Mahurangi oyster farmers receive second $1m payment from Watercare
Mahurangi oyster farmers affected by the October 2025 sewage spill in the Mahurangi River have received a share of a second $1 million interim payment from Watercare.
The payment, made in December, follows an initial $1 million compensation payment provided in November while an independent assessment of the full financial impact of of the incident continues.
Watercare has confirmed any final compensation payments will be determined once the assessment is completed, which is expected early this year.
The late-October spill forced Mahurangi oyster farms to close for 28 days, at the height of their peak season, resulting in significant production losses, cash‑flow pressure, and reputational damage. Farmers have also faced ongoing emotional strain and reduced market confidence in the wake of the closure.
Mahurangi Oyster Farmers Association Chair, Lynette Dunn told RNZ on 24 December the second payment followed sustained pressure on Watercare from industry leaders.
"They were supposed to have the final assessment all sorted out by the end of the year, but they told us they won't be doing anything until the new year,” she said.
Dunn believed there might not have been an additional payment without advocacy from Aquaculture New Zealand, which pushed for further interim relief while the assessment process continues.
"We're still paying off debts and it's coming into our quiet season as well, so we've missed the bulk of our peak season," she said.
"So hopefully this will help us just get through our spawning period, when the oysters are not sellable."
Watercare Chief Operations Officer Mark Bourne says the second payment reflects the organisation’s commitment to supporting affected farmers.
“This incident should not have happened,” says Bourne. “It arose from a unique chain of events, including a power outage compounded by failures in alerting and monitoring systems not operating as intended.
“This second payment is intended to provide further support while the independent loss assessor completes a farm-by-farm assessment of losses directly linked to the October event.”
Once the assessment is finalised, Watercare will confirm whether additional compensation will be issued to farmers whose losses exceed the interim payments already made.