Old riverbed could ease flood risk
From local democracy reporter Brendon McMahon:
Revegetating the historic Buller River overflow channel to lessen the risk of floodwaters spilling into the Orowaiti River and hitting the eastern side of Westport township is being proposed.
It is one part of the proposed $26 million Westport flood protection scheme.
In the 19th century the Buller River was straightened using a bypass, taking out a meandering section, creating Organs Island upstream of Westport.
The original meandering section remains, but the Westport Joint Rating District Committee last week heard the new scheme proposes to take back the leased Organs Island area and to revegetate it.
Using it as a riparian buffer would reduce the "split" in flow from the river's main channel during floods, consulting river engineer Gary Williams said.
The idea was to redirect more flow away from the Orowaiti and lessen the ongoing need for rock maintenance at Organs Island.
Williams said the area required "constant management" with a lot of rock put there over the years to keep the Buller River in the 19th century diversion.
Adding more vegetation would "split the flow" more down the main channel "without having a strong fixed rock wall over that long length".
"The idea is in the end that nature will do most of the regeneration," he said.
Hydrological consultant Matthew Gardner said vegetation could act as "a significant buffer" against flow.
"What we found with the model, the Buller River is at capacity and for every increase in flow more comes down the Orowaiti. This vegetation actually reduces that."
It was in fact going back to the method put forward in the 19th century to manage the area, Gardner said.
The other aspects in the scheme are the proposed realignment of Abattoir Creek, east of Westport, which would reduce flood flows from the east towards the town.
Ruled out is dredging the lower Buller River, making a direct cut to the sea from the Orowaiti Estuary, excavating a causeway to protect the Snodgrass Road residential area, adding culverts in the Westport to Ngakawau railway at Stephens Rd, and constructing culverts on the embankment near State highway 67 near the Orowaiti Bridge.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we are having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Poll: Should all neighbours have to contribute to improvements?
An Auckland court has ruled a woman doesn’t have to contribute towards the cost of fixing a driveway she shares with 10 neighbours.
When thinking about fences, driveways or tree felling, for example, do you think all neighbours should have to pay if the improvements directly benefit them?
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82.3% Yes
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15.2% No
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2.5% Other - I'll share below
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