Another big rain, another boil water notice in Methven.
Methven residents are fed up with the state of their water supply and now the solution is in sight - but it comes with a big rates hit.
The Ashburton District Council’s planned $9.4 million infrastructure investment into Methven’s drinking water supply and, in the council’s annual plan, the combination of the water upgrade, high inflation and rising property values means Methven ratepayers face about a 15% average increase.
“It’s just one of those years where it’s all smacked into one,” deputy mayor Liz McMillan said.
McMillan and the other councillors have worked on ways to smooth the rates hit for Methven during the council’s budget workshops and exactly how those measures impact the figures will be revealed when the draft annual plan is presented back to council in the next few weeks.
As a Methven resident, McMillan said she knows all too well how hard living with boil water notices is, but currently there wasn’t much they could do about it.
“It’s just something we have to live with at the moment with the water regulations having been changed, but the end is in sight.
“It’s a pain, but you don’t want anyone to get sick either.”
Currently Methven’s water comes from a shallow groundwater intake near the north branch of the Ashburton River and water quality is impacted during significant rainfall.
The council plans to construct a new membrane treatment plant worth $7.7 million and two new reservoirs worth $1.7 million.
The new plant will be able to treat the water and filter it before it is held in the two new reservoirs.
Under the new national water regulators, Taumata Arowai, McMillan said the water supplies were going to need to be upgraded anyway and it was just unfortunate timing for Methven ratepayers that it has coincided with high inflation and the impact of the housing market on property revaluations.
The council brought forward the physical works budgets so that components for the plant could be purchased earlier and shipped while the detailed design is being completed.
The council plans to have a plant constructed by the end of the year in time for the membrane equipment to be installed at the start of 2023. The tenders for the project close on February 25.
Meanwhile, Reliant Solutions are currently building the two new reservoirs at the existing treatment plant 4km from Methven.
- By Jonathan Leask
Local Democracy reporter
