While Queenstown Lakes continues to battle with its Shotover River wastewater treatment plant, downstream, the Central Otago District Council has just achieved full compliance after a recent audit of its consents.

The Otago Regional Council also confirmed to the Regional Leadership Committee on Wednesday, that the discharge pipe from the Shotover plant had not been consented, but declined to comment further while it was before the Environment Court.

General manager environmental delivery Joanna Gilroy gave the committee an overview of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) compliance across Waitaki, Clutha, Central Otago, Queenstown Lakes and Dunedin from April 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024.

There were currently a total of 21 significant non-compliance, 11 moderate, and nine low risk during the reporting period.

The compliance team monitored compliance for 31 reticulated WWTPs operating under 55 main discharge consents.

In late February 2025 Taumata Arowai began consultation on the proposed national environmental performance standard for wastewater. The proposal was for communities to decide how their treatment plants were upgraded in the future.

Read more: Drastic new wastewater standards changes the playing field

The CODC operated seven reticulated WWTPs under 11 main discharge consents - the QLDC had four with the same number of discharge consents (two currently not active).

Jo told the meeting while the reporting period did not cover the ongoing Shotover River issues, as at December 2024, there were two active abatement notices for QLDC managed WWTPs due to non-compliance at the Shotover site.

ORC chief executive Richard Saunders said they were doing their bit as the regulator, to get more testing underway, and further downstream where the Shotover met the Kawarau River, “but we can’t be at that site 24/7. We can’t afford to be, we don’t have the resources even

if we wanted to be.”

He said the compliance team relied on the testing provided by staff, and they were doing a great job.

The Omakau Wastewater Treatment Plant after flooding in 2022. There were 21 significant non-compliance of wastewater treatment plant consents over the past year FILE SHOT.

The report said treated discharge from the disposal field posed no significant environmental risk to the Shotover and Kawarau Rivers, the Shotover Delta, or its users.

But councillor Alexa Forbes said across the board she was concerned about the number of “systemic failures,” and questioned how there could be so many non-compliances unreported by councils with their discharge consents.

She said regarding the public filming the discharges into Shotover River and posting it on social media, “are people taking us seriously here?”

“How do we get to that place where we’re close to any compliance at all?”

Richard assured everyone that staff were keeping a close eye on the situation and what was happening. They would also respond to genuine complaints “but not every social media post.”

Latest testing results would be published on the regional council website from Monday April 14.

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