A haze hanging over Tauranga on Thursday morning - seen here looking from Cambridge Rd towards Welcome Bay - was the result of heat and humidity. PHOTO/JOHN BORREN
A hot week and more people have put the city's water supply under pressure.
Tauranga used nearly as much water this week as it would at the peak of summer in recent years, according to Tauranga City Council monitoring data.
The city used an average of 48,580cu m a day in the week to December 5.
"We haven't seen that sort of use this early before," council waters manager Steve Burton said.
"Our peaks usually come in mid-to-late January."
This time last summer the city was using 44,147cu m a week and the summer before it was 39,259.
If the weekly rolling average reaches 50,000cu m, the council can look at triggering water restrictions.
Last summer the city crept over that level twice - once in early January and once in early February - but water restrictions were not imposed.
Burton said the council had not had to use restrictions since 1999.
Water meters were introduced in 2000 and he said that made people aware of how much water they were using.
Tauranga people were also very responsive to water conservation campaigns, such as had been rolled out this week.
This year's early peak was likely down to a combination of the hot weather and the city's growing population, Burton said.
"We now have more people living in Tauranga than ever before and this, combined with our recent dry spell and the predicted hot, dry summer, means our water supplies are under increasing pressure."
A lot of people were building and establishing lawns and gardens on bare sections in Tauranga and across the board, residential outdoor water use was likely one of the biggest factors in the early peak.
Like most of the rest of the country, Tauranga has been experiencing an early summer heatwave.
Temperatures this week peaked at 24C, MetService meteorologist Gerrit Keyser said.
The mean temperature was only a degree or so higher than the same time last year, but high humidity this year meant some of us might have felt it was a lot warmer, he said.
Tauranga's usual average for December was 22.5C and the record of 28.7C was set in 1998.
The city could expect some showers this weekend, which would pick up a bit heading into Monday.
Burton said the council was anticipating record water supply demands this year, but the city had enough to go around if people did not go overboard.
Tips to save water
- When watering the garden, make sure every drop counts
- Don't water the footpath
- Water in cooler hours to avoid it evaporating
- Avoid using sprinklers
- Fix drips and leaks
- Use a broom, not a hose, to clean paths
- Turn the hose off when moving around your property
- Use a bucket to wash the car
Visit tauranga.govt.nz/saving-water for more
Two big business donations capped off the six-week fundraising drive.