Solution to wastewater woes a long way off

Cox’s Bay residents are bracing themselves for another winter in a city “cesspit”.

The Herne Bay community sees around 50 sewage overflows a year, most of which are the result of pipes spilling over in the rainy winter months.

Western Bays Community Board member Kate Stanton attributes these spills to the outdated combined wastewater system that still makes up around 15 per cent of central Auckland drains.

“When pipes can’t handle water capacity it’s expected that they will overflow,” she said.

“Cox’s Bay has a ghastly history. It often gets a bit smelly … there have been times when evidence [of overflow] has been visible in the bay.”

The bay, and surrounding areas, is one of the most significantly polluted parts of Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour. These waterways alone has about 1,800,000 cubic meters of waste overflow annually.

The 70-year-old combined wastewater system that surrounds the area has both human wastewater and stormwater travelling the same pipes.

But these pipes often reach capacity and overflow in heavy rain, polluting the streams and waterways leading to Auckland’s harbours.

The Auckland City Council is updating a section of the old drainage system through the Clear Harbour Alliance project.

The project, which stretches from Newton to Kingsland, began early last year and is due to be completed by mid-2010.

Clear Harbour’s community relations manager Tanya Darby says the project is progressing as planned and is reaching the halfway mark.

But it is a big job.

“In our project area 936 properties require separation [from the combined drainage system] out of approximately 1200,” she said. “The community has been very supportive.”

However, Stanton says this area of piping is not the source of the problem for Cox’s Bay, and hopes the council will move swiftly to continue drainage upgrades after 2010.

She says the wastewater systems that stem from Kelmarna Ave in Herne Bay have a huge impact on the bay’s environment, and are in need of serious attention.

But she acknowledges the council has a hard job.

“It all helps,” she said. “It’s a huge job because there are not many brownie points. No-one really cares what happens after you flush the toilet.”