The consultation process surrounding the formation of a seven-council controlled water authority has been described as a bitter pill to swallow.
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Te Awamutu-Kihikihi Community board member Sally Whitaker said she felt like Waipā District Council’s consultation was only happening with the community because legislation required it.
Sally Whitaker
“I find that a bitter pill to swallow,” she said at last week’s board meeting.
“It would have been nice to see the community brought along with the whole process. I don’t feel that the public feels very involved or that they have had information.
“I just think it’s a sad indictment on things when we are wanting localism, community involvement and win-win, it looks like we’re box ticking.”
“I hear you on this one,” replied Waipā Service Delivery group manager Dawn Inglis, who recently resigned from the council executive.
“We have tried. We have put out media releases, we have created a website, through Waikato Water Done Well equally there is a site that’s been made available, we’ve tried to introduce conversations with our community around the management of water so that people were informed as we moved into this phase, so we’ve tried pretty hard in raising awareness ahead of this,” she said.
Dawn Inglis
The government’s Local Water Done Well legislation required councils to consult with their communities on an enhanced, in-house, status quo option versus their own preferred option.
Board chair Ange Holt described the council’s consultation document as “a leg up” as council staff had whittled down the information for community digestion.
Board deputy chair Kane Titchener was worried Waipā ratepayers could end up subsidising the six other councils in Waikato Water Done Well and asked why Waipā had not decided to go it alone.
“Waikato Water Done Well is not proposing to harmonise water charges across consumers wider than council units,” Inglis said.
“There will be a ring fencing of cost to those consumers.”
“I’m thinking about control,” Titchener said.
Kane Titchener
“We’re losing control here.”
He proposed dumping Waikato Water Done Well in favour of a shared services agreement.
“I guess I am just challenging that efficiency, and I think we can get it another way.”
Inglis said the council had already tried Titchener’s approach.
“It didn’t bring cost efficiencies, but provided some great training opportunities.”
Titchener wanted to know where water staff would be located.
Inglis could not answer that.
“We have yet to work through what that transition period looks like,” she said.
Titchener also wanted to know whether there was room in the legislation to follow international best practice around fluoridation if it were to change.
Inglis said it remained the responsibility of the Director General of Health.
Titchener was also worried that the legislation could enable privatisation.
“Absolutely not,” Inglis replied.
Holt described her deputy’s line of questioning as a “good work out”.
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Asked whether the board wished to submit on the council’s preferred option of joining Waikato Water Done Well member John Wood said: “I think council had done a bloody marvellous job to get us where we are, and we agree with what they are doing.”
But Whitaker and Titchener did not agree with his stance.
“I neither agree nor disagree,” said Whitaker. “The decision’s been made.”
Titchener echoed Whitaker’s response.
The board will make a submission neither agreeing nor disagreeing with council’s preferred option.
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