The Otago Regional Council would have to be assured of a sound return on its investments now it had changed its investment policy to allow it to buy into irrigation schemes, the council heard this week.
The council has decided to amend its treasury management policy which determines how the council invests its funds.
The amendment means the council could buy shares in an irrigation scheme to ensure it went ahead.
The ORC would need to be assured of a sound return on investment and real opportunity to sell the investment would be required, staff told the council.
It changed the council's the investment profile to 90% conservative, 10% less conservative, corporate services director Wayne Scott said.
While the need to change the policy had been prompted by Tarras Water Ltd's request for equity funding, it could also be used in other cases.
Cr Gretchen Robertson said it clearly identified any investment needed to meet the council's triple bottom line of social, environmental and financial gains.
Cr Trevor Kempton said the policy merely created the mechanism by which the council could invest if it so wished and was not a commitment to anything.
"It gives us the option of considering this kind of investment, no more than that," Cr Michael Deaker said.
Cr Louise Croot said the Local Government Amendment Act of 2010 gave the council the ability to consider such projects but meeting the council's triple bottom line was also important.
