Six years on from the Havelock North water contamination crisis, Hastings District Council has approved an $8.7 million loan to be added to its existing budget, to complete its commitment to provide safe drinking water.
The loan funding was approved by the Operations and Monitoring Committee on 15 September so that Hastings’ drinking water network upgrade can be completed in July next year and will be added to the current budget of $82 million.
The upgrade ran into difficulties due to Covid supply chain problems and inflationary pressures on the cost of materials and services.
The meeting agenda notes say that “the treatment of raw water and critical controls” are required to meet commitments in its Water Safety Plan and the installation of treatment facilities had been agreed with Ministry of Health officials.
In April last year the council resolved to approve additional debt funding of $6.8m to complete the Drinking Water Capital Works programme, as part of the council’s 2021 -2031 Long Term Plan.
However, the demand for services in the wider market exceeded supply capacity and tenders for council water contracts reflected rising costs, alongside ongoing effects of Covid disruption. The impact required a further debt funding commitment of $8.7m from Hastings District Council.
To date the programme has spent $70 million, with total expenditure projected at $90.85 million by works end. HDC is debt funding $68 million of the total, with another $14 million coming from Three Waters Stimulus funding, leaving the shortfall of $8.7 million. About $21m worth of committed works remained to be done on treatment facilities and the Waiaroha mitigation works.
The Frimley water storage and treatment facility is now substantially completed and ready for testing and commissioning.
The pipes to transport water to and from Waiaroha, on the corner of Southampton and Hastings Streets, have been installed and one water reservoir has been built with the other 80% complete. The water treatment plant is under construction, as is the Waiaroha education building and associated groundworks.
Of the small community upgrades, five treatment plants are complete and operating (Haumoana, Esk/Whirinaki, Waimārama, Te Pōhue, Clive), one is complete and in commissioning (Waipatiki) and one is being constructed and due to be finished in November this year (Whakatū).
Since the project began in 2019, other components of the work programme that have already been completed are the 4.2km-long Havelock North trunkmain, the Havelock North booster station, and treatment upgrades at the Wilson Rd plant.
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