The additional information, including submissions from the public and a cultural impact assessment (CIA), has since been provided.
Between February 4 and March 5, 2021, 37 submissions were received on the application, 33 of which were opposed for various reasons.
According to a report prepared for the independent hearing commissioners by Horizons Regional Council reporting planner Jasmine Mitchell, a major concern raised by four submitters was the impact of the take on the mauri of the water. This was supported by the CIA which recognised the mauri of the water.
"Both the extraction and the export of water have the potential to have an impact on the mauri of the water," the report stated.
The CIA identified groundwater as a taonga and that there were inherent values associated with the wai. This concern was raised by 15 submitters.
There were also concerns about the applicant's refusal to name its overseas partner.
"Without being too specific, some of their exports would include India and North America," Murdoch said at the hearing.
One of the key amendments to the application, since its initial submission in 2018, was the change of bottling material for 20-litre containers from plastic to rubber to avoid using plastic.
During the hearing, Murdoch said containers could potentially be sent back from overseas to be reused by the plant.
He said the company would have no control over how the water and ice were packaged after being exported, even if it meant being packaged in plastic.
"They would go to the market where they are then bottled in containers that suit them," Murdoch said.
To address some of the public concerns, the applicant proposed to "offset" the potential effects such as providing water to marae in dry periods if applicable, avoiding the use of plastics in processing, establishing new jobs that could be filled by hapū, generating indirect employment such as truck drivers, and establishing professional links with local secondary schools and workplace experience.
Of the four submissions in support of the application, three were in favour of the establishment of jobs in Whanganui and one for the potential provision of water to surrounding marae.
In a statement recorded on November 28, 2019, at Tupoho House, Murdoch said if whānau opposed the application, he would be reluctant to carry on with it.
Meanwhile, in a CIA undertaken in 2019 by Poipoia Ltd on behalf of Ngā Hapū o Te Rūnanga o Tūpoho, the collective body stated they "oppose [the application] in its entirety".
"All water in the rohe is culturally and historically connected to each other," the assessment said.
The planner's report said the connection with the Whanganui River was considered to be low, based on evidence from the CIA and Horizons' groundwater expert, Neil Thomas.
At the hearing, Thomas clarified this meant the likelihood of the connection with the river was below 20 per cent, which placed it in the "low" category.
"Indirectly there may be a chance of connection, but that chance is less than 5 per cent," Thomas said.
The planner's report said the hearing did not need to take into consideration Te Awa Tupua Act, due to there being no direct physical connection to the river.
"For this application, the location of the take is within the Whanganui catchment and in close proximity to the Whanganui River; however, it is not directly from the river itself."
This was backed by an email on August 3 from former Ngā Tāngata Tiaki chairman Gerrard Albert, stating Ngā Tāngata Tiaki did not consider Te Awa Tupua Act applicable to the consideration of the application.
Ngā Tāngata Tiaki o Whanganui is the post-settlement governance entity for Whanganui Iwi for the purpose of the Whanganui River Settlement established in 2017.
The hearing was adjourned due to the panel needing additional information which, when provided, would determine the next steps.
