Wastewater fix big bucks
“I cannot back that. That is a commitment of a considerable amount of money that’s going to be for almost generations, and I don’t agree with the process.”
So said Cr Paul McPhail, who was just one of the elected members who reacted with concern at a recommendation that the Gore District Council spend between $65.2 and $77 million to upgrade its wastewater treatment plants at Gore and Mataura.
The council needs to change the way it treats wastewater at both sites, after the Hokonui Rūnanga said it would not support its resource consent applications to discharge treated wastewater to the Mataura River.
The council currently held three resource consents associated with the Gore and Mataura wastewater treatment plants, but the consent for Mataura expired in May 2021, and Gore’s expired in 2023.
A report to the Assets and Infrastructure Committee from council 3 Waters asset manager Matt Bayliss, which was tabled at a meeting on Tuesday, outlined upgrades to both plants which would allow them to meet resource consent requirements and the Rūnanga’s wishes.
Of the estimated cost, Cr Paul McPhail said it was ‘’horrendous’’ and he could not support it, while Cr Andy Fraser said “the council has a responsibility to the people of the town to do something that is affordable, and that they can afford further down the track to pay for’’.
Bayliss said a technical working group had considered options and now recommended wastewater at Gore be treated via a biological nutrient removal plant and optimisation of the existing oxidation pond system, then discharging to a oneday hydraulic retention time horizontal subsurface wetland, prior to eventually discharging to the Mataura River via a land passage.
At Mataura, it recommended optimisation of the existing oxidation pond system, reconfiguration of the existing wetlands to a one-day horizontal sub-surface wetland, prior to eventually discharging to the Mataura River via a land passage.
McPhail asked whether the water coming out of the pipe at the end of the wetland would be any better than the water coming out of the pipe now.
“I’m not talking culturally cleaner, I’m talking scientifically cleaner. Not spiritually cleaner, I’m talking scientifically cleaner,’’ he said.
The wetland treatment was largely untested in New Zealand and the council wanted to run a trial first, Bayliss said.
McPhail had done some sums during the meeting and he suggested that the plan would cost each ratepayer $2000 a year.
Cr Joe Stringer said, ‘’at this cost it would be cheaper to pipe it to a bigger city to let them deal with it’’, and also suggested the council should do nothing, because it would be cheaper to pay a fine.
While that was not an option, Cr Neville Phillips said ratepayers would leave the district if rates increased.
Council general manager critical services Jason Domigan reminded councillors that the council was bound by existing freshwater legislation, and the solution could not just be about being culturally acceptable.
The Government had not given any direction about what would happen under its Local Water Done Well legislation which was also hampering decision-making for councils.
Mayor Ben Bell said it was important councils banded together to get purchasing power, and balance sheet separation to get the infrastructure off council’s books, which Local Water Done Well planned to do.
Cr Keith Hovell said the Government had introduced it’s fast-track consenting legislation and the council should approach the Government to suggest wastewater consents should be considered in the same manner.
The committee voted to receive the report, to talk to the Hokonui Rūnanga at a governance level, and to have further discussions about making submissions to the Government about the council’s financial inability to pay for substantial upgrades to meet legislative requirements.
The report will be tabled for further discussion at a full council meeting on March 26.