Urgent call to conserve Hastings water, full sprinkler ban possible by end of week

Level three water restrictions could be in place by the end of the week if Hastings residents don't conserve water. Photo / File

Hastings residents urgently need to conserve water or level three restrictions could be put in place by the end of the week.

The Hastings District Council has put out a call urgently asking residents to conserve water to avoid level three water restrictions.

Level two water restrictions are currently in place, meaning sprinklers and hoses can only be used between 6am and 8am and 7pm and 9pm on alternate days.

If level three restrictions are imposed there will be a full sprinkler ban and hand held hoses will only be able to be used between 6am and 8am and 7pm and 9pm on alternate days.

A Hastings District Council representative said level three restrictions could be imposed by the end of the week if water usage is not reduced.

The council said usage has "rocketed" following a period of hot weather.

"We hope our communities will respond positively to avoid the need for further restrictions and we will be closely monitoring use over the next few days," Hastings District Councils three waters manager Brett Chapman said.

"Our water is taken from the aquifer – not only do we need to conserve it for our household use, we need water for the crops that our local economy relies on and to ensure our streams and rivers do not become too depleted," he said.

The council said it was conserving water by only watering sports fields for the safety of sports players and having roundabout gardens and hanging baskets on timers to operate at off-peak times.

The council recommended residents can conserve water by not washing cars, not watering lawns, taking shorter showers, keeping grass longer which requires less water, only using the washing machine for a full load, and using a swimming pool cover and avoiding topping up water levels.