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Water Services Act 2021

Standards, enforcement, and other matters - Provisions relating to wastewater networks

138: Wastewater environmental performance standards

You could also call this:

"Rules for keeping our air, water, and land clean from wastewater"

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The Governor-General can make rules to set standards for wastewater. You need to know these standards can be about discharges to air, water, or land. They can also be about biosolids and energy use. The standards may include requirements or limits. A standard can say when it does not apply to someone. It can also say what activity status you will have under the Resource Management Act 1991 if you follow the standard. The standards can apply to all wastewater networks or just some of them. They cannot apply to just one network or operator. The rules made under this section are secondary legislation, which you can learn more about in Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS556268.

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Part 3Standards, enforcement, and other matters
Provisions relating to wastewater networks

138Wastewater environmental performance standards

  1. The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister and following consultation undertaken by the Water Services Authority with wastewater network operators, regional councils, and any other person the Water Services Authority considers appropriate, make regulations to set wastewater environmental performance standards, including standards that relate to—

  2. discharges to air, water, or land:
    1. biosolids and any other by-products from wastewater:
      1. energy use:
        1. waste that is introduced by a third party into a wastewater network (for example, trade waste).

          1. Wastewater environmental performance standards may include (but are not limited to) requirements, limits, conditions, or prohibitions.

          2. A wastewater environmental performance standard may specify—

          3. circumstances in which part or all of the wastewater environmental performance standard does not apply:
            1. the activity status under the Resource Management Act 1991 that an activity will have if it is performed in accordance with the standard:
              1. the activities controlled by the standard for which the consent authority—
                1. is precluded from giving public notification of an application for a resource consent:
                  1. is precluded from giving limited notification of an application for a resource consent:
                  2. a period during which—
                    1. existing wastewater infrastructure must be upgraded to meet the standard; or
                      1. new wastewater infrastructure must be built to meet the standard:
                      2. that a discharge consent for existing or new wastewater infrastructure must include a condition requiring the infrastructure to be upgraded or built within the specified period.

                        1. Wastewater environmental performance standards—

                        2. may apply—
                          1. to all wastewater networks and their operators; or
                            1. to classes of wastewater network and their operators; but
                            2. must not apply to an individual wastewater network or wastewater network operator.

                              1. Repealed

                              2. Repealed

                              3. Regulations made under this section are secondary legislation (see Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2019 for publication requirements).

                              Notes
                              • Section 138(1): replaced, on , by section 156(1) of the Local Government (Water Services) (Repeals and Amendments) Act 2025 (2025 No 43).
                              • Section 138(2A): inserted, on , by section 156(2) of the Local Government (Water Services) (Repeals and Amendments) Act 2025 (2025 No 43).
                              • Section 138(3A): repealed, on , by section 156(3) of the Local Government (Water Services) (Repeals and Amendments) Act 2025 (2025 No 43).
                              • Section 138(3B): repealed, on , by section 156(3) of the Local Government (Water Services) (Repeals and Amendments) Act 2025 (2025 No 43).
                              • Section 138(4): amended, on , by section 156(4) of the Local Government (Water Services) (Repeals and Amendments) Act 2025 (2025 No 43).