Waitaki District Council contractors will begin construction of a new water supply reservoir on Ōamaru’s South Hill in the new year, alongside the existing reservoir.

The additional reservoir is part of the council’s long-term investment programme for upgrading and improving water supply infrastructure across the district, to provide safe, reliable drinking water to communities for decades to come.

South Hill residents and communities to the south of Ōamaru will benefit from this additional water storage project, water services manager Martin Pacey said.

The need for an additional reservoir was identified as part of a broader review of the water supply system’s resilience and capacity to cater for emergency events and growth.

“In the event the supply needs to be turned off, the existing reservoir has capacity to deliver water to the 5,624 customers it serves for around 10 hours,” he said.

“The additional reservoir will bring this capacity up to the best practice standard of 24 hours, while also catering for future growth and making use of the land available at the site.”

Staff have been in contact with residents in the area and consulted neighbours of the site prior to confirming some of the project details, Martin said.

“As a result of this early consultation, the reservoir will be constructed in concrete to reflect the preference of neighbours, and additional fencing will be constructed to increase security to the site.”

Neighbours will also be consulted on what landscaping will be done following completion of the reservoir.

Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher said the project is a significant investment into the resilience of our water supply to residents on Oamaru’s South Hill. 

“It is a major increase in the capacity of stored water that will be crucial in an emergency situation, as well as allowing further growth in that area.”

Christchurch-based Concrete Structures Ltd have been awarded the contract to build the new reservoir, with site preparation planned for the next few months.

The project should be completed by August next year.