Customer Council Minutes

Transcription

1 Customer Council Minutes Sydney Water 1 Smith Street Parramatta NSW th March :00am 12:00pm Chair: Kevin Young Managing Director Attendees: Customer Council Members Thea Bray Chris Gantt Bruce McClelland Douglas McCloskey Mary Karras Dr Fabian Sack Paul Knight Lisa Langley Dean Price Simon Chan Mark Hely Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) Sydney Business Chamber (SBC) NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS) Ethnic Communities Council, NSW (ETCNSW) Total Environment Centre (TEC) Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council Council of the Ageing (COTA) People with Disability Australia (PwD) Multicultural NSW (MCNSW) Local Government Association NSW (LGANSW) Sydney Water: Apologies Raema Melverton Angela Tsoukatos Catherine Cleary Nicky Sloan Conny Harris Craig Memery Justin Drew Chris Avis Head of Communications and Public Affairs General Manager, Customer Strategy and Regulation Media and Government Relations Manager Illawarra Forum Inc Nature Conservation Council NSW Public Interest Advocacy Centre Urban Development Institute of Australia Urban Development Institute of Australia Distribution date: March/April 2018 Distribution list: Next meeting date: All above Wednesday, 6 th June 2018, Sydney Water, 1 Smith Street, Parramatta Minutes:

2 Item Description Minutes 1.0 Welcome and update The Chair, Kevin Young, thanked everyone for their attendance. Given there were some new members, all members in the room introduced themselves, including new members, Mark Hely representing Local Government Association (NSW), and Simon Chan representing Multicultural NSW. The Chair acknowledged and thanked representatives from PIAC, Tim Harrison and Miyuru Ediriweera for their attendance at recent Customer Engagement forums at Chatswood and Bankstown and noted that he would be attending one at Parramatta. The chair noted that there had been lots happening at Sydney Water to further progress towards our aim to Beat the Bottle, which works to reduce environmental impact of plastic bottles. The Chair updated the council on Warragamba Dam levels. As at 13/3/18, Warragamba Dam was at 78.8%, down from 86.2% at the previous meeting in December Minutes & actions from previous meeting. The Chair covered off three actions from the December meeting and how they had been resolved. Council members noted the actions arising and moved the minutes from the previous meeting. 2.1 Minutes, 5 th December Update on Operating Licence and Customer Engagement Approved. Michael English, Competition & Licencing Manager, provided an update on progress relating to our Operating Licence renewal. This included a recap of the process, a timeline of milestones and an overview of key topics in the process. Customer Council members raised queries about the importance of transparency and fairness of any rebate program. Members asked if there was scope to move to a more holistic water management process incorporating stormwater and wastewater and clarify the roles and responsibilities for management of stormwater between various organisations. For Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 2

3 example, where is the distinction between Sydney Water and local Councils? The Chair outlined that it is complex. Sydney Water own major trunk assets in older suburbs of Sydney (generally, pre-wwii), but in newer suburbs these will be owned by Councils. SW does not own any of the minor pipes that drain to the trunk assets, these are managed by each Council. In South Creek there are seven Councils. It would be very difficult to get all the different agencies who own a mix of different assets together. The Chair acknowledged that bringing together all the parties related to stormwater management is important for the future. Members raised that there was no incentive for apartment residents to save water, as they utilise a single meter for the building. Sydney Water advised that older, existing apartment buildings may run with one meter, but where possible, in new developments, space and engineering incorporate multiple meters. Members asked if building owners request to have smart meters retro fitted. Sydney Water will follow-up and report back to Customer Council. Members asked how the pensioner concessions work when a dwelling has a single meter? The Chair responded that the concession applies to the fixed cost component, which is split across apartments so can be discounted for the pensioner, however does not apply to the usage. Sydney Water asked if Council members would like a further update at the next meeting in June, which was agreed. Peter Lemon, Customer Intelligence Manager, provided an update on the progress of our Customer Engagement program, noting that 4 of 6 deliberative forums are completed. The response and participation from customers has been good, and we ve spoken to over 300 people. Peter presented an example of the run sheet and agenda from forums and advised that we would run a shortened version with Council members today. Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 3

