Published 6/08/2025
Wellington Water responding to wastewater overflow in Hutt River/Te Awa Kairangi near Silverstream
Crews have stopped a wastewater overflow that occurred in Hutt River/Te Awa Kairangi near Silverstream, but residents are asked to avoid the following areas until further notice:
• Hutt River/Te Awa Kairangi downstream of Silverstream, including the river mouth in Petone
• Petone beach
While the wastewater overflow has been stopped, untreated wastewater was entering Hutt River/Te Awa Kairangi. This means that these areas are unsuitable for the public to swim, fish and collect food from.
We take all wastewater incidents very seriously, and are diverting all required resources to complete the full repair urgently.
While the repair is underway, we are:
• Placing signage at the location of the wastewater blockage, down the river and at the river mouth at all entry points and popular fishing and recreation sites.
• Informing the community at popular fishing and recreation sites.
• Sharing live updates on social media.
• Completing water quality testing along the river and at the river mouth. This will continue for at least 72 hours or until results return clear.
To reduce wastewater flows, we are asking residents of Upper Hutt and Stokes Valley to reduce their water use where possible.
We’ve advised councils and mana whenua iwi and are working to provide a full brief on the situation. Public health and environmental monitoring agencies are also being kept up to speed on the issue.
We’ll keep the community informed via our social media channels.
Editor notes
Wellington Water is owned and fully funded by Wellington City Council, Hutt City Council, Porirua City Council, and Upper Hutt City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and South Wairarapa District Council. All six councils are equal shareholders.
Our councils own the water infrastructure in the region, and they task us to manage the infrastructure and deliver water services to our communities.
Wellington Water is governed by a Board of Directors. The Board and our organisation receive overall leadership and direction from the Wellington Water Committee, which are also responsible for appointing members to the Board.
The Wellington Water Committee is made up of representatives from our council owners and mana whenua.