Three councils, three plans
Tauranga: the city council runs water now. It and Western Bay of Plenty District Council confirmed a joint water organisation on 2 April 2026, which is due to start on 1 July 2027.
Rotorua: Rotorua Lakes Council runs water in-house. Whakatāne District Council names it among the councils still looking at a joint company.
Whakatāne: the council delivers water through an internal business unit, to be fully set up by 1 July 2027, while it weighs a joint company with its neighbours.
Tauranga: pipes, meters and gully traps
- The council is responsible for pipes up to and including the meter, which sits in a box in the ground near the front boundary.
- Every pipe on the property side of the meter is yours, even when the meter is outside your boundary.
- On shared driveways and in flats, the council owns the meters and the owners own the pipes between them.
- Damage or a blockage in wastewater pipes inside your boundary is yours to fix, and so is the gully trap.
- Council-side leak or a faulty meter: ring 07 577 7000, any time.
Whakatāne and Rotorua drains
In Whakatāne, your responsibility starts on the property side of the meter, wherever the meter sits. Blockages and overflows on private property are usually the owner's.
Can't tell where the fault is? Ring a licensed drainlayer or plumber. If it turns out to be in the council network, they report it to the council on (07) 306 0500.
Rotorua's pipe rules couldn't be read when we checked, so ask Rotorua Lakes Council where its pipe ends.
What's in Tauranga's water
Tauranga water is soft, about 10 mg/L calcium carbonate. It also carries dissolved silica at 35 to 50 mg/L, which can leave marks that look like hard water.
Most of the city's wastewater blockages come from wipes, fats and cooking oil.
Licences run out every 31 March
PGDB practising licences expire on 31 March each year. Renewal means the person kept up their professional development and passed a fit and proper check.
So check the licence is current today, not that it existed once. Our licence check guide shows how to read the register.
Consent and gas certificates
The everyday repair-and-replace exemption for plumbing stops short of water heaters. Only the three water heater clauses, 36 to 38, can exempt a cylinder job, and the work must still meet the Building Code.
After gasfitting, a certifying gasfitter must give you a signed gas certificate within 20 working days of the work being connected. Keep it: you may need it when selling, for insurance, or before an LPG bottle refill.
What we would do in the Bay of Plenty
Find the meter box near your front boundary before you ring anyone about a leak. A leak at the meter or on the street side is the council's to fix, while anything on your side needs a plumber. For a blocked drain in Whakatāne, let the drainlayer pinpoint it before anyone argues about who pays.
Tell us what's going on. A Bay of Plenty tradie who specialises in that job can take it. Nearby pages: Mount Maunganui, Pāpāmoa, Te Puke and Katikati.