Council has developed this draft Annual Plan for 2026/27 and is now seeking feedback from the community.

Waitomo District Council will undertake one of its most significant changes this year. In this plan you will see the impact of transitioning the water and wastewater activities to our water Council Controlled Organisation - Waikato Waters Ltd. From 1 July 2026 Waikato Waters will take on the responsibility for supplying drinking water and treatment of wastewater for connected properties in our District.

To fund our activities the Draft Annual Plan 2026/27 we will require $19.7 million of rates (excluding water and wastewater rates), an increase in total rates revenue of 2.88%.
The total rates revenue to fund water and wastewater is $7.5 million and is a 6.2% increase.

This means a combined total rates revenue increase of 3.79%.

Elected members and WDC staff are available to answer any questions you may have regarding this draft Annual Plan or the waters transition.

We look forward to your feedback on this draft plan.

Currently Mōkau residents and visitors must drive a 17km round trip to dispose of rubbish at the
Awakino transfer station. During summer many people are not using the transfer station and
dumping rubbish in and around Mōkau. 

The recycling station, outside the public toilets, in Mōkau during summer often has large rubbish piles dumped illegally. This is unsightly and costs ratepayers as the rubbish has to be regularly removed.

To make it easier to dispose of rubbish we are proposing to set up a transfer station at the Inframax depot on Oha Street and close the Awakino site. 

We did ask this question in 2018 however there are some differences in what is being proposed this time.

Option 1 - Move transfer station to Mōkau (preferred)

Less travel for Mōkau residents and visitors	Some additional annual and setup cost
Likely higher usage	More urban location
Illegal rubbish dumping should reduce	No green waste
Depot site is currently industrial

Option 2 - Keep the transfer station at Awakino

No additional costs	Continued rubbish dumping
Rural location	Travel distance/location reduces use
	No green waste

The site will use large moveable lidded bins for general rubbish and 240 litre wheelie bins for recycling. It will be open on Sundays as Awakino is currently and additional hours over summer. We are upgrading the capacity of the rubbish and recycling bins on the main street. We will also look at visual and noise reduction and improved signage.

Removal of the District Wide Benefit Rates for water and wastewater and the Trade waste Targeted Fixed Rate.

Providing drinking water and disposing of wastewater and trade waste had been considered by Council to benefit everyone, and so some of the cost to deliver these services are covered by all ratepayers.

These are the “District Wide Benefit” and Trade Waste Contribution rates on your rates account.
Council has taken the approach to move water and wastewater services to a ‘user pays’ model as we move to Waikato Waters.

From 1 July 2027 water and wastewater charges will be set by WWL through their Water Services Strategy and then only connected and serviceable (able to connect) properties can be charged.

Council is proposing to remove all the remaining districtwide rates for water and wastewater and trade waste contribution charged to all rating units in the district for 2026/27.

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Te Kūiti Stormwater Investment

We have invested in a stormwater model utilising data collected on pipe sizes, mapping tools and water flow that allows us to see what impact different improvements have during rain and flooding events.

We have experienced stormwater flooding during severe weather events at several locations around Te Kūiti. Through the modelling we are evaluating the best solutions for each site.
Currently we are implementing some of these improvements on the western side of Te Kuiti.

Other priority sites require more costly remedies, so we must carefully assess the affordability and effectiveness of each one.

We have budgeted to spend $2 million on these improvements and renewals for 2026/27. Already the investments made so far have improved the stormwater network’s ability to cope with storm events.

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Change to Piopio Retirement Village remission funding

Piopio Retirement Village receives annual rates remission for water, wastewater and solid waste to support the trust to provide accommodation for older people.
Currently ratepayers in the wider Piopio area pay for the reduced rates paid by Piopio retirement village.

We are proposing that all ratepayers contribute to this rates reduction through their general rates like they do now for Hillview Home and Hospital. There is no change proposed to the amount funded.

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Waitomo District Landfill

Waste volumes into our landfill have continued to drop over the past few years and are likely to keep dropping. Domestic waste is reducing, however much of our waste comes from commercial companies or from out of district. A significant proportion of this waste stream has now stopped coming to our landfill.

Reduced waste volumes and increasing operating costs means that, transporting waste out of the district remains the cheaper option. Future forecast volumes don’t support investing in the next waste cell. Council adopted this change in the 2025/26 Annual Plan. So, from July 2026 we will transport waste to Hampton Downs landfill, and our landfill will be capped and mothballed.

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Policy Updates

Council is required by the Local Government Act (LGA 2002) to have the following
policies:

Revenue and Financing Policy
This states the funding sources of activities. Changes have been proposed relating
to the Water, Wastewater, and Trade Waste District-wide benefit rates and Piopio Retirement Village rate. Additional statements covering water and wastewater activities being the responsibility of Waikato Waters.

Significance and Engagement Policy
This states the criteria for assessing significance of decisions made by Council.
Changes have been proposed relating to the removal of water and wastewater as
core activities of Council.

Appointment of Directors to CCO Policy
This states the process by which directors are appointed to CCO’s. Changes have been proposed relating to the inclusion of WWL.

View the supporting documents and updated policies (PDF 3.42 MB)

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Rates Affordability

Rates affordability is always front of mind for the Council. There is also clear direction by central
government to keep rate increases low. The impact of water and wastewater changes and cost
increases have been thoroughly evaluated during the preparation of this Annual Plan and how they impact rates. 

To help smooth some of the effects of these increases the UAGC (the set amount of general rates charged to each ratepayer) is proposed to be set at $100, which is a reduction from the current year rate of $250.

Rates Increase

The total rate requirement (excluding water and wastewater) for 2026/27 is $19.68M which is an
additional $551,000 of rates revenue to look after the assets we already have and to provide the
services necessary for our district.
The increase in rates revenue excluding water and wastewater, is 2.88%. (WDC rates) 

The increase in rates revenue including water and wastewater, is 3.79%.

The main drivers for the rate increase are costs associated with solid waste management and collection costs, and Te Kūiti stormwater improvements. 

Your property value and services you receive impacts the total rates you pay.

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Waikato Waters Ltd

The debt associated with waters assets will shift to Waikato Waters, which is expected to bring Waitomo District Council’s debt under $10 million. We will continue to collect the rates and charges for water and wastewater for at least this coming year. We will then pass this revenue on to Waikato Waters to fund the activities. Your rates invoice will change to show that.

View the WWL Page (PDF 310 KB)

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