Small communities to benefit from date change for septic tank rules
 

For immediate release: Thursday 24 June 2010
 

Small communities in Rotorua and Western Bay of Plenty should benefit from a proposed plan change that defers the date at which discharge from existing septic tank discharges requires consent.

Environment Bay of Plenty approved today a proposed plan change to the On-Site Effluent Treatment Regional Plan to go out for public consultation next week.

Planning Frameworks Manager David Phizacklea said a plan change was needed before the start of December this year, when the current plan rules mean resource consent, connection to a reticulated system or an upgraded septic tank system would be needed for existing systems in the affected communities.

“The plan was originally written to help improve the region’s water quality, as pollution problems can be caused by old and even no on-site effluent treatment systems,” he said.

“We want people to connect to community sewerage reticulation schemes when they become available. “These changes provide residents with more certainty about what the Plan will require of people beyond 2010,” he said. 

“We also want to provide more time for councils and the affected communities to assess the requirements for Ongare Point, Te Puna, Tanners Point and Lake Rotoehu. The current dates in the plan don’t match the dates for Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Rotorua District Council to put in reticulated sewerage systems for these communities,” Mr Phizacklea said.

The main small communities affected are Te Puna, Tanners Point and Ongare Point, Maketu and Little Waihi, Rotoma, Rotoehu, Rotorua, Rotoiti, Okareka, Tarawera and Mamaku.

The regional council consulted on a draft plan change earlier this year, with public meetings held in each area.  Feedback from the meetings, and written comments received were used to finalise the proposed plan. 

Key changes from the draft plan include:

·         Adding Mamaku Township to the list of areas to be sewerage reticulated, with a deadline of 1 December 2017 for either linking to the reticulated system or having an advanced system in place.

·         Being more flexible on the dates when reticulated sewerage systems will be in place for Maketu/Little Waihi (now 1 December 2013) and Rotoma/Hamurana (now 1 December 2014). 

·         Encouraging residents to connect to their community sewerage reticulation system when it becomes available by removing their permitted activity discharge authorisation within three months.

The Plan Change will be available from Tuesday 29 June from Environment Bay of Plenty offices or on the website www.envbop.govt.nz. The deadline for submissions will be Thursday 29 July 2010. A summary of submissions will be publicly notified in August.  Hearings will be held later this year. A decision is expected before 1 December 2010.

ends

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