Top charity calls on SA Water to dump pricey infrastructure plans so that bigger bill savings can flow to households from July 1, 2020

SA Water is being urged to scale back their spending plans so struggling ratepayers can be given more of a reprieve.

• SA Water plans $26 cut to water bills

SA water should be forced to dump expensive infrastructure plans so that household bills can be cut by more than double the $26 a year it is currently proposing, a leading social services group says.

The Essential Services Commission of SA (ESCOSA) is considering a four-year business plan from SA Water that seeks approval for its spending plans and to charge businesses and households enough to cover the costs in bills.

In a submission to the regulator, Uniting Communities urges more information for renters on their options when facing high bills and urges SA Water’s spending plans to be pared back to keep costs down.

“We consider a cost of about $50 million to upgrade the Happy Valley Treatment Plant to improve the ‘taste’ of water to be in the ‘nice to do’ not ‘necessary to do’ category and so could be removed from the capital expenditure budget,” the submission states.

We consider a cost of about $50 million to upgrade the Happy Valley Treatment Plant to improve the ‘taste’ of water to be in the ‘nice to do’ not ‘necessary to do’ category.

It also raises concerns about the high cost of a regional nondrinking water quality improvement program, information technology expenditure and the design of a scheme intended to support regional communities.

In November, SA Water said under its business plan, city households could expect a $26 cut to this financial year’s average annual bill of $1258.

Treasurer Rob Lucas is also planning changes to how SA Water’s assets are valued, pledging to end a claimed “rort” overseen by the former Labor government, in a move that will add downward pressure to bills from July 1.

Mark Henley: “People just can’t cope and don’t have the capacity to pay for higher electricity or water costs...”

Uniting Communities manager of advocacy Mark Henley said households were struggling to meet the high cost of an essential service and facing tough decisions between water bills and other critical expenses including medical care.

“The bottom line is that wages for many people are flat or declining,” he told The Advertiser. “People just can’t cope and don’t have the capacity to pay for higher electricity or water costs and still buy food and get access to medical care.”

Mr Henley said an overall bill cut of about 5 per cent, equating to about $75 a year for an average household, was a reasonable expectation.

The calls to dump non-essential infrastructure plans mirror a submission to ESCOSA made by Business SA. ESCOSA is consulting on SA Water’s draft plan and will make a final ruling on prices in May.