Tasman District Council votes to build Waimea Dam near Nelson

Drought at a Brightwater farm near Nelson in 2001. Photo / NZ Herald

The controversial Waimea Dam near Nelson will be built after all following a meeting of Tasman District Council today.

Councillors voted 9-5 in favour of building the dam, which Tasman Mayor Richard Kempthorne said would deliver a secure source of water for the community for the next 100 years.

It would greatly also improve the health of Waimea River which could not sustain the demands on it at present.

"The benefits for our region are immense and will be felt by everyone who chooses to make Tasman their home for generations to come," Kempthorne said in a statement.

Construction is due to begin early next year and will be managed by the council-controlled organisation Waimea Water Ltd, a joint venture between Tasman District Council and Waimea Irrigators Ltd.

Establishing Waimea Water and its governance structure would enable the
project to move rapidly once financial close is achieved, Kempthorne said.

"We cannot be accused of rushing the project with it starting in 2001 following one of the worst droughts on record. However, as the external funding we have managed to secure will not be available forever we need to get this project over the line," he said.

The dam has been controversial, in part because of its hefty $105 million price tag.

The council said the dam was the only option that would solve all the water supply challenges facing the council and community in one piece of infrastructure – urban water supply needs, horticultural water supply needs and declining river health with associated environmental, cultural and recreational impacts.

For that reason it was also the only option that attracted a significant amount of co-funding - $64m in direct funding and $18.7m in loans from irrigators, the Government and Nelson City Council.

The dam will hold 13.4 million cu m of water in the Lee Valley from the upper reaches of Waimea River. The dam operator will be able to release water in a controlled way when river flows are low to improve river health and recharge groundwater aquifers.

Nelson National MP Nick Smith, who has backed the dam, praised the council for its decision.

"This is a hugely positive decision for the future of the Nelson and Tasman region. It means a cleaner and healthier river, enables growth of our key horticultural industry and secures household water for the huge growth in Richmond, Mapua, Brightwater and Nelson South," he said in a statement.

Smith is sponsoring a local bill in Parliament that will allow access to the land where the dam will built.

It passed its second reading this week and Smith hoped it would get its third reading before Christmas.