Water allocation
Bores
Do I need a permit to drill a bore on my land?
Yes, The Proposed Auckland Regional Plan: Air, Land and Water 2001(PARP:ALW) requires anyone who wants to drill a bore to apply for a consent unless it meets the Permitted Activity Condition. Altering a bore might not need a permit if you meet certain conditions ( Chapter 6 Permitted Activity Condition Rule 6.5.21).
Considerations on where to locate a bore
Locate the bore at least 20 metres uphill from any wastewater disposal area.
There are rules related to the minimum distance that new bores should maintain from existing bores, contact the ARC staff for this information.
Why are consents required for drilling bores?
Drilling activities, inappropriate location of bores and poor maintenance and operation of bores can have adverse effect on:
- Surface and groundwater quality by introducing contaminants,
- By linking aquifers of different water quality and linking surface water and groundwater of different quality (including geothermal water).
- Cause damage to the values of heritage sites, buildings, places or areas.
In order to avoid this we need to regulate the drilling of bores. It is also necessary to collect information about aquifer geology and number of bores in the region.
Investigation drilling
Bores or piezometers (ie with a casing installed) constructed for the purpose of taking water samples for site investigations require a controlled activity consent under rule 6.5.H of the PARP:ALW.
Water bore
A (water) bore is defined in the PARP:ALW as any hole that has been constructed to provide access to groundwater. This definition excludes piezometers that are constructed into manmade structures such as dams and the refuse in landfills. A hole is any excavation that is created by drilling.
Replacement bores
The restoration, alteration or replacement of a lawfully established bore to restore an existing lawful water take is a Permitted Activity, provided that the replaced or altered bore is constructed within 10 meters, and completed to the same aquifer as the existing bore. In order for ARC to consider a bore as replacing one drilled prior to 1987, sufficient evidence must be provided of the bore construction and the aquifer the bore was completed into. The adequacy of this information is at the discretion of ARC staff. For more information read Chapter 6 Permitted Activity Condition Rule 6.5.21.
A lawfully established bore drilled since 1987 is one that has a bore permit (under either the previous ARC Transitional Regional Plan 1991 or PARP:ALW). If drilled prior to 1987 a bore did not require a permit prior to drilling.
What is happening in our region
ARC issued 3,380 bore construction resource consents from 1990 to 2006 at an average rate of approximately 211 bores per year. The peak in 1993/1994 was due to a drought and impending municipal water supply restriction. Majority of the drilling permits are issued for investigation and monitoring purposes. ARC issued 235 bore permits in 2006.
For further information
Contact the ARC on 09 366 2000 of environment@arc.govt.nz
