Ashburton council’s stockwater exit plan nears completion

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

By local democracy reporter Jonathan Leask:

Ashburton's shift away from delivering stockwater services to rural properties is not a closure process, a councillor says.

The district council plans to get out of the management of stockwater races to rural properties by June 30, 2027.

“That could involve some being shut or other entities taking them over," councillor Richard Wilson said

Wilson is the chairperson of the stockwater transition working group, which is charged with planning the exit and ensuring properties that require stockwater have alternative options for delivery.

There are already plenty of examples around the district of other entities running stockwater schemes, he said.

Wilson pointed to an example of how the transition can work, with the Acton Farmers Irrigation Company now managing the scheme and going through a transfer agreement proposal with the council.

The district is also covered by irrigation schemes, he said.

“Some properties have stockwater on one side of the road and irrigation on the other, so that irrigation infrastructure could be used to provide stockwater efficiently.

"We don't need both."

The group is finalising the exit transition plan to present to the council by the end of the year.

The plan will outline the process the council will take and how it will engage with stockwater customers, stakeholders and the wider community as it works towards an exit.

It will be an intake-by-intake approach, Wilson said.

There is the possibility that the council retain some races for the amenity and biodiversity value.

Races that provide critical stormwater function could be declared drains, Wilson said.

“We haven’t made any decisions yet as we need to get the plan in place first.”

The working group includes councillors Carolyn Cameron and Wilson, mayor Neil Brown, representatives from Federated Farmers, Environment Canterbury, Te Runanga o Arowhenua and a consultant.

The core membership will make recommendations to the council based on their expert advice and input from the wider working group that consists of other key stakeholders.

The group are set to meet again on December 5 to finalise the plan to go to the council for adoption on December 18.

Once a transition plan is in place, the working group will monitor the progress towards achieving the stockwater delivery exit by June 2027.

Council chief executive Hamish Riach said the workload pressures facing the council over the next two years may challenge the stockwater exit timeframe.

“The timetable is well understood, but there are a range of issues at play.

“We are doing everything we can to mitigate against slippage of time, but there are some key people with significant workloads in some key areas around water that are impacting on each other.”

Council is seeking to recruit experienced staff into the team, he said.

*LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.