Three Waters legislation a big step towards improving water services resilience

8 December 2022

The passing of the Water Services Entities Bill is another step towards addressing the huge infrastructure deficit facing Aotearoa New Zealand.

Water New Zealand chief executive Gillian Blythe says it is vitally important that all New Zealanders have access to clean, safe and affordable drinking water and that water is returned to the environment in a healthy state.

“We know that there are big challenges facing water services. We need to upgrade our infrastructure and improve water quality. We need to meet future growth demands and ensure long term resilience and well-being including climate change mitigation.

“We are also facing a shortage of skilled workers and so we need to ensure that the three waters sector becomes a more attractive career option and embraces diversity.”

Water New Zealand is looking forward to reviewing and making submissions on two further bills that will support the legislation.

The Water Services Economic Efficiency and Consumer Protection Bill and the Water Services Legislation Bill were introduced into Parliament today.