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BACKGROUNDWHO WE AREYour Bay Your Say is a group of concerned residents from Titahi Bay who are passionate about protecting their local environment and the health and safety of all who use the Bay for sport and recreation.
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HOW WE STARTED
Your Bay Your Say was set up to raise awareness of the acute public health issues in their community.
Titahi Bay beach is just 700m from the outfall from the Porirua Wastewater Treatment Plant. When 1000 cubic metres of raw
sewage sludge was discharged from the plant into the bay on the 6th of October 2018, the residents had had enough.
In heavy rain, Titahi Bay becomes an acute health hazard area as the overloaded stormwater, wastewater treatment plant and network is unable to cope.
Titahi Bay beach is just 700m from the outfall from the Porirua Wastewater Treatment Plant. When 1000 cubic metres of raw
sewage sludge was discharged from the plant into the bay on the 6th of October 2018, the residents had had enough.
In heavy rain, Titahi Bay becomes an acute health hazard area as the overloaded stormwater, wastewater treatment plant and network is unable to cope.
WHY WE ARE CONCERNEDAfter heavy rain, manholes often overflow with toilet paper and faeces, and sludge discharges from the plant
_______ Faecal levels up to an astonishing 171,000 cfu per 100ml have been recorded in the Bay when the acceptable range is just 61-151 cfu per 100ml _______ Titahi Bay is popular with surfers, swimmers, and recreational fishers and is home to the Titahi Bay Surf Lifesaving Club View More |
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RAISING AWARENESS
THE ISSUE
Your Bay Your Say believes the Porirua Wastewater Treatment Plant is not fit for purpose
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Stage 1 of the plant was built in 1989 to service a population of 80,000 people in the catchment which extends from Johnsonville to Pukerua Bay including the high growth areas of Woodridge, Paparangi, Churton Park, Tawa, Aotea, Whitby and everything in between. The map on this page shows the catchment area.
At the time, Stage 1 was estimated to have a 25-year lifespan which would take it through to 2014. However, the population was already at 80,000 in 2012, two years earlier than estimated, and yet no funding had been made available in the long-term plan for Stage 2 of the plant. As of December 2022 - 10 years on - nothing has changed. The population of the catchment is now over 100,000 and it has been stated that Stage 2 - another aeration pond - is not planned until at least 2050. The purpose of a wastewater treatment plant is to receive the wastewater flow from the catchment, run it through a treatment process, and return the treated water to the environment. This process generally involves two phases: the primary phase to remove the physical solids i.e. nappies, wet wipes, tampons, etc which is disposed of in the landfill, and the secondary phase to remove the bacteria from the wastewater which occurs in the aeration pond. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) this secondary phase removes around 85% of the bacteria. |
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There are frequent, and increasing, partial bypasses from the Porirua wastewater treatment plant where the wastewater bypasses this secondary phase and is released into the environment without this vital treatment occurring i.e. the wastewater has not been fully treated to a safe level.
Because of a lack of stormwater infrastructure in parts of the catchment, and the underfunded state of the wastewater infrastructure, when it rains, the flow coming into the Porirua wastewater treatment plant is often so high that it frequently exceeds the ability of the plant to fully process the wastewater through the aeration pond and remove the bacteria. This water is then released untreated into the ocean at Rukutane Point just 700m from the shoreline of Titahi Bay. The concern for Your Bay Your Say is that Wellington Water is not advising the community every time this occurs meaning people could be swimming, surfing, or fishing in Titahi Bay when it may be unsafe to do so.
Upgrades are happening but they are bandaid measures. All of the proposed upgrades through to 2036/37 will not address the volume of wastewater coming into the plant nor the ability for the plant to treat it all. This is why there are now numerous bypass events where wastewater is being released without being fully treated.
Your Bay Your Say has been fighting this cause for over 4 years and during that time has read, processed, and produced significant amounts of information for the betterment of the coastal environment at Titahi Bay - all for free and all in their own time.
The following links will assist you in accessing some of this information to help you understand their concerns:
Because of a lack of stormwater infrastructure in parts of the catchment, and the underfunded state of the wastewater infrastructure, when it rains, the flow coming into the Porirua wastewater treatment plant is often so high that it frequently exceeds the ability of the plant to fully process the wastewater through the aeration pond and remove the bacteria. This water is then released untreated into the ocean at Rukutane Point just 700m from the shoreline of Titahi Bay. The concern for Your Bay Your Say is that Wellington Water is not advising the community every time this occurs meaning people could be swimming, surfing, or fishing in Titahi Bay when it may be unsafe to do so.
Upgrades are happening but they are bandaid measures. All of the proposed upgrades through to 2036/37 will not address the volume of wastewater coming into the plant nor the ability for the plant to treat it all. This is why there are now numerous bypass events where wastewater is being released without being fully treated.
Your Bay Your Say has been fighting this cause for over 4 years and during that time has read, processed, and produced significant amounts of information for the betterment of the coastal environment at Titahi Bay - all for free and all in their own time.
The following links will assist you in accessing some of this information to help you understand their concerns:
- Annual Compliance Reports for the Porirua Wastewater Treatment Plant
- Proposed Porirua Wastewater Discharge Conditions as presented in the Resource Consent Application
- Reasons for declining the Resource Consent Application: WGN200229 Porirua Wastewater Treatment Plant
