Tarras Water Ltd (TWL) has applied to the Otago Regional Council for a permit to establish an irrigation scheme on the river and address a primary community concern - water supply.
"Water is a scarce commodity in Tarras and its low reliability has strained both the economic and social elements of the community," TWL director Peter Jolly said, on the first day of a two-day hearing that allowed Cr Duncan Butcher and Cr David Shepherd to hear the majority of the applicant's evidence and one submission.
Mr Jolly said the permit was "crucial for the future wellbeing and continued growth of the Tarras community".
He believed population decline and closure of amenities would cease with the development of land and businesses, and the population would increase.
The scheme proposes to take a maximum of 4.5cumecs (or 4500 litres a second), from two sites, which would be pumped through an underground pipe network for irrigation of about 9000 hectares of land.
The project was set to cost about $70 million, for both on- and off-farm work.
Other uses were domestic, stock water, fire fighting, frost fighting and light industrial.
The community at present relied on combined and individual permits to take water from the Lindis River.
With three existing races, it was "one of the most over-allocated rivers in Otago" and frequently dried up in the lower reaches during the summer months, Mr Jolly said.
The ORC was also establishing a minimum flow regime for the Lindis catchment and water permits were set to expire in 2021.
Post-2021 scenarios included all permit holders obtaining either a reduced quota, or none at all, he said.
"A reduction in water quota would deem some farms to become uneconomic."
Aqualinc Research Ltd senior water resource engineer Matt Bubb tabled a report by Harris Consulting which outlined social effects of the scheme.
The report said the scheme would contribute $18 million to regional gross domestic product and would create 257 jobs in the region, and household income would increase by $8.4 million a year.
With more money and jobs in the area, population would rise, services would expand and some new ones would be established.
Of the 19 submissions, none opposed the application, although some wanted conditions imposed.
ORC resource officer and report writer Natasha Hoogeveen recommended the application be granted but with 20 conditions.
These included that all water permit holders within the command area either fully or partially surrendered their existing consents before using water from the Clutha; monthly organic monitoring be undertaken and forwarded to the council; farm management plans be developed and implemented, which included irrigation, waterway, biodiversity and effluent management; and water meters and data loggers be installed and information supplied to the council twice a year.
The consent hearing continues today, with the applicant completing evidence and the remainder of submissions to be heard.
