Water and Sewerage

Henry St is being cut up at the moment. A new water main is going in. Sheffield has poor sewerage infrastructure. It is very costly year in and year out. The new water and sewerage body will have plenty of work to do in our area.

As you may have heard water and sewerage will not be our direct responsibility from July 1. Cradle Mountain Water will be taking control of our drinking water and sewerage systems. Kentish Council will be one of the few Councils who will benefit from this. For us the Sheffield Sewerage System is a liability. The Railton plant is better. Councils will receive a dividend from the new water corporation however this dividend will be a few years in coming. Councils are also expected to fund a concession rebate for residents for their water and sewerage. This will cost us about $60,000. That is equivalent to a 2% increase in rates.

So what it means is that your rate notice amount will be lower however you will get a separate water and sewerage bill if applicable. You can expect a 30% increase in this bill over 3 years. Water fees in Tasmania are the cheapest in the nation. They need to increase to cover the cost of fixing crumbling infrastructure (such as the pipes in Henry Street).