Wairarapa Water Consultations Wrap Up, Hearings Underway
The consultation period has now closed for each partner council of the proposed Wairarapa-Tararua water services model, and public support has swung in favour of the partnership.
Of those who submitted to the Local Water Done Well, 89% were in favour of the Wairarapa-Tararua option in South Wairarapa, 69% in Carterton, 67% in Tararua, and 60% in Masterton.
There were still concerns in Masterton about costs being standardised across each participating district.
This standardised price would mean savings for Tararua and South Wairarapa users at the cost of Carterton and Masterton users.
A projection for non-standardised pricing under the Wairarapa-Tararua option showed the average consumer price per year for water by 2035-36 was estimated to be $4893 for South Wairarapa, $3150 for Tararua, $2843 for Carterton, and $2305 for Masterton.
With standardisation, customers could pay $3620 per year, regardless of where they lived.
Before establishing a council-controlled organisation, each participating council would be negotiating terms, conditions, and caveats of joining, including price standardisation, but the CCO would ultimately be bound to price-quality regulations set by the Commerce Commission.
The Commerce Commission would have the ability to set minimum and maximum prices that may be charged and minimum and maximum revenues.
The Commission said its fundamental role was to promote consumers' interests over the long-term and to 'help ensure they get value for money for the services they receive'.
The next steps for all councils involved hearing from submitters who had indicated their wish to speak to their submissions, followed by council deliberations.
Common themes within the feedback included the ring-fencing of debt, standardisation of pricing, trust towards a localised and collaborative approach, and concerns about the loss of local voice, which was especially strong in Tararua.
Tararua Mayor Tracey Collis said her district had faced similar issues through amalgamation in the past.
South Wairarapa District Council was the first to hold its hearings in April and would meet on Wednesday to deliberate on the submissions it received.
In Tararua, hearings were scheduled for Tuesday with the final decision on whether to proceed to be made at an extraordinary council meeting on June 11.
In Carterton, hearings were scheduled for May 14, with deliberations scheduled for May 22.
Masterton's hearings would be held on May 14 and 15 and the council would make a decision on the water services model on May 21.
Water Services Delivery Plans need to be submitted to the Department of Internal Affairs by each council by September 3, demonstrating financial sustainability.
- LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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