Bleak future for Pareora Dam
The Timaru District Council has budgeted $75,000 to find out whether it is worth saving the historic lower Pareora River Dam.
The nearly 140-year-old structure has been unused since the then borough council water supply was upgraded in 1939, and now there are concerns about its safety.
It has become a popular site for swimming, and a parks and recreation unit report to the council on Monday suggested the dam was deteriorating at a rapid rate and becoming a safety risk.
‘‘Amendments to the dam or removal of the structure will reduce or remove the risk to swimmers . . .’’ the report says.
‘‘Because of the isolated location it is not possible to exclude people from the area. Repairs to the dam are expected to be difficult, costly, and shortlived.’’
The council has consulted with Heritage New Zealand, Environment Canterbury and Waimate District Council about the dam. It will also consult with local iwi.
‘‘If the dam is removed, future costs will be avoided. It is expected that a more precise estimate of costs will be able to be determined once further undertaken.’’
At Monday’s rates setting budget meeting, the councillors agreed to spending $75,000 on compiling a report about all the possible options, and the likely costs.
There is also an extra provisional budget of about $425,000, which will go towards the option the council approves. work has been
‘‘If we are able to remove the dam, the risk will also be removed or lowered considerably,’’ the report says.
Councillor Steve Wills said the council was erring on the side of caution. How the council would go about improving or demolishing the dam would be dependent on the programme of work, he said.
‘‘It’s a major project and there a number of spokes in the wheel to get right. We have to go through due process on this, it could take several months before we get a report finalised.’’
Wills said the council was concerned with the rate of deterioration of the dam.
‘‘We can’t put our head in the sand about this. We need to do something.
‘‘This is a really significant site, and we’ve got to make sure it’s safe for all those who use it.’’
It is not the first time the dam has come under the microscope.
In 2015, council parks and recreation manager Bill Steans said there were significant concerns about people playing at the dam site, due to the increasingly leaky structure.