The Whakatāne District Council has approved an amended approach to water supply upgrades which will link the Edgecumbe and Te Teko community reticulation systems and ensure their supplies meet national drinking water standards.
The upgrading project will also allow both communities’ water reticulation systems to be isolated from the Braemar Springs and Johnson Road bore sources, thereby removing any possible arsenic content from those sources.
After deliberating on submissions to its 2016/17 Annual Plan on Wednesday, the Council adopted a series of resolutions on the upgrade of the Edgecumbe and Te Teko water supplies. Key features include:
- Developing a single bore at Paul Road and piping water to Edgecumbe
- Upgrading and securing the Tahuna Road bore to supply Te Teko
- Linking the Edgecumbe and Te Teko supplies via the existing pipeline on Te Teko Road
- Funding the additional cost involved (approximately $500,000) from Plains Water reserve funds
- Providing water meters for Edgecumbe connections
- Developing funding models to apply to domestic and farm water supplies in the 2017/18 year
Speaking to the report, Mayor Tony Bonne said the $5.2 million project proposed was similar to the preferred option outlined in the Council’s consultation document, but it incorporated a number of changes which go some way to meeting requests for water to be reticulated to an enlarged Te Teko supply area.
“While this does not go as far as the outer boundaries defined by Te Teko hapū, it does include areas along Te Teko Road and along SH30 between Te Teko and Western Drain Road and allows that enlarged area to be isolated from the influence of the Braemar and Johnson Road sources,” he said.
The installation of water meters in Edgecumbe will allow residents to assess whether they have any leaks on their properties and have them fixed before meter-based charges are introduced on 1 July 2017.
Meanwhile, work will be undertaken during 2016/17 to define a possible funding model which would allow separate charges for household and farm water supplies in the Plains area in 2017/18. Council elected members favoured a move to charging domestic supplies at the District-wide ‘equalised’ rate, which ensures that consumers pay the same charges for the same service and contribute fairly to the supply cost and to future service expansions. Farm water users would continue to pay a usage charge which reflects their higher consumption needs.