Council apologises for 'avoidable angst' caused by its handling of water scare
A review into the Dunedin City Council’s handling of a lead water issue in three Otago townships has been made public.
The “do not drink” notice for Waikouaiti, Karitane and Hawksbury Village was lifted in July after residents were caught up in a lead scare six months prior.
Residents were unable to use their tap water after elevated levels of lead were found in the water supply, operated by the council.
It was later revealed that there was no widespread lead contamination in the council’s drinking water network, but the elevated levels were likely caused by leaching from privately-owned pipes and fittings.
A report by independent reviewer Ross Tanner, which was released on Wednesday night, will be discussed at the Dunedin City Council next week.
The review identified problems with the council’s initial escalation and notification procedures, including a staff member going on leave before the elevated lead level reading was emailed to their inbox. It meant the council did not know about the reading for some time.
The report noted senior council management, including the chief executive, were blindsided as a major health response unfolded.
Their handling of the situation was compounded by an RNZ interview in which a senior manager incorrectly stated the elevated lead readings were four times the acceptable level, but this was later corrected to 40 times.
“Concern was expressed by the mayor, chief executive, and councillors to whom I spoke that as a consequence of this interview and the mistaken reference, the council had effectively ‘lost control of the (communications) narrative’ and never regained it,” Tanner wrote.
Dunedin mayor Aaron Hawkins said the council had acknowledged, and worked to rectify, areas of concern identified in the review.
Three of the five recommendations had already been implemented, and work on the other two was continuing.
“We accept the presence of elevated lead levels should have been escalated sooner, which would have allowed us to have this very serious conversation with our community sooner, as they deserved.
“This delay caused avoidable angst for our communities and I apologise on behalf of council that this happened.”
The welfare response from council staff, community board representatives and public health authorities was praised in the review.
That included providing temporary safe water tanks and free vegetables to residents in affected communities.
Poll: Should we be giving the green light to new mining projects? 💰🌲
The Environmental Protection Authority announced this week that a proposed mine in Central Otago (near Cromwell) is about to enter its fast-track assessment process. A final decision could come within six months, and if it’s approved, construction might start as early as mid-2026.
We want to know: Should mining projects like this move ahead?
Keen to dig deeper? Mike White has the scoop.
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53.3% Yes
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46.7% No
A riddle to start the festive season 🌲🎁🌟
I'm a fruit. If you take away my first letter, I'm a crime. If you take away my first two letters, I'm an animal. If you take away my first and last letter, I'm a form of music. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!
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🚒 Our Fire and Emergency crews have been kept busy lately
And they’re once again reminding everyone: please don’t light fires when it’s windy.
Central Otago will move into a restricted fire season from 1 December 2025, which means anyone planning an outdoor fire will need to apply for a permit and plan ahead.
So we’d love to ask you — how do you make sure you’re being fire-safe at this time of year?
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