Waitoa Water community panel
The way water is supplied to Waitoa needs to change.
- Self-supply - where individual households or groups manage their own water systems
- Council supply - where Waitoa connects to the Council’s existing water network
What is the Waitoa Water Community Panel?
Dipping our toes in: meet and greet
The meet-and-greet set the stage for the Panel’s work, bringing the group together and providing context from Council and Fonterra.
With the Mayor grounded in Wellington due to severe weather, Council’s Group Manager Infrastructure Assets and Operations, Fiona Vessey, shared a message from Mayor Ash. Fonterra’s Waitoa Site Operations Manager, Russell Muir, followed with a brief history of the water supply and the reasons for change. Council’s Group Manager Customer Experience, Jenni Cochrane, outlined the Panel’s remit. Watch the recordings.
The Panel then explored what to expect from the process and captured questions they wanted answered - helping shape the focus for the speakers at the next session.
Mayor Ash Tanner, represented by Group Manager Infrastructure Assets and Operations Fiona Vessey
Fonterra's Waitoa Site Operations Manager, Russell Muir
Council's Group Manager Customer Experience, Jenni Cochrane
Panel members received a background document that outlined the Self Supply and Council Supply options, with consideration given to: costs (capital/one-off and ongoing), reliability and safety, maintenance and other responsibilities, emergencies/firefighting, timeframes and more.
Session one: Deep dive - pooling diverse information and perspectives
Self supply - Iain Rabbitts
Council supply - Susanne Kampshof
The session continued with a Speed Dialogue exercise, where Panel members spoke briefly with experts - including representatives from Te Aroha Volunteer Fire Brigade, Council's water operations and finance teams, and the Chair of the MacKay Subdivision (Waihou) Incorporated Society about their shared/communal bore supply. A septic tank specialist was unable to attend but provided the Panel with written advice.
The Panel reflected on the information provided and identified additional information they wanted in the next session. Before then, members were asked to connect with someone in Waitoa, share the two options and gather their views.
Session two: Surfacing our insights and the impact of possible options
Waikato Regional Council
Session three: Condensing our Learning (recommendations)
Photo: Mayor Ash thanking the Panel
Council meeting presentation
Panel representatives presented their report to Matamata-Piako District Council on 17 December 2025. The elected members were in support of the recommendations and this means further consultation will take place in 2026 with the Waitoa community, the wider district, and Waikato Waters Ltd.
Council will consider that feedback before making its final decision on the Waitoa water supply by end of June 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
It’s a complex issue that’s been discussed in the community for some time, with a range of views and experiences to consider.
We believe the affected residents and property owners are in the best position to decide what will work for them in the future. Because this is a decision that will apply to every affected property (i.e. there is no opting out for identified properties in the Village), we do not want to rely on a method that could result in a small 51% majority. We want a much stronger mandate than that and believe a community panel is the best approach.
With help from an independent facilitator, the Panel took a deeper look at the issues over a series of workshops, weighed up the opportunities and challenges of each water supply option and made recommendations for decision-making on behalf of the Waitoa community.
