Far North District councillor Mate Radich says something doesn't smell right about the length of time taken and cost of finishing the Sweetwaters Aquifer project, which was supposed to solve Kaitāia’s water shortage issues. Photo / Mike Dinsdale
Far North District councillor Mate Radich says something doesn't smell right about the length of time taken and cost of finishing the Sweetwaters Aquifer project, which was supposed to solve Kaitāia’s water shortage issues. Photo / Mike Dinsdale
Work has been further held up on Kaitāia’s long-running and controversial Sweetwaters Aquifer project after the country’s top environmental body put an abatement notice on it for unauthorised discharges into a wetland.
The project was supposed to ease the situation, which has seen water storage tanks installed in Kaitāia during droughts, when the Awanui River runs low.
But it has been dogged with problems ever since and the project has now soaked up $17 million of ratepayers’ money. The council says it will finally have water from the aquifer into Kaitāia homes this month – more than a year after it was promised it would be ready.
Kaitāia’s Sweetwaters Aquifer project has been making unauthorised discharges into a wetland, prompting an abatement notice from the Environmental Protection Agency.
But Far North District councillor Mate Radich doubts Sweetwaters will be producing potable water for the area this month, given all the previous deadlines not being met and the “debacle” the situation has become.
Radich questioned why the council had not told the public of the stop-work notice, given it was issued six months ago.
In a statement to the Northland Age, the Government’s Environmental Protection Authority(EPA) said it issued an abatement notice to the FNDC on May 10 in relation to the unauthorised discharge of water from the Sweetwater bores.
“The abatement notice required the council to immediately stop discharging water from the bores to the surrounding wetland. This abatement notice remains in place.
“As New Zealand’s national environmental regulator, the EPA undertook the investigation following a request from the Northland Regional Council. Under the RMA [Resource Management Act], the EPA has specific enforcement powers to assist and intervene in an enforcement action of a council.”
The EPA would not comment further at this stage.
The Environmental Protection Agency has ordered a stop to discharges from Kaitāia’s Sweetwaters Aquifer project due to unauthorised discharges into a wetland.
FNDC head of infrastructure Tanya Proctor said in response to the abatement notice, a directive was issued to the council’s operations and maintenance contractor to cease all discharges to the specified area. Mechanical valves from diversion lines were removed and capped as an additional mitigation measure.
“Alternative strategies were then developed to ensure supply of Sweetwater aquifer water to the Kaitāia Water Treatment Plant. This included exploring different treatment options, establishing alternative flushing points, and obtaining the necessary consents," Proctor said.
“We are now in the process of installing a membrane filter at the Kaitāia Water Treatment Plant. This will allow us to treat both Sweetwater bore and Awanui River sources. We aim to begin introducing Sweetwater aquifer water to the Kaitāia supply in December."
She said the total project cost now stands at $17m.
Proctor said since the severe drought of 2019-20, the council has been working to build resilience into its eight water supplies. The immediate priority was the two South Hokianga water supplies – Ōmanaia- Rāwene and Ōpononi-Ōmāpere, which had long been the most vulnerable to dry conditions and for many years had level 2 restrictions automatically imposed in December.
In 2019, the council built a $2.8m water treatment plant and storage tanks near Ōmanaia and in the summer of 2020-21 it commissioned a bore at Smoothy Rd in Ōmāpere to improve resilience of that supply. No water restrictions have been necessary for Ōpononi-Ōmāpere since that bore became the community’s primary water supply.
“We are now focused on providing Kaitāia with a permanent supplementary water supply sourced from aquifers at Sweetwater. This will significantly improve the drought resilience of our second largest town and protect the ecology of the Awanui River," she said.
Bore number 2 at Kaitāia’s $17 million - and rising - Sweetwaters Aquifer project, which has had an abatement notice put on work there by the Environmental Protection Agency.
“The council’s Water Shortage Management Committee will begin regular meetings this month. Along with Far North Waters contractors, the committee will monitor all water sources that supply our communities as we enter the warmer summer months. It will make sure our communities are updated about water supplies and any need for conservation measures and, where necessary, make recommendations for water restrictions.”
But that doesn’t wash with long-time councillor Radich, who said the project should have been finished well before now and he had no confidence it would be ready by the end of the year.
He said the whole project had been a debacle and did not reflect well on the council, or its ability to deliver a big project on time and within budget.
‘‘This has dragged on and on and we really needed this before now, not next month or next year. If we have another dry summer and the Awanui River runs dry again we’ll have to have water tanks in the main street again, just like a third-world country.
“The whole thing stinks. We’ve spent more than $17 million on it since 2011 and there’s not a drop to drink yet and I think there’ll be millions more needed before it finally does deliver. I’m sure that $17 million, if that is the correct figure, which I don’t believe it is, will rise further.”
Radich said he was disappointed that the council did not seem too concerned about the massive cost of Sweetwaters as it had been allowed to drag on so long, and he did not know for sure when it would be ready.
“If we have another dry summer and this is not ready, we are gong to be in big trouble.”
At the end of January this year, the FNDC said water from the Sweetwater aquifer was days away from being tested. Then in April the council said the cost of the project was $13.5m, but sources have told the Northland Age it could end up being $20m-plus to complete. The council said at that time, that the final approved budget for the scheme was $13,630,171, including $3m from the Provincial Growth Fund.
The council first started to explore using the Sweetwater aquifer in 2010, under then-Far North Mayor Wayne Brown. At that stage it was estimated the project would cost about $2.6m.
