discussion, innovation,
policy, articles, ideas
Water
www.watermagazine.com
Water Magazine
demand planning, water cycle,
conservation, re-use, rainwater
Magazine
Updated Regularly
"www.watermagazine.com is my idea of the website I would hope to find when hunting for urban water policy advice and ideas...."
Joel Cayford - watermagazine Editor & New Zealand Regional Councillor

watermagazine is about urban water systems. Mainly Auckland, New Zealand. Wastewater, potable water, stormwater, greywater, infrastructure, pricing, regulation...
It contains some links to other articles, water websites. It also has book reviews....

watermagazine.com has been in existence since 1999. It began as a portal to innovation round the world. The editor found it useful to share information as he found it, in his searches for policy ideas to stimulate innovation at North Shore City Council - New Zealand. Now he is a regional councillor - for Auckland Region. His role has changed. So now watermagazine has changed - to consider the broader 3-water debate now happening across Auckland region. 		          The principles behind watermagazine.com editorial decisions include that:
  • clean water is a finite resource so it is important to manage its use and demand;
  • a total water cycle approach needs to be taken in cities to manage water resources;
  • the purest source should be used for the highest purpose - namely - human consumption;
  • water planning needs to enable individuals to take more personal control of - and responsibility for - their use of water resources;
  • water decisions need to be taken at the lowest possible level to maximise community participation and education;
  • the water industry needs to take account of all costs in evaluating supply and demand management options, and pricing services; and that:
  • water and wastewater services be publicly available at the minimum prices necessary to protect their quality and capacity for future generations;
  • pricing policies take account of consumers' ability to pay;
  • natural waters and the ecosystems they support have a limited ability to remain healthy and absorb contaminants;
  • the effects and health risks of long term consumption of tiny concentrations of un-naturally occurring chemicals are largely unknown, so prevention is better than cure;
  • natural water resources are a public commons and must be retained in public ownership and control.
Joel is an elected Councillor for the Auckland Regional Council, New Zealand. He has a campaign [website] with more articles. Joel was previously city councillor for North Shore City Council, and chaired its Works & Environment Committee responsible for 3-water management. North Shore City is home to around 200,000 people, and is part of the Greater Auckland city region whose total population exceeds 1.4 million - a third of the whole population of New Zealand.

Greater Auckland is in the North Island of New Zealand and is spread across a thin isthmus of land between the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean. These geographical boundaries give the area an extraordinary marine environment, while imposing tight environmental constraints for urban development, landfill, water supply, transport, and wastewater disposal. The region's rainfall is around one metre each year, falling mainly in Winter and Spring. The land has a thin layer of soil, deposited on a soft but impervious sandstone.

The Greater Auckland region has been considering a range of water industry supply, structure and pricing issues for some some time. Poorly maintained wastewater infrastructure is still a major issue for the region, though North Shore City has played a leading role cleaning up local networks. Stormwater remains an issue - partly because of flooding effects, but also because of its effect on a very well utilised harbour and marine park. Legislative reform is being considered at national level to ensure more effective regulation and governance of regional water and wastewater services.

Joel's international research for policy ideas and innovations to feed into the region's local government decision-making process, are the source of the material and links which populate the watermagazine.com website.

The articles that follow are some of Joel's thoughts on various water topics:
Toward Appropriate Regulation of 3 Waters in Auckland: NZWWA Paper: September 2003
Traditional sewage systems are a BIG problem: NZWWA Paper: April 2002
Water balance approach to water in North Shore, and infrastructure costings: Paper: June 2000
Greater Auckland Regional Water Review. What is needed? Opinion: April 2001
Legislation: Balancing economic efficiency, social equity and sustainability. NZWWA Paper: March 2000
Water management issues for North Shore City: Discussion: February 2000

Some of Joel's other articles are available here:

Students will find these useful in water use and management studies.
Auckland and North Shore City traditional Vs sustainable water cycle: School Student Information
Water issues in North Shore, and infrastructure costings: Paper: June 2000
Traditional sewage systems are a BIG problem: Paper: April 2002

Waikato Pipeline & Watercare Services.
Benchmark of Watercare's "Sustainability Report": report
A little tongue-in-cheek story about Watercare: Fable
Waikato Pipeline opinions: Critique of Watercare's "The Facts" booklet
Response to editorial opposing 'best water first': Opinion: June 2002
Opinion about Waikato source being used in emergencies only: Opinion: February 2002
Best Water First policy adopted by North Shore City: Opinion: June 2000




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Email contact: Joel Cayford