The findings of the Havelock North Water Inquiry are not being taken seriously enough by those tasked with monitoring compliance with resource consents, says a councillor who is calling for an independent review of the issue.
Napier regional councillor Neil Kirton raised his concerns at a corporate and strategic committee meeting last week, members of which discussed a report on a controlled raw wastewater discharge by the Napier City Council preceding Cyclone Debbie in May this year.
As a means to ensure that all wastewater pump stations were operating effectively and that there was minimal sewage stored in the network, the council decided to make a controlled discharge of just over 10,000 cubic metres to the stormwater network on April 5.
The report said that while the discharge of wastewater, diluted with stormwater, was not ideal it did serve the purpose of protecting public health, in avoiding uncontrolled discharges to streets and private property.
Mr Kirton said the incident raised concerns about the level of Napier's capacity to store wastewater, and the veracity of some of the E. coli readings that were taken at the time.