2 Dec 2016

Council charged over river contaminations

11:15 am on 2 December 2016

Hawke's Bay Regional Council has laid charges against Central Hawke's Bay District Council for breaches of its wastewater treatment plant consents in Waipukurau and Waipawa.

The Tukituki River

Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly

CHB District Council's resource consents allow for a certain number of discharges of contaminants during a 12-month period from its Waipukurau and Waipawa wastewater treatment plants into the Tukituki River.

HBRC laid three charges against it, saying it had passed that limit at both plants.

One charge related to the discharge of E coli at Waipawa in excess of the five allowed exceedances. The other two charges related to discharge of E coli and dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) at Waipukurau, again in excess of the five allowed exceedances.

A court date was yet to be set.

CHB District Council upgraded its Waipawa and Waipukurau wastewater plants two years ago to meet new standards required under new resource consents.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs