Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said last year he wanted to remove “red tape” preventing large-scale water storage projects from being built in Hawke’s Bay, and nationally.
Luxon said dams were “key pieces of infrastructure” and the need for them was part of the reason the Government had repealed the Resource Management Act.
The proposal for the TWSP follows a rescoping and redevelopment of work following the disestablishment of the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme (RWSS).
TWSP says when the RWSS was discontinued in 2018, Water Holdings Hawke’s Bay Limited (WHHBL) was formed to purchase the intellectual property (IP), including the portfolio of resource consents as a strategic asset.
It says the intent was to then place them into an enduring trust for the benefit of future citizens.
WHHBL made this IP available to TWSP to rescope and then redevelop the opportunity of the RWSS through a different set of lenses and priorities.
Consents related to the current project expire in 2025.
Mike Petersen, speaking on behalf of the TWSP, said while the project will still need to be assessed under the bill, it was encouraging that it was being looked at.
“This is intended to be a genuinely community-led initiative that will address one of the greatest needs for Hawke’s Bay, improved water security,” Petersen said.
“The inclusion of this project is timely, given recent reports reinforcing drying weather patterns and new population projections as our region looks to build the necessary resilience and capability to thrive and grow.”
Petersen noted the TWSP project was fully consented and had already been through a comprehensive public hearings process.
He also said there was a clear signal from local leaders that water storage was a key strategic priority.
“We are united in the belief that water is a taonga, or a treasure, to us all, and a significant contributor to our collective wellbeing and to the environment and everything that stems from it.
“This decision by Government to list the project for assessment under the Fast-track Approvals Bill is recognition of the importance of water security and enables the project to keep moving forward.”
Petersen said TWSP would continue to work with mana whenua and community leaders to develop the project further.
This included forming a community trust to jointly hold in partnership and in trust the intellectual property and resource consents required to deliver the initiative.
There was also more detailed financial and operational planning and sourcing of additional funding that needed to take place. The community trust would eventually provide a sound governance structure.
“This is a strategic regional project that stands to deliver environmental and economic benefits for the prosperity of all and it is critically important that we explore and develop viable and robust options to deliver water security not only for today, but for future generations to come,” Petersen said.
“We are committed to working closely with mana whenua and our Hawke’s Bay communities, and providing critical evidence-led information to keep them informed as we move through each stage of the project.”
Opponents of dam project sceptical
Wise Water Use Hawke’s Bay, a group that has consistently opposed the resurrection of the Ruataniwha Dam, fearing environmental devastation, voiced its opposition to the workings of the project on Friday.
Spokesman Dr Trevor Le Lievre questioned the concept of a trust and whether it would be a genuine community trust or “simply a vehicle for the Ruataniwha dam investors”.
He said Wise Water Use had obtained information under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act (LGOIMA) revealing that Central Hawke’s Bay District Council had its legal team working on drafting a deed for a “community trust” to hold the consents and IP for the Ruataniwha Dam.
“This project has only ever existed on paper, yet its appetite for public money is insatiable,” Le Lievre said.
“You’ve got to ask, who’s winning – lawyers, bankers, consultants, advisors? They’re all lining up at the public trough. We certainly know who’s not winning, and that’s long-suffering local ratepayers.”
Le Lievre said Wise Water Use Hawke’s Bay promoted the clawing-back of excessively large water consents by the regional council and reallocation based on most environmentally sustainable use and the highest economic return, saying the cost of the Ruataniwha Dam “was previously estimated at $300 million, with an additional $300 million for distribution infrastructure”.
He claimed with inflation the cost would now be “closer to $1 billion, meaning that the price of the water could only be recouped by irrigators by way of further intensification of farming on the Ruataniwha Plains, most likely intensive dairying”.
