Large-scale water users face compulsory water-metering: Nick Smith

Any water user taking more than 5 litres per second will have to instal water meters and record their useage, Environment Minister Nick Smith announced tonight.

Treasury analysis says the impost on water users including farmers, food processors and municipalities will cost $42 million for national benefits of $101 million, on a net present value basis. The move will allow water pricing and charging to develop on a national basis.

"We can't even begin to manage water properly in New Zealand when we have so little information on how much is extracted and when," said Smith.

Less than a third of water taken nationally is currently metered.

Businesswire.co.nz

Comments from our readers

No comments yet

Add your comment:

Your name:
Your email:	Not displayed to the public
Comment:
Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved.

Anti-spam verification:

Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process.

Related News:

VCT - Full year results date & investor webcast details
ANZ - Air New Zealand 2026 Annual Results Webcast Details
SKC - Asset Monetisation Programme Update
July 17th Morning Report
MEL - Meridian Energy monthly operating report for June 2026
Devon Funds Morning Note - 15 July 2026
BIT - Transaction in Own Shares
Summerset Welcomes Alison Barrass to Board
LIC - Full Year Results 2025-26
VHP - Full Year Results Announcement Date and Webcast Details