A proposal to invest in a Tarras irrigation scheme may have dominated submissions but it only got a few mentions at the Otago Regional Council's annual plan hearing yesterday.
Instead, buses, pests, Hoopers Inlet, flood protection and the implementation of plan change 6A (water quality) dominated the final day of hearings in Dunedin yesterday.
As the proposal to invest $3.5 million in dry shares in the Tarras scheme drew nearly half of the 98 submissions the council received, it did get a mention.
Emeritus Prof Sir Alan Mark and Otago Federated Farmers reiterated their stance, made at the earlier long-term plan amendment hearing, opposing the proposal before going on to discuss other matters.
Chris Pearson, of Dunedin, said he was concerned the Tarras proposal continued a pattern he had observed of a ''rural bias'' in decision-making, which disturbed him.
''Exactly what is the wisdom of this? There is seemingly little analysis. It is not a good look.''
Three people yesterday asked the regional council to consider taking back the responsibility for unblocking Hoopers Inlet on Otago Peninsula.
Otago Peninsula residents Hamish and Jo Forrester said tourism, recreation and biodiversity would be impacted by poor water quality in the inlet.
Unblocking the inlet fell within the activities condoned by the council's mission statement and regional policy statement as well as being included in past annual plans, Mr Forrester said.
Peninsula resident Albie Benson said the blocked inlet
meant people were having to drive through salt water and plagues of flies were gathering when the inlet level dropped.
It would only be a small cost to fix the problem, given it had only happened five times in 50 years, he said.
Federated Farmers Otago president Stephen Korteweg asked the council to continue to invest in its land resources team as it built up to implementing the 6A changes.
It supported catchment-based solutions to improving water quality and land resource staff had a good relationship with farmers, he said.
''Prioritising catchment and sub-catchment programmes that aim to help communities understand what they need to achieve to reach good water quality.''
Lower Waitaki farmer Mark Taylor asked the council to consider Environment Canterbury's approach to funding flood protection works on the Waitaki as Otago regional ratepayers paid three times the rates of their Canterbury counterparts.
''It makes it very difficult. We're not on a level playing field.''
There was an argument for more general rate input, given the benefit hydro brought to Otago and the problems it caused on the Waitaki, he said.
The hearing panel adjourned to consider submissions and will present its recommendations to the next finance and corporate committee meeting early next month.
Annual plan
• 5.34% rate increase.
• 2.4% of increase due to proposal to invest in Tarras irrigation scheme.
• Proposal to invest $3.5 million in Tarras Water Ltd.
• Implementation of regional plan 6A.
• Work on regional policy statement.
• $5.9 million flood works on Water of Leith.
Day 2
• Panel: Cr David Shepherd (chairman), Stephen Woodhead and Crs Doug Brown, Michael Deaker, Trevor Kempton and Bryan Scott.
• Submitters: 12.
• Where: Council Chamber Dunedin.
• Next: Adjourned for panel to consider submissions.
