Low River Flows, Ground Water Levels and Dry Soils

Hawke’s Bay Regional Council is becoming concerned at the state of the region’s soil moisture, river flows and ground water levels following a review of December’s monitoring data.

In the current situation, soil conditions at the monitoring sites showed a dramatic decline in soil moisture from mid-December, and are now almost as dry as this time last year. River flows and ground water levels are running below normal for this time of year and continue to drop.

“If the current conditions persist we are likely to see a rapid decline into much dryer conditions,” said Darryl Lew, Resource Management Group Manager.
“Water users, those that draw from river flows and city users who rely on our aquifers and rivers, should be aware of this,” he added.

Given the El Nino weather pattern, land owners can expect to see westerly winds throughout summer leading to higher evaporation and lower rainfall.

“Farmers have a better grazing buffer than we saw at the same time in 2009,” said Land Management Manager, Chris Perley, “but soil moisture is at or near wilting point now with no new growth coming on.”

At this stage, farmers will be conserving and managing their feed levels, keeping cover on where possible to minimise water loss and to improve the recovery speed of pasture when rain arrives.

Council continually monitors river flows, ground water and soil moisture levels, and maintains this data on its website. Council also advises water take consent holders of pending bans and bans and continues to develop its response to dry weather events.