A watercourse is a natural or man-made open channel where water collects and flows.
It can be a:
It is part of the stormwater system. It may be privately or publicly owned.
A man-made watercourse is either constructed by us or privately constructed but now owned by us.
Before buying a property, get a Land Information Memorandum (LIM) to know if there is a watercourse on the property.
Generally, property owners are responsible for maintaining watercourses running through their property from the point of entry to the exit point of the property boundary.
If you are unsure whether you have a watercourse on your property, contact us or see the GIS viewer.
To know more about maintaining watercourses, see Caring for waterways.
Auckland Council maintains watercourses on public property.
These include:
There are streams on private property that we also maintain because of the overflow from combined sewers:
We sometimes do work on private watercourses if there is an immediate concern for public safety. For example, if a culvert is blocked due to eroding stream banks.
If flooding or blockage of the watercourse poses risk to life or property, phone 111 urgently.
If there is no immediate risk to life or property, contact us.
If you see any public watercourses that require maintenance, contact us.
