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Bay of Plenty region

Surface Water Zone: Kaituna-Maketu-Pongakawa

The Kaituna-Maketū-Pongakawa Water Management Area (WMA) stretches from Pāpāmoa in the west to Ōtamarākau in the east and rises southwards to the Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes catchment. It's the site of Pāpāmoa’s future municipal water supply and its population is growing.

This WMA includes almost a quarter of Bay of Plenty's dairy farms and more than 1000 kiwifruit blocks. The area west of State Highway 33 is subject to Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority co-governance for the Kaituna River, established in 2014 under the Tapuika Claims Settlement Act. The purpose of the authority is to restore, protect and enhance the environmental, cultural and spiritual health and well-being of the Kaituna River.

This WMA will also be one of the first in the Bay of Plenty to have water quality and quantity limits set under the NPS for Freshwater Management. 

Our Western Water Sustainability Strategy has predicted water demand will almost double between 2005 and 2055 in the western Bay of Plenty sub-region. There is also extensive exotic forestry in the area in close proximity to the Port of Tauranga. The future irrigation needs for dairy and horticulture are unknown. The Kaituna Catchment Control Scheme (operated by Bay of Plenty Regional Council and the Little Waihī Drainage Scheme (operated by an incorporated society) provide extensive flooding and drainage infrastructure in the west and east of the WMA respectively.

The Kaituna River Re-diversion and Te Awa o Ngātoroirangi Maketū Estuary Enhancement Project is under way and new wetland creation projects are planned. A good level of data has been gathered to support this work.

The Pāpāmoa East, Te Tumu, Rangiuru, Tauranga Eastern Link motorway and other developments all drain to the lower Kaituna River, adding to potential flood flows if not managed well. This area includes critical road and rail transportation links between the east and west that are vulnerable to flooding damage, debris flows and, potential sea level rise. There are large areas of hill country vulnerable to erosion throughout the upper catchments, particularly in the Pongakawa-Manawahe area during high rainfall events.

The level of water allocation in many surface water catchments is above the default policy (10 percent of the Q5 seven-day low flow) in the Regional Natural Resources  Plan, although the Kaituna River has significant volume available. Groundwater is available in all catchments for allocation, and initial studies into groundwater characteristics have been completed.

Water Use
Surface Water in this Zone

Regional councils collect information about how much water is available and manage resource consents for those wishing to take water from rivers and streams. Use the buttons below to view information on: how much water is available, where it comes from and how its used.

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Rainfall {{waterAvailable.rainfall}} Runoff to sea {{waterAvailable.runoff}} Surface Water available: {{waterSource.availableToAllocate}} Irrigation
{{waterUsage.irrigationLabel}} Industrial
{{waterUsage.industrialLabel}} Stock
{{waterUsage.stockLabel}} Hydroelectrical
{{waterUsage.hydroLabel}} Town supply
{{waterUsage.drinkingLabel}}
  • How much surface water is there in this zone?

    Rainfall and flow in this surface water zone

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    Rainfall and runoff

    Relative breakdown Source Volume
    Rainfall total:
    {{waterAvailable.rainfall }}
         		rainfall Rainfall Total {{waterAvailable.rainfall}}
    Runoff total:
    {{waterAvailable.runoff }}
         		runoff Runoff to sea {{waterAvailable.runoff}}

    The table above shows the average amount of rainfall the water management zone receives each year and how much of that flows out to sea. These are approximate figures only.

  • Water consents: How much water is consented and used?

    Surface water available to consent

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    Consented water in this surface water zone

    Use the tables below to look at how much water is available compared with how much is actually consented within this water management zone. Click the plus to expand subzones where available

    {{item.zoneId}}
    Comparing consents and use
    Amount available to consent In this surface water management zone:
    {{item.data.totalAvailableAmount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableUnits}}
    available to consent
    Amount consented
    measured and non measured
    Amount used (measured)
    Amount Units Consented or used as a percentage of available
    Total available to consent {{item.data.totalAvailableAmount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableAmount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableUnits}}
    Total consented {{item.data.totalConsented.amount}} {{item.data.totalConsented.amount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableUnits}} {{item.data.totalConsented.percentText}}
    Total consented and measured {{item.data.totalMeasured.amount}} {{item.data.totalMeasured.amount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableUnits}} {{item.data.totalMeasured.percentText}}
    Total measured amount used {{item.data.totalAmountUsed.amount}} {{item.data.totalAvailableUnits}} {{item.data.totalAmountUsed.percentText}}
    Total measured volume used {{item.data.totalAnnualVolumeUsed}} {{item.data.totalAnnualVolumeUnits}}

    The table above shows the amount of water that is available for use compared to the amount that has been consented. The ‘Total Consented’ and ‘Total Consented and Measured’ fields are based on percentages of the ‘Total available to Consent’ field. If this field is not populated no data will be displayed. Some consents require actual use to be monitored and this is presented as 'Total measured volume Used' where available.

    Bay of Plenty Regional Council is currently compiling and moving consent data into a new database. Once this process is completed, detailed consent information missing from the table above will be made available.

    At present we can provide the following regional summary information:

    Bay of Plenty Regional Council manages more than 1300 consents to take and use water from ground and surface water sources. 

    Horticulture is the predominant activity, followed by potable/commercial use and agriculture.

    Of the current consents, approximately 45 percent were granted before the enactment of the RMA in 1991 and therefore have a 35-year term (expiry in 2026). New consent terms are granted a 10-year term with monitoring and review conditions.

    Summary consent information suggests a number of surface and groundwater sources are allocated above the current defined allocable flows. In 2013, nearly two-thirds of Bay of Plenty streams and one-fifth of its aquifers were allocated above default limits. Initial analysis and observation of surface and groundwater suggests the current levels of allocation are not having a widespread negative impact on water resources, but further monitoring and science to improve understanding is under way.

  • Water consents: How is consented water used?

    Consents by use in this surface water zone

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    Consented water

    Overall annual volume for {{waterAvailable.year}}
    Relative breakdown
    Activity Percentage of total consented Total volume Number of consents
    {{item.displayText}} {{item.displayText}} - - No data available {{item.breakdownPercentage}}% {{item.totalVolume}} m3 {{item.numberOfConsents}}
    Total {{waterUsage.total.percentageConsented}}% {{waterUsage.total.totalVolume}} m3 {{waterUsage.total.numberOfConsents}}

    The above table shows the proportion of water consented for irrigation, industrial, stock, town supply and other. It excludes hydro electricity. In this region/management zone {{hydroUsage.totalVolume}} m3/year is consented for hydro-electricity and makes up {{hydroUsage.percentageConsented}}% of the total water volume consented for this region/management zone

    Bay of Plenty Regional Council is currently compiling and moving consent data into a new database. Once this process is completed, detailed consent information missing from the table above will be made available.

    At present we can provide the following regional summary information:

    Bay of Plenty Regional Council manages more than 1300 consents to take and use water from ground and surface water sources. 

    Horticulture is the predominant activity, followed by potable/commercial use and agriculture.

    Of the current consents, approximately 45 percent were granted before the enactment of the RMA in 1991 and therefore have a 35-year term (expiry in 2026). New consent terms are granted a 10-year term with monitoring and review conditions.

    Summary consent information suggests a number of surface and groundwater sources are allocated above the current defined allocable flows. In 2013, nearly two-thirds of Bay of Plenty streams and one-fifth of its aquifers were allocated above default limits. Initial analysis and observation of surface and groundwater suggests the current levels of allocation are not having a widespread negative impact on water resources, but further monitoring and science to improve understanding is under way.

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