Unsatisfied and unconvinced by promises of wastewater remedies from local government, a group of South Dunedin residents has made an appeal to a higher power. Ruby Shaw reports.
In a home in Surrey St, stacks of files and folders hold neatly arranged copies of reports, emails and newspaper clippings.
Lynne Newell retrieves more documents from the printer and adds them to the pile.
As convener of the Surrey Street Flood Action Group, it is Ms Newell’s signature which appears at the bottom of correspondence to the ombudsman — who independently investigates administrative conduct of state sector agencies — first on a complaint laid in June, followed by two letters in August and October.
In line with previous requests, her October letter asks the ombudsman to investigate decision-making and communication by the Dunedin City Council, Otago Regional Council and Health New Zealand regarding wet-weather wastewater overflow issues affecting residential properties in Surrey St, South Dunedin.
It also asks the ombudsman recommend systemic reforms to "restore accountability, transparency and public confidence" in the entities.
Ms Newell said Surrey St residents faced a "psychological battle" every time it rained, dreading rainfall seeping and overloading wastewater systems, sending contaminated water into the street.
Occasionally, this is accompanied by toilet paper and sanitary products.
"Yesterday it was raining and I was going outside checking that everything was coping as it should. We live in constant fear that the system won’t cope," Ms Newell said.
"We’re bearing the cost both emotionally and financially of the people in . . . both councils who aren’t stopping this."
The group went to the ombudsman after attempts to raise concerns with the entities garnered only "platitudes", Ms Newell said.
"Nothing was happening and everyone was like, ‘we’re investigating, we’re looking into it, we’re skirting around the subject totally’.
"After giving them lots of chances and meetings . . . we decided we have to take this further and see who else can help us.
Both councils have disputed this, and pointed to ongoing work to address matters in Surrey St.
HNZ said it had no enforcement or investigation powers over local councils, but was in regular contact with the group and committed to finding a solution.
Group member Julian Doorey said he was told in late October the ombudsman’s office had completed preliminary inquiries and was considering next steps.
A spokeswoman from the ombudsman’s office told the Otago Daily Times the matter was being assessed and, under legal requirements, she could not comment further.
In the October letter, the group identified several major issues which it said contributed to "long-standing community harm and mistrust" in the city council’s stormwater and wastewater programme.
Ms Newell said in 2021, chief executive Sandy Graham told a South Dunedin hui the solutions were "medium-term".
However, in response to a 2025 Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act (LGOIMA) request, the council only referred to "broad, strategic" plans which did not address current issues and excluded Surrey St waste-water overflows, she said.
Ms Graham’s statements were either "misleading or untrue" and had undermined trust and prolonged risks to public and environmental health.
Ms Newell said the decision to abandon a Kaikorai wet-weather wastewater overflow diversion project in 2019 was made without public consultation and, as there was no resolution from elected members, the group concluded staff had abandoned the project without informing councillors.
City council 3 Waters, Property and Urban Development David Ward said the council was working hard to tackle the "complex problem" in Surrey St.
"Suggestions we have failed to communicate our progress are not correct."
He said the council had responded to questions from the ombudsman’s office, including rejecting the group’s claim the council failed to respond to earlier complaints.
The council had responded to "numerous" LGOIMA requests by the group and on one occasion, staff hand-delivered a USB to the home of a group member due to file size issues, Mr Ward said.
Staff from both councils and Te Whatu Ora met with group members in July to discuss Surrey St, he said.
"We remain open to further dialogue with the group and have made this offer to them."
A series of short and medium-term improvements had been developed for parts of South Dunedin, including Surrey St, to reduce the frequency of overflows, he said.
"We have also already completed inspection of the Surrey St wastewater main and the associated overflows to ensure they are all operating as they should."
Modification of a existing stormwater overflow at the Surrey St/Hillside Rd intersection was expected to begin over the Christmas holiday period, he said.
"We will also be adding wastewater cross-connections at [the] other end of Surrey St, at the intersection with Macandrew Rd, to make better use of existing pipe capacity.
"Both of these improvements will reduce the frequency of flood-related issues in Surrey St, giving more time to implement other more significant measures."
City-wide wastewater network improvements to reduce overflows, including Surrey St, were budgeted at $60m in the council’s nine-year-plan — a preferred option was expected to be selected early next year, Mr Ward said.
A $29.2m package of short-term South Dunedin flood alleviation projects was also in the plan while pipe replacement work elsewhere in Dunedin, to prevent stormwater entering wastewater pipes, would ensure capacity was used as intended.
Locating cross-connections between the stormwater and wastewater systems was also funded in the plan.
"All of this work has been communicated extensively in public, including via media, and we’ve also been clear it is separate from the long-term adaptation planning under way via the South Dunedin Future programme, which continues to enjoy widespread engagement and buy-in from South Dunedin residents and the wider public," Mr Ward said.
Changes to the planned Kaikorai project were confirmed by the council during the 2021-31 10-year-plan process and explained in media releases at the time, he said.
When asked if the council would apologise, Mr Ward said: "we all acknowledge the distress recent flooding and wastewater overflows in the area have caused for Surrey St residents, and we’re working hard to develop a range of improvements to address the issue."
Ms Graham said she was a regular speaker at the South Dunedin hui and had provided updates on Surrey St and wider council work in the area.
"I completely reject the Surrey Street Flood Action Group’s characterisation of my statements."
Regarding the regional council, Ms Newell said the wastewater situation was a clear breach of the Resource Management Act but it had never investigated or taken action against the "illegal discharge".
The group asked the council to act in a letter sent in April but she considered no public enforcement action or declaration on the situation has been made — as a result the regional council was "functionally complicit" in the city council’s "unlawful wet-weather discharges".
While the wastewater situation was a public health issue and breached HNZ regulations, the organisation was powerless to act as the Health Act 1956 did not allow the agency to investigate or prosecute local government wastewater infrastructure failures, Ms Newell said.
Regional council chief executive Richard Saunders said it was not aware of the group’s complaint to the ombudsman but would "engage constructively" in any process.
"We appreciate the impact that this situation is having on the residents."
He rejected Ms Newell’s suggestion of culpability, saying the regional council was "not complicit with unlawful activity" — it had launched a compliance investigation into the matter.
Updates, when available, were being provided to the group and the council would advise of the investigation’s outcome when it concludes, expected to be before next month.
The network operator — in Dunedin’s case, the city council — was responsible for maintenance and ongoing operation of infrastructure, he said.
Mr Ward said the city council was co-operating fully with the investigation.
Asked if the regional council had the trust of the community, Mr Saunders said it was taking the matter seriously and was fully investigating the issue.
He was confident "great" community engagement would continue on the councils’ joint South Dunedin Future programme.
Medical officer of health Dr Michael Butchard, for the National Public Health Service, said it was aware of the complaint and considered such wastewater overflow into residential properties a "health hazard and unacceptable".
"While we do not have any enforcement or investigation powers over local councils, we are in regular contact with the group and we remain committed to working alongside them and local authorities to identify and implement a solution."
The service met regularly with the city council for work updates — minutes from these meetings would continue to be shared with the group, Dr Butchard said.
He was unable to comment on policy or legislative matters.
When the ODT put Dr Butchard’s comments to Mr Ward, he concurred.
"We agree the situation in Surrey St is not acceptable, which is why we’re working hard to address it," Mr Ward said.
"Unfortunately the solutions are more complex than they might appear, but we’re committed to completing this work as soon as possible and managing the risks from overflows during significant weather events in the meantime."
