Key points
Environment Waikato monitors the number of consents issued each year for groundwater well construction. This helps us determine the level of groundwater resource development and investigation activity in the Waikato region.
- An average of 386 consents per year have been issued for well construction, from 1990 to 2007.
- Most sites are in the Hamilton basin, southern Hauraki Plains and Pukekohe areas.
Source: Environment Waikato
What agencies are doing
- Environment Waikato issues resource consents for well construction to ensure proper construction, completion and separation from likely sources of contamination.
- We monitor groundwater well construction to update this indicator and to assist policy making and consent decisions.
- We have policies on and regulate activities likely to cause contamination of groundwater supplies, such as wastewater discharge.
- We encourage responsible land and groundwater use and promote public awareness of the need for groundwater resource protection.
- We work with industry to develop codes of practice and industry guidelines.
- We provide a range of fact sheets, guidelines and water publications.
What you can do to help
- Obtain a resource consent (drilling permit) for any well construction from Environment Waikato - either directly or via a drilling contractor.
- Make sure wells are properly completed, sealed and protected to prevent surface contamination (including a concrete pad).
- Store chemicals away from wells and remove, where possible, other potential sources of contamination.
More information
More detail on this indicator, including how and where this information is collected, is available here.
What we want to achieve
The community outcomes we are seeking to achieve by managing and monitoring groundwater well construction are:
- The iconic landscapes and natural features of our environment define and sustain us. We respect and celebrate them as taonga.
- Our natural environment is protected and respected. Its ecological balance is restored, its air, soil and water quality is improved and its native biodiversity is enhanced.
- The traditional role of iwi and hapu as kaitiaki is acknowledged, respected and enabled.
- Our region’s waterways have consistently high water quality.