Water wars in the Hunter as dam costs rise

Hunter residents are refusing to pay their water bills after being charged for the construction of a dam that is yet to be approved.

Local water supplier Hunter Water is charging each customer an average of $32 per year more for the controversial Tillegra Dam, which the federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett is yet to sign off on, a local action group says.

Chair of the No Tillegra Dam Group, Carol Pasenow said this extra cost is already putting a strain on residents.

“This annual cost only represents 40 per cent of the cost of the dam. Sixty per cent of the recovery of costs for the dam has been deferred for the future,” she said.

“This creates a level of uncertainty around what future water costs in the Lower Hunter region will be once the full cost of the dam is recovered.”

Aged pensioner Jean Anderson, 79, of New Lambton says she won’t pay her bills from Hunter Water until a decision on the $477 million dam is made.

“I believe it is illegal to charge residents for the dam and I want it refunded off my account until it has been approved,” she said.

Speaking to other pensioners her age, Mrs Anderson says many people are anxious about the amount of their weekly bills.

“I know some pensioners that don’t eat meat because they can’t afford it. Whatever the cost of this dam, it is an extra cost that we can’t pay,” she said.

Charmaine Crowe from Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association (CPSA) said that increasing the utility costs of at least 170 000 Hunter pensioners and low income households is worrying.

“Even with the pensioner water rebate, pensioners using 200 kilolitres a year will pay over $800 per year for water in 2012-13 – almost double the average 2008-09 bill of $489,” she said.

These charges are a part of the estimates recently released by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART), an independent body that regulates the prices of gas, water and transport

The NSW Government has backed the plans with $18.8 million allocated in the latest budget for the planning and design of the project.

“Tillegra is the key to drought-proofing the Hunter for decades to come,” Water Minister Phil Costa said after the budget announcement.