Leaks from ageing pipes now account for 27% of the city’s water use and they’re going to deteriorate faster than they can be repaired, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here.

More Olympic-sized swimming pool comparisons but it’s leaking, not falling from the sky  

Yesterday I shared the report on the volume of rain that fell every minute for six hours in Esk Valley during Cyclone Gabrielle. It was enough rain to fill 72 Olympic-sized swimming pools. This morning, Stuff’s Tina Law reports that water leaks in Christchurch are continuing to grow as 38 million litres a day is lost from the city’s pipes — that’s about 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water.

Christchurch mayor discovers a leak

It all feels incredibly on the nose as people continue to deal with the impacts of decrepit infrastructure after extreme amounts of water fell from the sky. Bridges first designed during World War 2 will be installed across the North Island to reconnect communities still cut off after the cyclone and the Auckland floods. Law writes that leaks from ageing pipes in Christchurch now account for 27% of the city’s water use. Mayor Phil Mauger is just one resident of the city that recently discovered a leak, and it’s the literal kind. His two-person household was using 2,726 litres a day for 95 days. The maximum allowance is 700 litres, though the council is considering changing that to 900 litres.

Not as bad as Wellington

As reported in December, Wellington loses roughly the equivalent of 27 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water to degraded water infrastructure each day. About 40% of Wellington’s water use can be attributed to over 5000 leaks from the region’s pipes. Wellington mayor Tory Whanau has this week acknowledged that the forecast 12% rate hike for homeowners in the region “is tough”. Whanau said the capital had decades of under-investment in water, infrastructure and housing. She said about $3m would go to Wellington Water for work on pipes and that sum would increase significantly in the next long-term plan. The estimated cost of fixing Wellington’s water infrastructure is in the billions.

Three Waters reforms likely to improve financial outcomes for most, but not all, councils

I noted the S&P Global report on the impact of the government’s current Three Waters reform plans on councils’ financial ratings yesterday. interest.co.nz has further detail. S&P say they still don’t have enough information to accurately forecast how the reforms would affect debt and costs carried by local councils but they have come up with a couple of scenarios. The reforms are likely to improve financial outcomes and reduce debt burdens for most, but not all, rated councils. The report also noted how profitable water services are for councils. “Across our rated portfolio, water-related activities account for 21% of operating revenues and only 17% of total operating expenditure.”