source Central Leader Friday 6th April 2001
By Vicki Poland

The Auckland Region Water Review has received more Water Pressure Group protest cards than general submissions. In last month's public consultation 5329 submission were received.

Review steering committee chairman Grant Taylor says 2272 direct submission were received.
“We have also received 3048 postcards from the Water Pressure Group coalition which have been forward from the office of MP Judith Tizard,” Mr Taylor says.

The pro forma postcards were printed by a coalition of groups opposed to a spread of user pays charges for wastewater services.

Six Auckland councils and bulk provider Watercare Services say a more business-like approach is needed to best manage a $5 billion upgrade of the region ageing water system over 10 years.

The review last month asked the public for feedback on how water services should be structured, putting up three options.

Frustrated that none of the options excluded user charges, the protesters tried unsuccessfully to have a non-commercial option of their own drafting included. Postcards supporting the excluded option were sent to the Wellington office of Ms Tizard, the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister with Auckland Issues.

An office spokesperson said acknowledgements had been sent to 3984 households whose postcards arrived by deadline of March 21. Late postcards continued to flow, however, and numbered about 4500 by this week.

Pressure group spokeswoman Penny Bright claims this response “is evidence that a non-commercial option should have been included as of right – and that that the Auckland Region Review has no mandate to spread user charges across the region”.

However, Mr Taylor says it's not just the numbers that count. “This is not simply a polling process”
he says.

A preliminary view of the 2272 general submissions shoe a wide range of options on how people would like to see the region's water businesses operated, he says.
Submitters were also asked to say which of the various aims, like security and reliability of the supply, were most important to them.
 
“All these matters will be taken into account in the decision-making process, which the councils will now work through.”

Hearings are under way in various parts of the region this week for those who wish to speak in support of their submissions.
The councils have already agreed to look closely at the protesters’ proposal.

“We will be analysing the coalition’s full submission along with all other submissions we have received,” says Mr Taylor.
A second consultation phase will look at the issues and options raised in the first, he says.
 

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