Residents of two villages in South Otago say they will be forced from their homes unless the district helps pay for a sewerage upgrade.
Clutha District Council has received a record 750 submissions on the cost of connecting Benhar and Tokoiti to main pipes.
The council says it would cost about $20,000 per house to upgrade the villages and it wants to provide a subsidy so only half is met by ratepayers.
A resident of Benhar, Phil Barrett, says people want to modernise but worry they will end up with an unaffordable bill.
Lynn Smart, who lives in Tokoiti, says she and her husband might have to sell up because the offer is not enough.
"We've brought up our six daughters and several of our grandchildren in this house and we don't want to leave it. We want to live here as long as we possibly can but council's making it really difficult for us," she says.
She says paying for a new sewerage system should be the council's problem, not residents'.
Clutha District mayor Bryan Cadogan says people have personal responsibility for their sewage but it would be on his conscience if a pensioner was forced out because of the cost.
The council says it will hear oral submissions next week.
