Landslide Approval Of Wairarapa Water Model

Thursday, 24 April 2025, 7:54 pm
Article: Emily Ireland - Local Democracy Reporter

Submitters to South Wairarapa’s Local Water Done Well consultation have been largely in favour of joining forces with Carterton, Masterton, and Tararua to deliver water services.

But some presenters at Wednesday’s hearing were critical of the council only consulting on one “viable” option.

The council asked for feedback on two options: a Wairarapa-Tararua asset-owning council-controlled organisation (CCO), or its existing approach -- a non-asset owning CCO similar in structure and ownership to Wellington Water.

Of 134 written submissions, about 87% were in favour of the Wairarapa-Tararua model.

Submitter Leah Hawkins said the Wairarapa-Tararua option was “not just being presented as the preferred choice, but is the only viable choice”.

She was concerned there was no backup plan if the model did not succeed.

“South Wairarapa should not be forced to adopt a model just because there are no other options on the table.

“It’s policy by default and we must try to demand better.”

The council’s consultation document said the status quo approach would present significant financial challenges in delivering its planned water infrastructure programme.

It said from around 2030 onwards, the council would no longer have the capacity to fund any further capital works through debt, “severely limiting our ability to maintain and improve our water infrastructure”.

Submitter Dean Di Bona said the government had delivered “an absolute lemon of legislation that we have to work with”.

He said the council’s status quo approach had resulted in an adverse audit opinion in the council’s draft long-term plan, which left only the Wairarapa-Tararua option as “a contender”.

“This starkness has left us in the unenviable position where tunnel vision can take over and red flags are missed,” Di Bona said.

He asked what would happen if one of the four councils did not join the Wairarapa-Tararua model, and expressed concerns about attracting expertise and resources when other CCOs would be getting set up at the same time.

Submitter Adrienne Young-Cooper, who was previously the chair of the Wairarapa Economic Development Strategy, supported the Wairarapa-Tararua model and believed it would “create an entity of sufficient scale and financial clout and expertise to be able to do a great thing for all the councils”.

She hoped the proposed Wairarapa-Tararua model would attract “great people who are prepared to come and live in Wairarapa, grow their families here, and build their careers”.

Submitter Shane Atkinson was also in favour of the Wairarapa-Tararua option but believed there would be no buy-in from other councils unless water charges were ringfenced by district.

“I can imagine the howling and snivelling from Masterton should there be any suggestion that they pay for or have higher costs as a result of taking on board some of the smaller entities,” he said.

Submitter Bill Armstrong also supported the asset owning CCO option with neighbouring councils, but he wasn’t supportive of Tararua being included.

He said the inclusion of Tararua significantly increased the geographical area of the proposed CCO and was concerned it would increase costs and stretch resources thin.

Submitter Sue Fox asked the council to pursue a status quo model with Wellington councils.

“Instead of the uncertainties and costs attached to forming a new CCO, let’s stick with the devil we know,” she said.

“Having seen the attempts to get the Wairarapa councils to work together over the past three or four terms, I just cannot have confidence that the CCO body will be set up in a timely way and be ready to start operating within the proposed budget.”

The council would deliberate on submissions on May 8.

– Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air

© Scoop Media

Local Democracy Reporting

Content from the Local Democracy Reporting (LDR) service is published by Scoop as a registered New Zealand Media Outlet LDR Partner.