4 Peter Lemon and Izzy Kerr, Customer Research and Engagement Lead (Sydney Water) co-facilitated a portion of the Forum known as the ideal water & wastewater provider exercise. 4.0 Customer Hub Pilot Darren Cash, Manager, Customer Hub West, gave an overview of the Customer Hub pilot program, currently being run in the western region of Sydney. The pilot is being run to provide: - New digital channels for customers to communicate to us through online report a leak form and an interactive map to view water outages. - Proactive SMS/ notifications to customers advising of water outages. - New technology for teams to utilise to reduce number of customers impacted by water outages. - Real-time customer feedback and service recovery methods. Members asked if Sydney Water communicates with customers regarding possible water leaks on their property. Sydney Water advised that there is a confirmed leak alert process built into the current billing process to identify unusual usage which may indicate a leak and customers are then communicated with via letter or . Members asked about customers being able to select their communications channel choice as part of the Hub. Sydney Water advised that this is not currently in scope for the Customer Hub but would be advantageous. Discussion followed about the challenge in being able to communicate with tenants as we are not advised of their contact details, only the bill payer details. Discussion around how the alert process would work for renters, given they are generally not the bill payer. Members suggested urging tenants to register their details with Sydney Water. Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 4

5 Members followed on to state that we should be able to get contact details of residents from other utilities for strata building purposes. Sydney Water advised that there are privacy challenges around this, and that we were in discussions with other utilities about any possible opportunities to achieve this so that we can keep customers informed. The chair asked if the project considers customers for whom English is not their first language. Sydney water advised that catering for these customers will be a focus in future progression of the Customer Hub. Members suggested that Sydney Water consider letting customers know that when leak/fault job have already commenced to avoid multiple people reporting. Members noted that print size is important in communications with certain segments of the community. There was a discussion around dialysis patients. Sydney Water previously used to maintain a database of dialysis patients, however, after being advised that patients have backup arrangements in place, this database is no longer being maintained. 5.0 SW Environment Strategy update Freya Hartley, Sydney Water s Principal Environmental Policy Advisor, provided an overview of the Environment Strategy, and requested input from the council on communication, as well as opportunities for collaboration with their organisations. Members acknowledged that while these initiatives are positive, they will come at a cost to the customer and we need to be mindful of this that while many people will be willing to pay for these benefits, there are segments who simply desire cheap water bills. Sydney Water advised that our objectives are split into 2020 and 2030 targets. Our 2020 targets continue to drive our actions to improve our environmental performance through cost-effective approaches, and that our 203ssss0 targets are aspirational and actions towards these will be further developed for example, we would be looking to the outcomes of the Customer Engagement work to prioritise our investments in line with what our customers want, in a commercially responsible way. Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 5

6 Members suggested that bills need to be fair and equitable, while also supporting people who are vulnerable. Members contributed that things that are desirable need not always cost more money, some new initiatives for Sydney Water like energy efficiency, cogeneration and solar are providing a return on their investment. An interactive session followed, with Council members identifying in groups areas of the strategy where they felt they could contribute for future follow up. Council invited to provide further suggestions- A link to the strategy will be provided once it is uploaded to Sydney Water s website. 6.0 General Business The Chair called for any General Business items: The Chair tabled that there had been interest in additional information on pricing and integrated water cycle management. Members reinforced that innovation and environmental outcomes don t have to be mutually exclusive. It can be commercial or even cost less. Members enquired as to what the process is, if standards outlined by the regulator are not achieved. Kevin Young outlined the process which includes a significant fine, management and board impacts followed by licence cancellation. PIAC acknowledged Sydney Water for supporting their hardship survey and sending out 1000 letters asking customers to participate. PIAC has offered to share the outcomes at a future Customer Council meeting. Members discussed how we could further coordinate between organisations to achieve environmental outcomes at a reduced price to customers. Close Meeting closed at 12.00pm. Next meeting dates: Meeting dates for the rest of 2018: Wednesday 6th June Wednesday, 10th October Wednesday, 5th December Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 6

7 New actions arising: No Action item(s) Responsibility Due date 1 Members asked if building owners can request to have smart meters retro fitted. 2 Invite PIAC to share the findings of its recent survey at a future Customer Council meeting. 3 Sydney Water to provide progress report of the Customer Engagement program. Sydney Water 30th April 2018 Sydney Water / PIAC June 2018 Sydney Water June 2018 Customer Council meeting minutes 14 th March 2018 Page 7