Key Takeaways:
- Wānaka’s wastewater treatment plant is facing significant issues, including two abatement notices from the Otago Regional Council (ORC)
- Councillors remain in the dark about the extent of the problems and the necessary solutions
- The Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) is investing heavily in upgrades and expansions to the wastewater network, but questions remain about whether it is enough to keep up with growth
- The QLDC is working to address operational issues at the Wānaka plant and will keep councillors and the community informed of progress
- The ORC abatement notice gives the QLDC until August 30 next year to make the effluent it discharges compliant
Introduction to Wānaka’s Wastewater Woes
Councillors remain in the dark about the severity of Wānaka’s wastewater woes, according to a former whistleblower. Queenstown Lakes district councillor Niki Gladding, of the Wānaka-Upper Clutha Ward, raised concerns earlier this year about the QLDC’s plans to discharge treated wastewater directly into the Shotover River to bypass the Shotover wastewater treatment plant’s failing disposal fields. Now, with Wānaka’s Project Pure wastewater plant facing two abatement notices from the ORC, Cr Gladding notes that despite significant differences in the issues, there are notable similarities in the council’s response. The issues at the Shotover plant built up over years, while Wānaka’s treatment plant had appeared to run "reasonably well" until one of three reactors at the plant was offline for maintenance.
Lack of Transparency and Information
Cr Gladding expressed concerns about the lack of transparency and information available to councillors about the performance issues at Wānaka’s plant. "We still don’t know how bad the situation is," she said. "We haven’t had an update on whether the [disposal] fields need remediation, whether we need new fields — if they need remediation, how much that’s going to cost. We don’t have those details." This lack of information is similar to the situation with the Shotover plant, where councillors were not fully informed about the extent of the problems. Cr Gladding also questioned whether there was sufficient redundancy in place in Wānaka, or whether the filtration system in use was overwhelmed when the plant breached its consent.
Need for Strategic Review
The episode has called for a "good strategic look" at how wastewater is being delivered across the district, according to Cr Gladding. She asked questions such as "What are the big risks? How are we managing them? Is our infrastructure able to cope? And are the people who are managing the system able to cope?" This review is necessary to ensure that the council is properly balancing the risks it faces and that work plans are in place to address those risks. Queenstown Lakes Deputy Mayor Quentin Smith acknowledged that any breach of consents at a wastewater treatment plant was disappointing and that the QLDC was trying to understand why there wasn’t sufficient redundancy in the Wānaka plant.
Investment in Upgrades and Expansions
The QLDC is investing heavily in upgrades and expansions to the wastewater network, with $20 million recently spent on the third reactor at Project Pure and over $50 million being spent on the Upper Clutha Conveyancing project. However, questions remain about whether this investment is enough to keep up with the rapid growth in the district. Cr Smith acknowledged that the plant was under pressure due to the rate of growth and that it would continue to be under pressure. The QLDC is working to address the operational issues at the plant and will keep councillors and the community informed of progress.
Conclusion and Next Steps
The ORC abatement notice for the Wānaka plant gives the QLDC until August 30 next year to make the effluent it discharges compliant. The QLDC’s application to discharge treated wastewater effluent directly into the Shotover River will be heard in the Environment Court. In the meantime, the QLDC will continue to work on addressing the operational issues at the Wānaka plant and investing in upgrades and expansions to the wastewater network. Councillors and the community will be kept informed of progress, and a strategic review of the wastewater system will be undertaken to ensure that the council is properly managing the risks it faces.