John Charles La Roche MNZM (born 2 April 1937) is a New Zealand engineer and author.
As an engineer he specialised in design work for water treatment plants and in waste management.
[1] La Roche worked in a variety of civil engineering roles related to water supply, particularly at Auckland Regional Authority where he was involved in major expansions of chemical handling equipment and the development of a greatly improved system for mixing flocculation chemicals with the water to be treated.
[2] From 1988, and especially following his retirement in 1992, he and his wife Sue were heavily involved as voluntary administrators of Water for Survival,[3] a charity that provided safe drinking water and basic sanitation to 500,000 people in developing country village communities.
[6] In the New Year Honours list, 2003, La Roche was appointed as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to engineering.