Despite holding claim to the second most expensive and comfortably the most complained about water of council areas categorised as ‘medium-sized’ within NSW, Yass Valley water could be about to become even more expensive.
Yass Valley Council will tonight be presented with information stating an increase of $260 per year to Typical Residential Bills will be required to pay for the construction of an upgraded water treatment plant if they fail to receive further government subsidies.
Households in Yass Valley paid $3.40 per kL of water used in 2019/20 which is well above the median of $2.22/kL in the medium category of 19 Councils with Walgett holding the cheapest at $0.90 and Tenterfield the most expensive at $3.80.
The project cost is estimated now to total $33.2 million, with the Council’s water operations still holding an outstanding loan of $11.954 million as of June 2020, due to the raising of the Yass Dam Wall project of 2013, which also received no government subsidy.
For those that can recall, the Dam Wall project’s repayments were considered hefty at the time at $205.67 per year for each household and was the highest loan repayment in medium category water operations in the state.
The financial modelling, requested by Councillors shows upgrading the water treatment plant with no assistance would outdo that by $54 per household.
A typical residential bill for 2021-22 with no subsidy would hit $1,440 an increase of $260 per year (22%) to service a new 22-million-dollar loan.
The report states ‘…the combination of very high water bills and poor quality of water will make it painful to the households. It is necessary to seek the highest amount of government subsidy.’
Council is undertaking a peer review with the results of this yet to be finalised and made public.
It’s hoped the peer review will break the stalemate between the Council and the Department of Planning and Infrastructure over its initial dismissal that Yass needs a more complex treatment system than currently funded by the State Government.
Are you willing to accept the rate increase if it means issues with Yass Valley water are corrected? Or are you okay with the water in its current state if it means further rate rises can be avoided?
Let us hear your opinion in writing to editor@yassvalleytimes.com.au
Max O’Driscoll
Image at top of Yass Dam credit: GS Aerial Imaging 2020
