Local Water Done Well

Rotorua Lakes Council needs to decide how it will deliver water, wastewater and stormwater services in future. This is required under Local Water Done Well, the Coalition Government’s plan for managing water services delivery and infrastructure.

On Wednesday 26 March 2025 Council will be asked to decide on its preferred delivery model to take out to consultation with the community.

Following workshops for elected members to seek direction, the recommended preferred option Council will be asked to approve is establishing an in-house council waters division until 2028, moving to a CCO model after that. A decision would be made in 2027 about whether to have water services delivered by a multi-council CCO or a Rotorua Lakes Council CCO.

Consultation will also include an alternative option with the recommendation being that this be retaining delivery of water services in-house.

Consultation on the Council’s preferred Local Water Done Well delivery model will happen at the same time as consultation on the draft 2025/26 Annual Plan, running from 4 April until 5 May 2025.

Go to p12 of the meeting agenda to read the report on Local Water Done Well

Next week’s meeting is being held at 9.30am in the Council Chamber and is open to the public to attend.

The meeting will also be livestreamed and you can watch live or later via the Council’s YouTube channel: Rotorua Lakes Council - YouTube

A workshop to help determine Council's preferred option was held Tues 4 March 2025 and Weds 5 March 2025. Find out more at the following links:

Local Water Done Well workshop - part 1 - Rotorua Lakes Council

Local Water Done Well workshop - part 2 - Rotorua Lakes Council

What is Local Water Done Well?

Local Water Done Well aims to address New Zealand’s current and future waters infrastructure challenges with local councils determining how these services will be delivered in future.

View the following link for more about Water Services Policy legislation and processes on the Department of Internal Affairs website.

Water Services Policy legislation and process - (dia.govt.nz)

Water Services Delivery Plans

Councils must develop Water Services Delivery Plans (Plans) to demonstrate their commitment to delivering waters services that meet regulatory requirements, support growth and urban development and are financially sustainable.

Through these plans, councils will provide an assessment of their current waters infrastructure, how much they need to invest in the future, and how they plan to finance and deliver it through their preferred service delivery model.

The plans are a one-off, transitional requirement under the Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Act 2024.

Councils are required to prepare and submit these plans, either individually or with other councils, by 3 September 2025 (unless an extension is granted).

View the following link for more about Water Services Policy and Water Services Delivery Plans on the Department of Internal Affairs website.

Water Services Policy and Water Services Delivery Plans - (dia.govt.nz)

Water Services delivery model

Councils must determine how they will deliver waters services in future and under Local Water Done Well legislation there are a variety of delivery models from which to choose.

Councils are also able to design their own alternative arrangements, as long as these meet minimum conditions including regulatory standards, financial sustainability through ringfencing of water services and restrictions against privatisation.

Under Local Water Done Well financial model options are also being provided, along with a new regulatory regime for water services.

View the following links for more about water services Future Delivery System and an Overview of delivery models on the Department of Internal Affairs website.

Water Services Policy Future Delivery System - (dia.govt.nz)

Overview of water services delivery models August 2024 - (PDF, 248KB)

Rotorua Lakes Council’s position

The Council has yet to determine a preferred waters services delivery model.

In September 2024 the Infrastructure and Environment Committee directed officers to start creating a water services delivery plan, on the basis of an in-house model while other options for potential arrangements continue to be explored.

Starting the plan now will ensure the council meets the September 2025 deadline. The plan will be able to be adjusted to align with whichever service model Council decides to go with.

Council is required to consult on its proposed service delivery model and it is intended to undertake this consultation in April 2025, alongside the 2025/26 Annual Plan process.

During the December 2024 Council meeting elected members heard from officials from the Department for Internal Affairs (DIA), which is providing advice and administering legislation for Local Water Done Well on behalf of the government. The officials provided an overview of requirements and discussed matters related to delivery options available to councils.

View the meeting recording with officials from Department of Internal Affairs in the following video from Council's YouTube channel.

Slides relating to the DIA presentation - (PDF, 284KB)

Planned investment

Infrastructure is a priority for Council and the 2024-2034 Long-term Plan includes investment of $427.5m in water supplies ($90.9m), stormwater ($169.2m) and wastewater ($167.4m) infrastructure across the next 10 years.

This includes $84m from the Government’s Infrastructure Acceleration Fund for flood management and stormwater infrastructure that will enable housing.

These investments include for the maintenance, operations, renewal and upgrade of our local networks.

Council’s 30-year infrastructure strategy - (PDF, 2.2MB) sets out the current state of core infrastructure in the Rotorua district, the challenges that need to be at the forefront of long-term planning and decision-making and the proactive plan for maintaining, renewing and upgrading our networks.

Ministerial press releases and other updates - (dia.govt.nz)