“Water is a universal resource that is provided to us from nature. It has no ownership. However it is valuable to all people as it is required for life. It is a basic need second only to air.”
- Cook Islands National Water Policy 2016
Restoring and protecting the health of our lagoons, and ensure equal access to safe, reliable water supply – these things are critical to our future. The Cook Islands have multiple water quality issues - our lagoons in Rarotonga and Aitutaki are showing signs of stress, and our public water supply does not meet World Health Organisation (WHO) drinking water standards.
To solve these issues we need to both build new infrastructure and more actively protect our environment. Two major Government projects are underway to address this:
• Te Mato Vai (the source of water) aims to provide access to a reliable and safe water supply
• Mei Te Vai Ki Te Vai (from water to water) aims to restore the water quality of the lagoons
We cannot do this work alone – we need to work together as a community - so we are working to identify and develop community-led solutions to our environmental problems.
To Tatou Vai (Our Water) is the name of a new Crown-owned authority established to operate and maintain our water and wastewater infrastructure as it is completed. You can view their website here.
