CHB Mayor, Alex Walker, leaks draft water report – labelled ‘mischievous’

Alex Walker, CHB Mayor

Wise Water Use’s Clint Deckard questions the motives of CHB’s pro-dam mayor, Alex Walker, who recently leaked a draft HB Regional Council report predicting future water shortages. Is the mayor equally willing to investigate how we can allocate our precious water resource more equitably and efficiently, before promoting a $1 billion taxpayer-funded mega-dam?

Published in Hawkes Bay Today 'Letters to Editor' section, , Saturday 17 September, 2022

Read Clint Deckard's letter below:

The selective release of a draft regional council report assessing Hawke’s Bay’s water needs by CHB Mayor Alex Walker seems aimed at furthering her viewpoint rather than adding to the discussion.

A little mischievous I think.

Since the report is not public and the context and assumptions around the figures quoted cannot be ascertained it is hard to discuss the facts.

Before committing to a mega dam it would be wise to examine how our current resource/taonga is being used.

The broken water allocation system has led to just six consent holders (mostly dairy) taking the lion’s share of CHB water. This is not fair.

One dairy operation has a consent for more water than the whole of Waipukurau municipal supply.

Vast amounts of water are used for inefficient, pasture based dairy farming in a summer dry area.

Surely we can allocate our precious resource more equitably, efficiently and beneficially than we currently are.

Only after a thorough review of our existing usage should we even consider a risky, expensive mega dam.

Hopefully when the final report becomes public we will be able to have an informed community discussion about our water future.

Clint Deckard

(Founding Member, Wise Water Use CHB)