Burnside Council is ‘a complete basket case’

Burnside Council has been accused of sabotaging a multi-million water harvesting project by elected members at two neighbouring councils, who share the project.

A three council water harvesting project costing millions of ratepayers money has nearly run out of cash. Picture: Supplied.

• Burnside to conduct $50K audit
• Councillors urged to ‘start rain dancing’
• ERA Water ‘high on the watch list’ for audit committee
• First drop delivered at Burnside parks and reserves

BURNSIDE Council has been labelled “a basket case” amid concerns the future of a three- council water harvesting project is now in serious jeopardy.

Burnside delayed a decision to approve Eastern Region Alliance Water borrowing up to $2.3 million to safeguard itself against the possibility of five dry years.

The ERA group is a subsidiary of the Norwood, Payneham & St Peters and Walkerville councils with Burnside.

It was formed in 2015 to make the three councils self-sufficient with water supply, but will run out of money in June if a loan is not approved.

The councils have already borrowed $13 million to get the project off the ground.

Both NP&SP and Walkerville have approved the loan — but Burnside called for a delay, choosing instead to spend $50,000 to have the project independently audited.

A frustrated ERA Water chairman Bryan Jenkins said an immediate resolution was “needed now” to limit further damage to the project.

And NP&SP’s Cr Scott Sims has condemned Burnside as “a complete basket case” that was threatening the viability of ERA Water.

“Burnside Council have put a regional subsidiary at great risk and shown they cannot be trusted to work as equal partners,” Cr Sims said.

At the latest NP&SP council meeting, on Wednesday night, Cr Evonne Moore said Burnside had “thrown a spanner in the works” by delaying a funding approval.

Cr Sue Whitington agreed, finding it “disappointing the scheme has come to this”.

“We are not getting collaboration or co-operation,” she said.

At Walkerville, Cr Marylou Bishop complained that one council should not be holding the others “to ransom”.

“We have to get out and start selling the water and, at the moment, we cannot while this is up in the air,” Cr Bishop said.

NP&SP Mayor Robert Bria has now called for an urgent meeting between all three councils involved to discuss the impasse.

“If they (Burnside) refuse to meet, I will have to consider an official deputation to them,” Mr Bria said.

However, a Burnside Council spokesman said there were “various nuances to the decision- making process and it (Burnside) has no intention to stall matters”.

The council, he said, was “required to consider the matter with due diligence and seek further information where relevant”.

The war of words come as the ERA Water chairman wrote to all three councils earlier this month, saying the “situation is untenable”, the project was in breach of its charter and ERA should have submitted a draft budget by March 31.

Mr Jenkins also said ERA Water’s existing operational contracts would be affected by the delays.

“These companies have other projects which mean we could lose the services of key staff,” Mr Jenkins wrote.

All three councils have agreed to ERA Water borrowing $225,000 to stay afloat until June.