1.1 Purpose The purpose of the asset management plan (AMP) is to document the assets and management processes undertaken by the Council regarding its stormwater infrastructure and services in order to: • Demonstrate to the stakeholders the sustainable operation and responsible management of stormwater infrastructure. • Describe service delivery achievements against the defined community outcomes. • Define the strategy for asset development and maintenance into the future. • Outline the medium-term (10+ years) financial planning profile by reference to the life- cycle of the stormwater assets. • Describe the strategies employed to manage the risks associated with the delivery of the service. • Provide support for the Council’s Long Term Plan and meet the requirements of the Local Government Act 2002. 1.2 Strategic Goals The strategic goals of Marlborough District Council have been developed to support their over- arching Council mission: “Enabling social and economic development in balance with environmental and community needs.” Through a number of Community and Council Outcome statements the mission is interpreted to describe the sort of community Marlborough could become as a result of actions taken now and into the future. These are reviewed and published in the Long Term Plan, the last being in 2012. In 2009 the Government made a number of proposals to amend the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA) under the heading of Transparency, Accountability and Financial Management of Local Government (TAFM). Amongst the proposals was recommendation for local government to concentrate on core services. Water services, roading and flood management were particularly recognised as core services. The TAFM legislation also changed the strategic focus of ‘community outcomes’ in the long term planning process and the method in which these were derived through community consultation. Two advisory groups (the Local Government Efficiency Taskforce and the Local Government Infrastructure Efficiency Expert Advisory Group) were established by central government under the initiative ‘Better Local Government’. The advisory groups’ brief included analysis of local governments’ role in the delivery of local public services to provide advice on how this could be improved and to enhance their positive contribution to economic development. The initial findings of the advisory groups were included in further reforms to the LGA that became law in 2014. Council Outcomes are being amended and developed further in response to the recent changes in the Local Government Act. The Long Term Plan to be published in 2015 will include the expanded outcomes to explain how council services and activities will contribute to the goals of the community. In August 2013 a Government Cabinet paper recognised the high value of capital assets owned and managed by local councils. It acknowledged the contribution of infrastructure asset to the Page 2