Water quality and river ecology data explorer methodology. Supplementary report

Author:

Jane Atoa, Laura Buckthought, Nadia Dikareva, Janine Kamke, Rhian Ingley, Graham Surrey

Source:

Auckland Council Environmental Evaluation and Monitoring Unit, EEMU

Publication date:

2025

Topics:

Environment

Overview (extract)

Auckland Council has a stewardship role to protect and restore our natural environment, preserving it for current and future generations. The Auckland Council Environmental Evaluation and Monitoring Unit (EEMU) monitors the state of the environment from the mountains to the sea to assess the health of the environment, to track changes over time and to identify potential issues.

In 2025, the Water Quality and River Ecology Data Explorer was created to provide an interactive summary of water quality and freshwater ecology data collected by EEMU across the rivers, lakes, groundwater, and coast of Tāmaki Makaurau. The Data Explorer replaces previous annually produced hard copy reports on coastal and river water quality and aims to make this information more accessible and provide different levels of detail for a range of users ¹.

This tool provides data analyses and summary statistics for water quality data spanning hydrological years (July to June) from July 20092 to the most recent time period (currently June 2024) and river ecology data spanning hydrological years from summer 2002 to the most recent time period. The Data Explorer will be updated annually.

This methodology report includes further information on how to use the tool, methods used for the statistical and graphical analyses presented on the explorer, and additional background information on each programme including sampling methods and data management. ...

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1. This Data Explorer does not include all water quality or river ecology data collected by EEMU. Several programmes include new sites that do not yet meet the data requirements used for the explorer. We also manage other programmes, including those with continuous data that are not yet provided in this format. Please contact EEMU (environmentaldata@aklc.govt.nz) for further information.

Auckland Council, June 2025