Wednesday 24 March 2021
Creations for curious creatures
Suburbs' big win
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City’s multimillion-dollar leakage problem Sara Hollyman
Rosie’s wish for an accessible playground Charles Anderson All Rosie Riley wants is to be able to play on a playground with her younger sister. She is a cheeky six-year-old who loves swimming, music, and kung fu. She also has cerebral palsy. That means she cannot walk or talk and is confined to a wheelchair. Rosie also loves to play and “goof off ”, says her mum Annie. However, because of the design of Nelson’s playgrounds, it means that Rosie can only watch on as her sister Izzy goes off to play.
SEE PAGE 2 Annie, Izzy, Rosie, and Blair Riley at the Lions Playground which they hope will be transformed by the addition of a new accessible carousel. Photo: Charles Anderson.
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Nelson City Council is budgeting millions of dollars over the next 10 years to account for undetected leaks in the city’s aging pipelines. Each year council grants between $80-100,000 of water credits to homeowners who have had pipe leakages on their properties, which sometimes go unrealised for months. These leaks make up a small part of a 20-25 per cent gap in water that is supplied to homes and water that is used by metered properties. It’s one of the reasons why $3.6 million has been allocated to water loss reduction in the Nelson Infrastructure Strategy 2021-2051, which is up for consultation as part of the Long Term Plan 2021-31. Other explanations for the unaccounted quarter of the city’s water supply include contractor’s and others accessing unmetered supply – including firefighting, flushing of cast iron pipes to clear discoloured water and inaccurate meters – which is currently being rectified through the meter renewal programme, expected to be completed by 2021/22. As part of the LTP, council has announced its largest-ever budget for infrastructure projects. Over the next 10 years, $491 million will be pumped into key projects covering transport, solid waste, water supply, wastewater, stormwater and flood protection.
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