May 19, 2015
Community still concerned with Ruataniwha project
Organisers of a public meeting on the controversial Ruataniwha Dam project says the door is still open for the council-owned company pushing the scheme to front up an explain itself.
Megan Rose from Transparent Hawke’s Bay says despite wanting $80 million from ratepayers for the project, the company’s chief executive is refusing to attend tomorrow’s meeting at the Eastern Institute of Technology marae.
Instead Hawke’s Bay Regional Council interim chief executive Liz Lambert and its resource management manager Iain Maxwell will be asked what conditions need to be met before more ratepayer cash is paid over.
The meeting will also hear from an irrigation user, Fish and Game, an economist, and Ngati Kahungunu environment and natural resources director Jonathan Dick.
Ms Rose says many in the region struggle to understand the details behind the massive scheme, and they are also concerned about what happens if it fails to win the support of farmers or independent investors.
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