Blessing kickstarts flood work
$5m project to reduce flooding in two Northland towns starting soon
WWe are working together to achieve a solution where both tangata
whenua and local government agency are in agreement with the
final decision. Local kaitiaki Wiremu Keretene
ork on $5 million worth of projects to reduce the flood risk to Otiria and Moerewa will start shortly. Northland Regional Councillor Justin Blaikie said about $5.1m of works will be carried out over three stages to protect the two Bay of Islands towns prone to flooding.
The work will begin with a $500k project to construct a 150m lower spillway from Pokapu Rd to where it meets the Waiharakeke River.
Blaikie, who co-chairs the Taumārere River Liaison Working Group, said the three-month project effectively began last Friday with a dawn blessing near Pokapu Rd Bridge.
He said in a big flood, about 80 per cent of the water from the Otiria Stream spills over nearby land, as does 70 per cent from the Waiharakeke Stream.
The NRC plans to restore the streams’ natural flows by replacing the existing Pokapu Rd Bridge and building a new three-span, 60m single-lane bridge.
The spillway will skim the flood flow from the Otiria Stream and restore natural flow towards the Waiharakeke Stream.
Currently, the railroad, Otiria and Pokapu Rds deflect the flood flow towards houses and two marae before eventually flowing to the Waiharakeke Stream.
Local kaitiaki Wiremu Keretene said the project has shown “what a true partnership looks like from a hapū mana whenua point of view when referring to Te Wakaputanga 1835 and Te Tiriti o Waitangi 1840”.
“We are working together to achieve a solution where both tangata whenua and local government agency are in agreement with the final decision.”
Keretene said the knowledge held
by locals was integrated into the overall project plan.
He said importantly for them, they have had the opportunity to be included at the discussion table and in the decision-making process.
The first stage of the work (the lower spillway) should begin in earnest shortly and is being carried out by Kaitaia Contractors Limited.
The second stage is a significant undertaking — expected to cost $3.9m. Pending an agreement with the landowners involved, it will begin in May this year and run until December.
Subject to landowner approval, this will involve the construction of a new 60m bridge to handle a onein-100-years plus climate change flood event.
The new bridge will replace the smaller 18m existing bridge and will help reduce flooding to Otiria and Moerewa.
The final stage will begin in December and run until June next year.
It is expected to cost about $700k and will see the construction of an upper spillway and stopbank from the new bridge to the Otiria Stream to block overland flow and direct floodwaters to the Waiharakeke River.
While the works will not prevent flooding altogether, they will deliver enormous benefits, that include reducing the severity of a typical flood by about 75 per cent and the risk to currently flood-prone marae and the local rugby club.
The council said $2.8m of the project’s cost will be met by central government via Kānoa — Regional Economic Development & Investment Unit, another $1.6m from the NRC and the balance — about $600k — via a local rate on about 2300 properties in the affected area.