Unlawful Connection to water supply

A landowner and contractor will be issued a formal warning after an unlawful connection to a community water supply was detected, Queenstown Lakes District Council general manager regulatory and corporate Roger Taylor said.

‘What these unlawful connections mean to the community is that the cost of providing these services is not fairly apportioned to all users. Everyone else is effectively subsidising those unlawfully connected,” Mr Taylor said.

Furthermore the unlawful ‘drawing off’ of large amounts of water could impact on reservoir levels and ultimately other users.

In this case a council engineer discovered the connection, which had enabled a contractor to access a water main without permission.

“A written warning will be issued but the council’s water supply bylaw is clear and an unlawful connection is a breach of the bylaw,” Mr Taylor said. Costs for the investigation would also be sought.

The maximum fine for a breach of the bylaw was $5000.

“It would be far preferable for landowners or contractors to contact us to seek permission for a connection than to risk prosecution in the future,’ Mr Taylor said.
ENDS