Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
- Christchurch councillors want to keep water services under total council control
- They are opting for an in-house model, rather then spending millions on an independent entity
- Councils must choose between options, under Coalition's replacement for Three Waters
Christchurch councillors have backed a recommendation to keep water services under total council control, arguing they have their house in order managing the city's infrastructure.
Ratepayers will now be asked asked to provide feedback on their preferred model, as the council works to establish how it will deliver drinking water, wastewater and stormwater under new government legislation.
At Wednesday's council meeting, elected members endorsed a staff recommendation for an "in-house" model, rather than establishing a multi-million-dollar independent council-owned water entity, or a hybrid approach with independent management of drinking water and wastewater, and council oversight over stormwater.
Deputy mayor Pauline Cotter said the city's water services had been performing well under council management.
"We're really precious about water here in Christchurch but I think we (the council) have our house in order when it comes to three waters delivery," she said.
"A council-controlled organisation is not only distanced from us but it's very expensive to set up and probably very expensive to run. You can borrow more but you still have to pay."
The Coalition unwound Labour's controversial Three Waters reforms and instead introduced "Local Water Done Well", with a requirement for councils to provide plans setting out the funding they needed and how they would ensure financial sustainability for water services into the future.
Under an in-house model, the council would determine how it funded water services, through rates or a shift to volume-based pricing.
An independent entity would need to move away from rating within five years and put in place fixed fees or volumetric pricing.
Councillors Yani Johanson and Aaron Keown also raised concerns about chlorine, which was introduced to the water supply in 2018 to reduce the risk of contamination.
The national water regulator Taumata Arowai turned down an application for Christchurch's water to be exempt from mandatory chlorination two years ago.
Keown said the local community should have a say on chlorine in their drinking water and that many people would raise the issue during two months of public consultation about the new water model.
"Our water is in good shape, it's not perfect.
"We spent millions of dollars on a problem that doesn't exist.
"[Chlorine] was put on us and we don't like it."
Johanson said he supported any model that resulted in the removal of chlorine as quickly as possible.
