Councillors Say Pottinger’s Comments Misleading

Tension is building between Invercargill city councillors, with Grant Dermondy and Tom Campbell accusing Ian Pottinger of being misleading and scaremongering in the build up to elections.

Cr Pottinger is a mayoral candidate and spoke publicly on Friday last week about rumours the Bluff wastewater upgrade could cost ratepayers tens of millions of dollars.

Cr Dermody is the Infrastructure and Projects committee chair and took exception to his comments, producing a media statement to reassure the public.

“There has been speculation regarding the potential costs of the Bluff Wastewater consent, with unsubstantiated figures ranging from $40–$60 million being circulated publicly. These numbers are not supported by any business case that I am aware of. Speculating on the cost, while the environmental legislation still is not finalised, is in my view misleading the community.”

Council has applied for a three-year extension to the existing Bluff Wastewater consent allowing time for the new legislation to be finalised and ensure the future investment aligns with the new requirements. 

But Cr Pottinger is worried the $7.7 million budgeted just won’t be enough to cover it, and staff at last week’s meeting were unable to predict the estimated cost, under the new regulations.

“I want to reassure ratepayers and residents that every decision made by the Infrastructure and Projects Committee is focused on achieving the best outcomes for our community,” Cr Dermody said.

“The Government has signalled significant shifts in environmental legislation, particularly around the management of freshwater and wastewater. The Government has proposed changes to water regulations which will take effect next year. This has created significant uncertainty for council, as we are seeking a consent for the Bluff Wastewater plant, which is a critical infrastructure project.”

He said In the interim, council has ringfenced $8 million in capital within the Long-Term Plan. 

“We will also start an upgrade on parts of the treatment plant at Bluff. These interim upgrades will deliver improved environmental outcomes while the legislative changes are enacted.”

Cr Demody said if such high costs were to apply to a small treatment plant like Bluff, the implications for larger projects across the region and in major cities would be “enormous and unsustainable.”   He said that was an outcome the government was acutely aware of.

Deputy Mayor Tom Campbell said Cr Pottinger's comments were “irresponsible scaremongering” for cheap publicity. 

“He knows, or at least he should know, that is it impossible for staff to give a cost estimate to meet the new government standards until those standards are announced.

“It would have made no sense for council to have approved the $7.7m project last year when we already knew there was a risk the plant would not meet the new standards and would be obsolete before it was even built.”