Mr Whitaker said the consents should be granted with the 20-year and 10-year terms, given the discharges were an existing issue which needed affirmative action. He did not support five-years consents as iwi and other submitters were seeking.
That term would be “counter-productive and is unlikely to facilitate positive outcomes over the medium to long term”, he said.
Iwi, who consider the discharge of untreated human waste as an abhorrent breach of tikanga, and other submitters were to present to the hearing today.
Council director of lifelines David Wilson spoke to the commissioners about the Social Deprivation Index, low incomes and rates affordability of Gisborne.
The cost of the wastewater system to the council and to individuals for making improvements to their property was a major concern.
The wastewater infrastructure had an estimated replacement value of $128 million and the wastewater treatment plant had a estimated depreciation replacement cost of nearly $30m.
Mr Wilson said draft resource conditions provided for annual reporting to the Wastewater Management Committee (WMC) consisting of four councillors and four iwi members.
The WMC and the Tangata Whenua Reference Group would have input into the 10-year review and resetting of targets.
Better environmental outcomes and long-term infrastructure planning would be achieved through a longer consent term.
Council water utilities manager Neville West said 50 percent of the reticulated network was on private property in the form of gully traps and lateral pipes connecting to the public system. It was standard practice to instal overflow relief points in wastewater networks to protect public health and infrastructure.
WWO occurred mainly on private property due to incorrect or illegal drainage.
The council had done significant work on council assets and intended resolving private property issues with the DrainWise programme which is funded in the Long-Term Plan.
DrainWise is aimed at reducing the frequency, duration and volume of overflow events.
Mr West said that unlike some councils, WWO required manual intervention in Gisborne, meaning WWO discharges were subject to monitoring and notification protocols.
DWOs at pump stations were rare, with the last occurring in 2015.
The council did regular maintenance and inspection of the wastewater network to manage DWOs.
Wolfgang Kanz, who is responsible for DrainWise and consultation with tangata whenua, said DrainWise was targeted at poor infrastructure on private property.
It included a site-by-site inspection of private property drainage. The suburbs of Kaiti, Whataupoko and Elgin had been prioritised and the aim was to complete the rest of the city by 2030.
The council had an Engage, Educate, Enable and Enforce model. A significant education programme included “only flush the 3Ps”.
The council had a target of a WWO occurrence of no more than 50 percent probability in any given year, Mr Kanz said.
GDC counsel Rachael Zame said there was one main amendment in the application. The primary overflow point at Seymour Road/Turenne Street would be replaced by a tertiary (rarely used) overflow point because of homes and schools in the area, and because of concerns raised by submitters.
