Whakatāne District Council lacks cash to deliver three waters – drinking water, stormwater and wastewater

Whakatāne District Council does not have the financial capacity to deliver what is needed in the three waters space over the next 10 years, the public heard on Wednesday.

The council’s energy, environment and resilience committee adopted the draft Long-term Plan 2024-2034 for consultation.

During the meeting, infrastructure general manager Bevan Gray said the cost of keeping the district’s three waters – drinking water, stormwater and wastewater – systems compliant with consents over the next 10 years was $440 million.

Increased compliance standards, resilience in responding to climate change, and meeting demands for future growth are some of the key challenges facing infrastructure delivery.

He highlighted that from year three onwards in the draft plan, the council would be reducing levels of service for wastewater.

“The reason is that we can’t afford to deliver the capital works programme, as a council, that this service needs.

“While we’re proposing to increase levels of service in the first three years by resourcing up and making sure our consenting programme is on track, we don’t have, as a council, the financial capability and capacity to deliver the significant investment required in wastewater.”

Gray said at the start of the three waters reform process the council came up with the $440m programme of required over the next 10 years to deliver what it needed to in the three waters space.

“That was prepared on the basis that this is what would be handed over to a new entity that didn’t have the same level of financial constraints that we do, for them to deliver.

“The reality is, post-election, this has all come back to council to deliver and we don’t have the financial capacity to do that.”

He said the council had had to revise this programme down from $440m to $170m using today’s dollars because of debt capacity.

“We acknowledge that through that through the reduction … we have to accept an element of risk.”

Mayor Victor Luca said water was a critical resource.

“I ain’t bumped into anybody yet who can live without it. So we have to look after it … With the latest Government the promise is that councils will keep administration of water and I’m glad for that. The financing issue remains very much up in the air. I just hope that in three years… we’re still not stuck with the issue of how we’re going to pay for it. That needs to be resolved and the sooner the better.”

Chief executive Steph O’Sullivan said there would be considerable work in coming months by all councils to identify what the options are in terms of being able to deliver “Local Water Done Well”.

“This Government has been very clear about councils owning that process, so it’s up to us. It’s the sensible course of action for councils to work together, as we are with the other Bay of Plenty councils, in parallel with the Waikato councils collectively to see what the options are.

“Our number is big. Some of the other councils’ numbers are even bigger… There is no person on a white horse going to come riding in, unfortunately. We’ve been told that very clearly from this Government.”

More than 15 members of Whakatāne Action Group turned up to the Whakatāne District Council chambers on Wednesday to see the council adopt the draft Long-term Plan 2024-2034 on Wednesday.

Although they were not granted speaking rights at the meeting, their presence was a reminder of the group’s objections to the council’s spending on large projects, such as the Rex Morpeth Recreation Hub. The council opened the extension doors to the council chambers to accommodate them and offered coffee and biscuits during breaks in the five-hour meeting.

Among the 11 documents amounting to more than 500 pages in the meeting agenda, to be discussed before adoption of the draft plan was a 38-page consultation document, to inform the public of some of the key decisions the council would like community input on, including the recreation hub.

The council expects to open submissions on this document early next week.

Councillors all urged the public to have their say.

“We don’t all agree around this table, and now it’s time to listen to the people. So let the people speak. Bring it on, folks. We’re listening,” Luca said.