Proposed future of Council water services
Council is seeking community feedback on our proposal to establish a Water Services Council-Controlled Organisation (WS-CCO) with Ruapehu, Rangitīkei, and Whanganui District Councils to deliver future water services as required by the government's Local Water Done Well (LWDW) reform.
As part of this consultation we are also interested in your views on whether Council should retain stormwater or have the new water entity provide these services.
For the full story: see the Consultation Document - Charting a Sustainable Water Course for Ruapehu
Key factors guiding Council's decision
Our WS-CCO decision was guided by three key factors:
- Financial sustainability - The model must have the borrowing capacity to fund required water service improvements.
- Achieving scale and efficiency - A larger, multi-council model can keep water charges as affordable as possible.
- Collaboration opportunities - Assessing other councils’ willingness to work with Ruapehu on joint service delivery.
Proposed WS-CCO benefits:
Following analysis Council found the proposed WS-CCO offers:
- The lowest cost option for ratepayers available at this time.
- Strong alignment with regional relationships and catchments.
- Maximum financial capacity to meet the drinking water and wastewater standards and maintain and improve services
