West Tamar Councillors have unanimously endorsed a submission to the Tasmanian Economic Regulator, opposing the draft recommendation to defer critical infrastructure upgrades to the Ti-Tree Bend sewage treatment plant.
In its submission, which was endorsed by Councillors at the February Ordinary Council Meeting last week, the Council has warned that any delay to the upgrade of the Ti-Tree Bend plant will severely impact housing and growth in the region.
West Tamar Mayor Christina Holmdahl expressed the Council’s disappointment with the draft 2026 Water and Sewerage Price Determination Investigation Report, which recommended the project’s deferral to the next pricing period.
“Legana is one of the fastest-growing areas in Tasmania,” Mayor Holmdahl said.
“Any decision to defer the urgently required upgrade of Ti-Tree Bend means any growth in this area of the West Tamar would be done knowing that the current sewerage infrastructure is inadequate and over capacity. This is completely unacceptable in Council’s view”.
The Council’s submission refutes the findings of the draft determination report, which suggested the Ti-Tree Bend project was not prudent or efficient at this time.
Mayor Holmdahl noted that while the report considered other regional factors, it completely disregarded the severe impacts a delay would have specifically on the Legana area.
The Launceston Sewage transformation project, which includes the Ti-Tree Bend upgrade, is critical to the planned decommissioning of the Legana Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP). The upgrade is required to resolve current non-compliance issues occurring at the Legana treatment plant.
“West Tamar Council has been lobbying TasWater, as well as State and Federal governments, for appropriate funding for sewerage infrastructure improvements for the Legana area for a number of years,” Mayor Holmdahl said.
“TasWater’s Ti-Tree Bend upgrade investment is critical to supporting population growth, protecting public health, and ensuring sustainable water services for generations to come in our municipality”.
The Council warned that deferring the project leaves the area with inferior infrastructure, which could force TasWater to refuse permission for further development due to capacity constraints.
“This would lead to less housing being made available and a decrease in overall growth in the West Tamar,” Mayor Holmdahl said.
“This is not the outcome anyone wants – particularly the Council. The residents of the West Tamar deserve better than having housing availability and industrial growth cut because of any delay in this critical upgrade”.
Council has urged the Economic Regulator to reconsider its stance and include the Ti-Tree Bend project in its final determination for the upcoming regulatory period”.