Rural groups are at odds over the merits of new rules designed to improve drinking water quality.
Federated Farmers is up in arms over the Water Services Bill, what it deems a bureaucratic box-ticking process, while IrrigationNZ is welcoming the reforms.
The Bill, part of the Three Waters reforms, obligates rural and small suppliers to ensure safe drinking water to avoid a repeat of the 2017 Havelock North water contamination.
But the Bill also captures private landowners supplying two or more households.
Feds president Andrew Hoggard says the proposed laws are compliance-heavy for small users who often have voluntary supply arrangements with neighbours.
But IrrigationNZ welcomes the legislation, especially the three years small water suppliers have to assess and mitigate issues to ensure drinking water is safe.
“We wholeheartedly agree with the intent of the Three Waters Reform and want to ensure rural communities have access to safe drinking water and prevent what happened in Havelock North from occurring again,” IrrigationNZ chief executive Vanessa Winning said.
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta says the Government is committed to ensuring all New Zealanders, no matter where they live, have access to safe, affordable and sustainable drinking water.
“Taumata Arowai (NZ’s new drinking water regulator) will continue to work with the rural sector on appropriate solutions to enable compliance with safety standards in an affordable and realistic manner,” Mahuta said in a statement.
But Hoggard is disappointed the group’s submission to exempt small schemes was ignored.
“There are potentially cases of neighbours supplying water to sports clubs, marae and this will lead to people thinking do they want to fill in the paperwork or discuss the increases that are required or ignoring it completely,” Hoggard said.
“I think a number of people will ignore it.”
He says the deluge of compliance and regulation engulfing the sector means many people will not hear of or understand the drinking water requirements.
“Rural people have been in this situation a very long time, they understand rural drinking water and they do not want to poison themselves and make themselves sick so they take personal responsibility,” he said.
Asked about the consultation with councils on the Three Waters policy, Mahuta says indicative findings from discussions are that most will be better off following reform.
The country’s 67 councils have seven weeks to consider and comment on the effects of the proposal, which will see one of four public entities take over management and control of council drinking, waste and stormwater assets.
The Government estimates councils face between $120 billion and $185b in costs over the next 30 years to maintain, replace and upgrade aging water assets.
It calculates ratepayers currently paying $2100 a year for water services, could by 2051 be charged $1640 with reform, or $8690 without.
Asked about the impact on council balance sheets from losing water assets, Mahuta says reforms will provide councils with additional capacity to borrow to fund other community activities.
To deliver the projected benefits she says central and local government need to work together on the reforms to ensure the impact of the reforms are understood.
She says councils will have to account for costs somehow and most are not in the position to do so without impacting their bottom line.
The Government and councils are still in consultation after which the Government will consider the feedback and suggestions, which could include “transition and implementation pathways” and revised timing for decision-making.
