A major wastewater network upgrade in Bothamley Park is set to significantly improve water quality in Kenepuru Stream and Te-Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour while also enabling the construction of additional housing in eastern Porirua.

More than three kilometres of aging wastewater pipes have been replaced with larger, more resilient pipes. This upgrade will prevent approximately 40,000 cubic meters of raw sewage—equivalent to filling 16 Olympic-sized swimming pools—from entering the stream and harbour annually.

This project is part of the ongoing work by Te Rā Nui – Eastern Porirua Development, a partnership between Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities, Porirua City Council, and Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira. The initiative aims to enhance eastern Porirua as a place to live, work, and play.

“While housing has always been a key focus for our large-scale project, it was clear from early conversations that protecting and enhancing the local environment was a priority for both mana whenua and local residents,” says Te Rā Nui Project Director Will Pennington.

“The completion of this significant infrastructure project goes a long way to improving the natural environment, while also enabling more homes to be delivered in the East.”

Designed for the present and future generations, the new pipes are nearly a meter wide—twice the size of the previous pipes—ensuring durability and resilience against natural events such as earthquakes.

Rawiri Faulkner, Pou Toa Matarau for Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira, highlights the significance of the upgrade: “Our connection to Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour is profound, and the ongoing unreliability of the network has contributed to its degradation over a long period.

“This upgrade goes a long way to realizing our aspirations and commitment to Te Awarua-o-Porirua by ensuring a more resilient network and therefore improving the quality of the water. We welcome this project as a significant improvement but acknowledge we still have a long way to go.”

The wastewater upgrade has also provided opportunities to enhance Bothamley Park. With fewer visible pipes, approximately 1.8 km of walking and cycling tracks have been resurfaced, additional native plants have been added, and the Champion Street carpark has been resealed.

Porirua City Mayor Anita Baker emphasizes the collaborative effort required to bring this project to completion.

“For Porirua City Council, it’s part of the wider upgrade of our major strategic assets, along with the wastewater storage tank being built near the railway station and the work to lay new drinking water pipes currently happening along Waitangirua Link Road. All this work will help protect our harbor, improve our environment, and increase our resilience,” says Mayor Baker.

To ensure the success of the wastewater network upgrade, Te Rā Nui contracted infrastructure experts Te Aranga Alliance.

“We want to thank the teams from Higgins, Brian Perry Civil, Goodmans, Beca, Orogen, and Harrison Grierson, who formed Te Aranga Alliance and rose to the challenge of undertaking this complex and essential infrastructure project,” says Mr. Pennington.

Complementing the environmental, water quality, and community benefits of the wastewater upgrade, Te Rā Nui is also set to begin construction later this year on a new wetland at the northern end of Cannons Creek. Additionally, an extra reservoir will be built to provide clean drinking and emergency water to residents in eastern Porirua and parts of Whitby. These infrastructure investments will support the delivery of much-needed homes now and into the future.

State Housing by the Numbers

By mid-2025, Te Rā Nui will have:

• Delivered a total of 92 homes, with 22 completed by mid-2025.
• Upgraded a total of 79 older state homes, with 34 completed by mid-2025.

By June 2026, Te Rā Nui will have:

• Started construction on another 54 new state homes.
• Upgraded an additional 18 older state homes.