The Star: July 11, 2024
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Thursday <strong>July</strong> <strong>11</strong> <strong>2024</strong> <strong>The</strong> <strong>Star</strong><br />
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz<br />
NEWS 5<br />
Full sewerage system blocks housing<br />
development in face of intensification<br />
• By Niva Chittock<br />
PARTS OF Christchurch are<br />
off-limits for further housing<br />
development because the sewage<br />
system is full.<br />
<strong>The</strong> city council has been<br />
pushing back on new central<br />
government rules for housing<br />
intensification, but its exemption<br />
runs out next year.<br />
An independent investigator<br />
was appointed and the council<br />
held hearings earlier this year<br />
on the proposed changes, called<br />
Plan Change 14.<br />
More policy changes were<br />
announced by the Government<br />
last week. ‘Going for Housing<br />
Growth’ will require major<br />
councils to have 30 years worth<br />
of land zoned for housing, allows<br />
more mixed use of land so neighbourhoods<br />
can have cafes and<br />
dairies, and removes minimum<br />
size and balcony rules for apartments.<br />
City councillors are under<br />
pressure to get the ball rolling,<br />
but in parts of Christchurch,<br />
infrastructure is at capacity.<br />
When heavy rains hit the city<br />
in 2021, some suburbs could not<br />
flush their toilets because the<br />
wastewater pipes were full.<br />
<strong>The</strong> city council resorted to<br />
using sucker trucks to keep the<br />
pipes moving.<br />
Aranui, Shirley and Prestons<br />
all had vacuum sewer systems<br />
installed after the earthquakes<br />
– but they were built with little<br />
room for growth.<br />
Council acting head of<br />
planning and consents Mark<br />
Stevenson said the systems also<br />
relied on an air-to-water ratio –<br />
meaning they failed if too much<br />
stormwater got in.<br />
“To accommodate further<br />
demand in the future, it would<br />
require the whole system to be<br />
upgraded simultaneously at a<br />
PHOTO: GETTY<br />
significant cost. It’s not a system<br />
like other parts of the city where<br />
we can dig up a pipe and just<br />
replace it,” he said.<br />
Replacing the systems was estimated<br />
to cost up to $240 million,<br />
the city council said.<br />
It usually set aside less than<br />
$50m for the entire wastewater<br />
network over 10 years.<br />
Mayor Phil Mauger was keen<br />
to ditch the vacuum systems.<br />
“I don’t like it, because I’ve laid<br />
lots of pipes, I can tell you what<br />
it’s like. We should go to a system<br />
that we are using out in Halswell,<br />
which is little pump stations for<br />
every house,<br />
which works<br />
extremely well,”<br />
he said.<br />
<strong>The</strong> individual<br />
pumps took the<br />
pressure off<br />
the wastewater<br />
system at peak Phil Mauger<br />
times, Mauger<br />
said.<br />
“<strong>The</strong>y’re all hooked up to a<br />
main computer here in town. We<br />
can say ‘right, our sewers are at<br />
capacity from six until nine at<br />
night because everyone’s having<br />
a shower’. We can press a button<br />
and turn all those pumps off, because<br />
they’ve got a wee tank that<br />
can hold the stuff, then we can<br />
turn them all on at three o’clock<br />
in the morning and it makes our<br />
pipes a lot more usable throughout<br />
the day,” he said.<br />
No other suburbs were at risk<br />
of hitting their sewer capacity,<br />
and the council was only approving<br />
new housing where the<br />
infrastructure could support it,<br />
Stevenson said.<br />
At this stage, that meant building<br />
more around main public<br />
transport routes, and in areas with<br />
easy accessibility to services.<br />
Ngāi Tahu Property had just<br />
applied to build 55 residential<br />
homes on the site of the former<br />
Aranui Primary School – in a<br />
wastewater capacity area.<br />
It declined RNZ’s interview<br />
request, but confirmed the application<br />
had been lodged and said<br />
it would await the city council’s<br />
assessment.<br />
RNZ had viewed its application,<br />
which stated it was aware<br />
the area’s sewage system was full.<br />
According to the plans, each<br />
house would have its own independent<br />
pump unit, like those in<br />
Halswell.<br />
It was unclear where the latest<br />
central government housing<br />
announcement would leave the<br />
city, Mauger said.<br />
“Staff will now need to work<br />
through the implications of the<br />
announcement and brief us so<br />
we get a full picture. Fortunately<br />
we have over 30 years’ worth of<br />
expected demand covered in<br />
our existing zoning, and this<br />
will only increase through our<br />
National Policy Statement-Urban<br />
Development proposals in<br />
PC14,” he said.<br />
<strong>The</strong> city council will vote<br />
on some of the Government’s<br />
proposed housing intensification<br />
changes on September 4. –RNZ<br />
Keeping your trees pruned and clear of lines<br />
helps us keep the power on for our community<br />
Vegetation falling on lines is one of the<br />
leading causes of power outages on our<br />
network. Visit oriongroup.co.nz/trees for tree<br />
regulations, advice and to find out about your<br />
responsibilities as a property owner.<br />
We recommend using trained professionals<br />
and if you have any questions, call us anytime<br />
on 0800 363 9898. We’re here to help.