Gillian Blythe: Water New Zealand CEO on 21% of piped water being lost in the country's water infrastructure

There are pleas for more investment in the country's water infrastructure. 

Otago University research shows 21% of piped water is being lost – in comparison, the Netherlands loses 5% and Germany 6%. 

They're also wasting around $122 million each year. 

Water New Zealand chief executive Gillian Blythe told Francesca Rudkin different technologies like thermal imagery or acoustic devices need to be utilised. 

She says there are leaks throughout the system, not just the ones that show in your house or on the street. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
New research is proving to be grim reading for our
water infrastructure. According to the latest briefing from the Public
Health Communications Center, our pipes are leaking at a rate
far higher than leading European countries and it's wasting around
one hundred and twenty two million each year. Leakage levels
and countries like the Netherlands and Germany are sitting at
five percent and six percent for us. In New Zealand

(00:21):
it's a twenty one percent. What in New Zealand. CEO
Jillian Blythe joins me, Now, good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Jillian, good morning.

Speaker 1 (00:28):
What's your reaction to this? You surprised at all?

Speaker 2 (00:31):
No, I'm not surprised. We have had decades of under investment.
We have not spent enough money on renewing our pipes,
and so that means when you don't spend the money,
you are going to get the leaks of the levels
that we've got at the moment.

Speaker 1 (00:48):
You make it sound like a very simple problem, but
it's quite a complex issue, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (00:53):
It is. It is complex because it's not just about
finding an increasing of ways of investment. We know we've
got to lift the capacity and the capability of the
sector to do this. We need to be able to
look at the different technologies, whether it's different prench assessing
assessing sensing gauges, or thermal imagery or acoustic devices or

(01:18):
ground penet penetrating radar, all of those techniques to be
able to discover where the leaks are. Because it's not
just the water fountain that you see on a pipe
down the street, you know, or it's not just what's
on your private network, you know with the leaking tap.
There are leaks throughout the system that need to be
fixed and we need to do this. We've got to

(01:40):
increase the investment in our networks, we've got to lift
the capability, and we've got to lift the capacity of
the sector. But we also require improved oversight from the
Commerce Commission, which will now be once we've got legislation
that's before the House. Once that's pasted, the Commisce Commission

(02:03):
will be providing economic regulation oversight to join the water
services authorities. So to matter, how do I in there
looking at the quality and the safety of our water.

Speaker 1 (02:15):
So, Julian, are these things that we should be doing
or are we just sitting and waiting for the Coalition
Government's local water done well? Reforms to kind of fully kick.

Speaker 2 (02:23):
In counfuls every day that are delivering water at the
moment are looking at how do we how do we
detect leaks, and how do we improve that. So you've
got counsels at the moment that are introducing or beginning
the process of introducing water meters and looking towards volumetric charging.

(02:43):
That makes a difference to you and I when we
are considering whether there's water that might be leaking on
our properties when we suddenly realize we're having to pay
for it. That we've got work that's going on at
the moment in terms of putting more censors into our
networks and understanding that and those other techniques I talked about.
But we've also got things that are happening because if

(03:04):
you think about, you know, a busy street in any center,
you know it takes time if you've got to dig
the road up. So that the work that's going on
in terms of TRENCHERSS technologies such that we can fix
those pipes in ways that don't destruct you and I
as much as they would do if it was just
digging up the road.

Speaker 1 (03:24):
Jillian, it's always lovely to talk to you but I'm
always slightly apprehensive as well, because it feels like there's
never really good news. Do you got have you got
some hope that we're going to be able to get
this sorted?

Speaker 2 (03:35):
Oh, it's totally something that we can address. But this
is because it's taken decades to develop the types of
problems that we've got. It's not an overnight face and
so we've got to keep our focus. And that's when
I think one of the you know, some of the
attractions within the what's proposed by this government as it
was in the previous government, about having council controlled organizations

(03:59):
that will be focusing on one topic, which is water,
recognizing that's drinking water and wastewater and the summer will
be stormwater. It's so important that you've got that laser
focus on it and that you are asking all the questions.
You know that those those professional directors are asking those
critical questions at the Order and Risk committees that will

(04:22):
make a difference to to I think the water sector
moving forward.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
Thanks so much, Jillian, always appreciate your time. That was
Water on New Zealand and CEO Jillian Life. For more
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