Melbourne Water is seeking community input regarding waterways and drainage charges in the future. This is not just a $$’s exercise, but also seeks our thoughts on the actual infrastructure which supports the network. The PDF is also interesting, particularly with regard to systems such as the Kananook Creek. The KCA and its members are very much at the pointy end of the Melbourne Water drainage and flood control systems. Rivers and creeks are inevitably an integral part of waste water and flood management, especially in large metropolitan areas.
I’d urge you to at minimum read the PDF. Equally if you want to respond to Melbourne Water’s online survey, that would also be great. In a small, but important way, we have a chance to let the decision makers at Melbourne Water hear our views. Hopefully, they will pay some regard to them.
Thanks.
Paul Davies
KCA President
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Have your say on Melbourne Water’s 2016 Price Submission
Melbourne Water Waterways and Drainage (.pdf, opens new tab)
Melbourne Water has prepared a Consultation Paper for the purpose of seeking feedback on our services and the prices we propose to charge from 1 July 2016. As a key community partner we are writing to seek your input and feedback, particularly in relation to our Waterways and Drainage services.
The Consultation Paper is a precursor to the final Price Submission that will be submitted to the Essential Services Commission in late October of this year. In the coming months we will be undertaking significant consultation with customers and key stakeholders on the services we plan to provide, our forecast expenditure and the prices we plan to set in order to deliver these services. This process typically occurs every five years.
Waterway and Drainage Management is one of the core services Melbourne Water provides. We collect funds through a Waterways and Drainage Charge placed on 1.9 million landholders throughout the region to pay for this service. As part of our Price Submission we are required to clearly demonstrate how much the community is willing to pay through this charge.
We are in the process of developing a detailed Waterways and Drainage Investment Plan which will inform the Price Submission and define in greater detail:
· associated levels of service for relevant activities
· our proposed investment
· desired community outcomes
We will be gathering feedback from the broader community via a Waterways and Drainage Management Customer Survey to better understand community views about the maintenance and improvement of Melbourne’s waterways. As part of this, we are also interested in your feedback. The on-line survey will allow you to select different preferences in relation to services we could deliver. The survey can be accessed via PriceReview.melbournewater.com.au and will be open until the 31st July.
A separate consultation process is underway in relation to a new Flood Management Strategy for the region. The new strategy will also inform our Investment Plan and if you are interested in reviewing and commenting on the draft then please use the following web link to download the draft strategy and find out more about how to provide feedback – http://haveyoursay.melbournewater.com.au/
As a valued stakeholder we welcome your input into our Price Submission. We strongly encourage you to fill out the Waterways and Drainage Management Customer Survey but would also be happy to receive written feedback or to meet at your convenience. The attached fact sheet provides an overview of our current Waterways and Drainage Services along with our key challenges and options for how our services could vary. All relevant information regarding our 2016 Price Review including the Consultation Paper and various fact sheets can be found at PriceReview.melbournewater.com.au.
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