Dam ‘zone of benefit’ boundary altered
Properties at Mt Heslington and River Terrace Rd will be added to those considered to be in the ‘‘zone of benefit’’ for the proposed Waimea dam and face the associated extra costs.
Meanwhile, Redwood Valley property owners who will receive ‘‘water supply security benefits’’ from the proposed dam in the Lee Valley will be expected to contribute to the ‘‘extractive user costs’’ to be shared by members of the urban water club, while properties within the Wai-iti dam rating area will be removed from the zone of benefit.
Tasman district councillors last week agreed to the changes, which will now be included in supporting information for the draft Long Term Plan 2018-28.
Those changes were agreed after two days of deliberations over 1513 submissions on the proposed dam and a vote eight to six to request staff incorporate proposed funding and governance options for the controversial project into the draft LTP.
If the 8:6 vote was lost, the project as proposed would have been over.
A staff report for the deliberations says the criteria for the zone of benefit is that it includes properties that would have water available or supplied by the aquifers of the Waimea Plains.
The amendment for the Mt Heslington and River Terrace Rd properties ‘‘would ensure consistency with the other water users on the Brightwater supply’’, the report says.
Ratepayers with properties inside the zone of benefit are expected to pay a targeted rate based on the capital value of their properties, as well as a district- wide fixed rate of $29 a year.
For a Brightwater/Hope property with a capital value of $400,000, that zone of benefit charge is tipped to be $22 a year.
The affected Redwood Valley property owners will pay a volumetric charge.
TDC and dam proponent Waimea Irrigators Ltd (WIL) are proposed joint-venture partners in the estimated $82.5 million proj- ect, which is tipped to be funded by a mix of ratepayer, irrigator and Crown funding.
A final go or no-go decision on the proposed dam is expected to be made in late May.