Ash Tanner: Matamata-Piako mayor on Waitoa losing long-term access to free water

The small Waikato township of Waitoa is losing its long-term access to free water. 

The local Fonterra factory is ending its more than 40-year old arrangement to supply locals water - originally to serve homes affected by factory dust. 

Matamata-Piako District Council is consulting the public on an 8.2-million proposed solution.

Mayor Ash Tanner says Fonterra likely wants to avoid responsibility for anyone getting sick. 

"The problem I think we have in this country is - there's an incident, and then we have a bit of a knee-jerk reaction and then we set up a regulatory body to overlook it and then we go over the top and we make it harder to supply it."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Nineteen past five. Now the village of Whya and the
Wye Cuttle is going to lose its supply of free
drinking water. It's been getting a water from Fontira's local
dairy factory for decades, but it's going to end shortly.
So they're going to find a new place to get
the old h two oh, Ash Tanner is the Mata
Mata piacor mayor anders with.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
Us hig Ash Yeah, Hi, how are you very well?

Speaker 1 (00:18):
Thank you? So why is it ending? Is this fonterra?

Speaker 2 (00:21):
Okay? Yeah, So Fontira have been supplying the residence of
water for a long time with their drinking water, which
has been great. There was never an obligation I guess
to do that, but they did it, and yes stated
the water. Obviously they are food producing factory. But I guess,

(00:45):
you know, from my perspective, I think probably the motive
for the move was anyone that's supplying houses with water
as such then is deemed to be a water supplier,
and probably we're going to go under the new regulatory standard.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
No, it's not this again, is it?

Speaker 3 (01:03):
Ash?

Speaker 4 (01:04):
So?

Speaker 1 (01:04):
Is this this nonsense?

Speaker 4 (01:05):
This is the same reason why the Navy ship didn't
want to give water to people who needed water after
cycling Gabriel because they don't want to get in trouble
in case somebody gets some funny bug out of the water.

Speaker 2 (01:15):
Yeah. Well, this is it, and this is what we're
faced with as counselors as well.

Speaker 1 (01:19):
It's safety law.

Speaker 2 (01:22):
Look, you know, I'm starting my seatings here in local government,
and it's no secret that I've been quite vocal about it.
The problem I think we have in this country is
there's an incident and then we have a bit of
a knee jack reaction, and then we set up a
regulatory body to overlook it, and and then sometimes in

(01:44):
my own personal opinion, not necessarily counsel's opinion, that we
go over the top and then we make it harder
to supply it. Yeah, we sure have. You're did right there,
one dred percent totally.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Okay, Well, what are you going to do now? It's
going to cost you eight million dollars is it to
get some water from somewhere else?

Speaker 4 (02:01):
Yeah?

Speaker 2 (02:01):
Well, so it comes back to councils supplying it, you know.
So obviously we'd have to run because it's a real sediment.
We'd have to run pipes all the way out to
wait to be able to supply them that we went
out and consulted with the community in a vita and
they've come back there and clear and CDA. They would
like it to be a reticulated supply. So that's what

(02:25):
we're going through the figures now and just working out
O the best we can do that.

Speaker 1 (02:29):
Well, good luck with it, ash and thanks for running
us through at Ashtan and Mata Mataia.

Speaker 4 (02:32):
Do you know what I mean when I said we
stopped being adults, like we stopped being responsible for ourselves
and we go.

Speaker 3 (02:38):
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