A Hurunui farmer has hit out at his local council for charging him almost $2000 to install an above-ground effluent tank.
Mat Stainton complained to the Hurunui District Council in March after receiving an unexpected invoice for consenting fees.
He lodged an application for the tank with the council’s building team in February, and was charged $610, which he assumed was the consent fee.
No additional fees were advised at that time, so he was shocked to receive an invoice the following month for $1191.40 for code compliance.
Stainton objected, saying the tank had nothing to do with a building or dwelling.
“It is simply an engineered design, prefabricated above-ground tank, with its manufacturer’s certification and warranties.
”The only requirement from the council was to satisfy itself that the tank was situated as per the site plan.”
Council chief operations officer Dan Harris said because the tank was large, at 751,000 litres capacity, it was subject to the consenting process.
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