water services

You could also call this:

“Councils must check if everyone has safe water to drink”

You need to know about how a territorial authority (like a council) must check on drinking water services in their area. Here’s what they have to do:

Every three years, or sooner if there are concerns, the authority must look at each community’s access to drinking water. They need to find out which communities get drinking water services and what those services are like. They also need to describe what each community is like.

The authority must check if each community is getting enough drinking water now and will continue to get enough in the future. They need to think about any risks that might stop the community from getting water in the future and how much water the community will need.

They also need to check how safe and good the water is, using information from Taumata Arowai and other organisations. They must look for any health risks related to the drinking water services.

The authority also needs to check wastewater and sanitary services as mentioned in section 128.

After looking at all this, they need to think about what would happen if a community lost its drinking water or if the water wasn’t good enough. They need to make a plan to make sure the community keeps getting drinking water.

The authority must let people tell them anytime if they’re worried about a community’s access to drinking water.

When they do these checks, they need to look at communities that get water from the authority and those that don’t. They need to look at all types of water supply, even for communities that don’t get water through pipes. They don’t need to check water services owned by the Crown.

The authority can do these checks themselves or get another organisation, including an iwi or Māori organisation, to do it for them.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM172925.

Topics:
Government and voting > Local councils
Health and wellbeing > Food and water safety
Previous

124: Interpretation, or

“Explaining important words used in this part of the law”

Next

126: Requirements following assessment of community drinking water service, or

“What to do after checking a community's drinking water”

Part 7 Specific obligations and restrictions on local authorities and other persons
Specific obligations to make assessments of drinking water, wastewater, and sanitary services and to ensure communities have access to safe drinking water

125Requirement to assess drinking water services

  1. A territorial authority must inform itself about the access that each community in its district has to drinking water services by undertaking an assessment of drinking water services in accordance with this section.

  2. An assessment of drinking water services must—

  3. identify each community that receives a drinking water service; and
    1. describe the nature of existing drinking water services to the community; and
      1. describe the characteristics of the community; and
        1. assess the extent to which the community is currently receiving, and will continue to receive, a sufficient quantity of drinking water, including a consideration of—
          1. the community’s existing access to drinking water services; and
            1. any reasonably foreseeable risks to the community’s access to drinking water services in the future; and
              1. the current and estimated future demands for drinking water services within the community; and
              2. describe the safety and quality of drinking water currently being supplied to the community, using information collected and made available by Taumata Arowai and any other organisations that the territorial authority considers relevant; and
                1. identify and assess any other public health risks relating to the drinking water services supplied to the community; and
                  1. include an assessment of wastewater and sanitary services in accordance with section 128; and
                    1. based on the assessment under paragraphs (b) to (g),—
                      1. assess the consequences if the community loses access to drinking water services in the future, or is provided with drinking water services that are deficient in any way, including the implications for that community’s public health; and
                        1. outline a plan to provide for the community’s ongoing access to drinking water services.

                        2. A territorial authority must conduct an assessment of drinking water services under subsection (2)—

                        3. at least once every 3 years, which may be carried out when other assessments are carried out or at different times; or
                          1. at an earlier date than required by paragraph (a), if the territorial authority is made aware of concerns about the access that a community has to drinking water services.

                            1. A territorial authority must provide opportunities for any person to alert the territorial authority at any time to concerns about a community’s access to drinking water services.

                            2. For the purposes of this section,—

                            3. references to assessments include—
                              1. assessing a service for the first time; and
                                1. reviewing and updating an existing assessment:
                                2. the scope of each assessment must include—
                                  1. communities that receive drinking water services from the territorial authority or other local government organisation; and
                                    1. communities that do not receive drinking water services from the territorial authority or other local government organisation; and
                                      1. all types of water supply arrangements, including communities (and households within those communities) that do not receive drinking water services supplied by network reticulation:
                                      2. territorial authorities need not consider within an assessment drinking water services that are owned or operated by the Crown:
                                        1. an assessment may be carried out by the territorial authority, or undertaken on its behalf (whether in whole or in part) by another appropriate organisation, including an iwi or Māori organisation.

                                          Notes
                                          • Section 125: replaced, on , by section 208 of the Water Services Act 2021 (2021 No 36).