Auckland’s second oldest dam back in action after flood damage

The second oldest dam in Auckland has been restored following severe damage during the January floods.

The 100-year-old Upper Nihotupu dam in the Waitakere Ranges is back in business after being damaged from multiple landslips.

Watercare’s Head of Productions, Peter Rogers, said he is thrilled to have a sustainable water source up and running for the upcoming summer.

“It’s great to have this dam and line back into service, it’s a really important source for Auckland.”

“Being a gravity-fed source it’s one of our cheaper and more sustainable sources,” he said.

The dam had turned 100 earlier this year in April but has been unable to provide water for the last six months.

Rogers said it took the team a huge amount of work to repair the damage over the last few months.

“The weather and terrain complicated matters, most of the materials and equipment had to be flown in by helicopter,” he said.

The dam plays a significant role in Auckland’s water sources supplying an average of 22 million liters of water every day.

Over the last few days, WaterCare has been manually increasing and monitoring the water flow, with it now capable of handling its normal capacity with automatic flow.

The dam is one of four that feeds water into the Huia Treatment Plant.

It is also one of two gravity-fed dams, making it one of the most sustainable sources of water for Auckland.