No paywall - our full Queenstown sewage investigation.
Thanks to our paid subscribers who have funded this work so far.
This is the most significant investigation in the 7 years since Crux was first published. We have made this available to all free subscribers due to the high level of public interest and the need for local government accountability. If you value our work and can afford it please become a paid subscriber.
Our articles are below - free of charge - from the most recent at the top to the first story. Feel free to add your comments below and please share with your family, friends and business network. Local journalism is at risk and depends on your financial support. It is noteworthy that Allied Press (ODT, Mountain Scene etc) is heavily council funded and has not covered this issue in spite of the ORC issuing two abatement notices and six infringements notices since 2021 - but not a single prosecution.
Have QLDC’s $20 million contractors abandoned the broken Shotover sewage plant?
There’s increasing evidence that Veolia, the $45 billion French international water and waste giant, has effectively walked away from trying to manage the QLDC’s non-functioning Shotover sewage plant.
The High Court battle and the Shotover sewage failure
We discover an imminent collapse in the QLDC’s illegal disposal field wall (main image above - December 20th).
ORC in panic mode as QLDC sewer crisis escalates
This week the Friday Edition is fully focussed on the rapidly developing sewage crisis in Queenstown and attempts by the regulator, the ORC, to justify their lack of enforcement action. We believe this situation will not only cost local ratepayers hundreds of millions of extra dollars but irrevocably tarnish our reputation due to local authorities tying…
ORC and QLDC withhold sewage test results
The list of unanswered questions put by Crux to both the Otago Regional Council and Queenstown Lakes District Council now includes how and when the latest water test data will be released to be public.
"The structure could collapse": warning from experts as QLDC sewage inaction continues
A Crux investigation. Peter Newport.
QLDC silent as 24/7 sewage overflow continues
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QLDC seals off sewage wasteland that "does not exist."
We’ve spent two days this week exploring the largely unseen parts of the Shotover sewage plant just a kilometre away from SH6, the Shotover bridge and the three visible large wastewater ponds that we’ve all seen from the main road.
Thank you for all your hard work in keeping rate payers informed.As our council is keeping information we need to know behind closed doors.
Your paper is one of the most courageous in NZ. This information lifts the lid on a Regional Council abandoning its ethics and the public it was meant to serve. It is likely the story of most Councils.