Water investment crucial, says Central Hawke's Bay mayor

CHB mayor Alex Walker said water infrastructure and resilience was a key component of the council's just-released draft Long Term Plan 2018/2028

On releasing its draft Long Term Plan 2018/2028 last week, the CHB District Council said the document was informed by feedback gained from the community through a consultation process called Project Thrive.

Started in March last year, it involved holding meetings around the district and asking people what they liked about the district, what they wanted it to look like in the future, and what may be holding it back.

More than 270 people contributed to the discussion and 3500 pieces of feedback were gathered, culminating in a set of objectives that the council could contribute to including: creating a proud and prosperous district with strong communities, connected citizens, smart growth, durable infrastructure, and a focus on environmental responsibility.

Mayor Alex Walker said the main issue to come out of the process was water, one that was currently being debated on all levels across the country.

As such, water was at the heart of the long-term plan, recognising the crucial role it played in how people lived, survived and thrived, she said.

"We are facing pressures from all sorts of directions - environmental, compliance with Plan Change 6 for the Tukituki catchment, and increasing drinking water standards particularly as a result of the Havelock North water inquiry.

"We have residential growth forecast to increase, and there's a serious risk of having to decrease the level of service if we do not put more investment in water networks.

"The sad truth is adequate renewal investment into our core infrastructure has not been a possibility for years because of affordability and financial constraints."

She said there were houses being built that wanted access to water but could not be connected, in some sections of the network the water pipes were too small, and in some areas fire appliances could not connect to hydrant mains because there was not adequate pressure.

"We need to kick-start investment now to ensure our children and grandchildren are not dealing with bigger problems that we leave behind."

She said the projected growth would enable the costs to be spread across more residents, ratepayers and businesses, but the impact of that had not been included in the current draft plan.

She added that the council was vigorously pursuing other funding opportunities and seeking innovative ways to alleviate the situation, and discussions were being held with Local Government New Zealand at district, regional and national levels to lobby the Government for increased support.