Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) will start installing smart water meters at most residential properties in Hāwea later this month, with all meters set to be installed by Christmas.

The district is one of the biggest consumers of water in the country, and historically there is a “massive spike” over the summer months, a QLDC spokesperson told the Wānaka App.

“On behalf of residents, council is working to ensure we can supply enough water to meet demand in the long-term as well as short-term peak demand, especially during our hot and dry summers (which evidence shows are likely to become more extreme due to the effects of climate change).”

QLDC is also required to install the meters by the central government’s Infrastructure Acceleration Fund (IAF), which is designed to support the expansion of new subdivisions and housing, the spokesperson said.

The meters will provide better tracking of demand trends, faster finding and fixing of leaks, and residents will be able to see exactly how much water they are using, and when, they said.

The spokesperson said the installation of the meters does not mean water charges are coming.

“… it’s worth emphasising that all our communications to the community on this topic from the start have stated that council is not currently looking to review how water services are charged.”

Hāwea Community Association (HCA) chair Cherilyn Walthew said there hadn’t been much discussion about the meters among HCA members.

She said she believed meters were “to be expected” and noted that they were becoming more frequent in many places around the world.

The new water meters will be installed within water toby boxes for each property, which are located under blue lids set into the ground within the road reserve on public land, QLDC said in a statement.

The majority of the meters will be installed for residential properties located to the north of Cemetery Road.

PHOTO: Wānaka App