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February 20, 2025
Wairoa Flood Plan rushed, Māori whānau left behind
Atereano Mateariki
Posted On February 20, 2025
Download AudioTātau Tātau o Te Wairoa says the Wairoa Flood Mitigation Project is being rushed, leaving whānau Māori behind.
Last week, the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council confirmed its support for Option 1C, which involves building a 170m-wide, 2m-deep floodway off the Wairoa River.
The proposal cuts through Takitimu Marae and its wāhi tapu, Ruataniwha Marae, and could impact six hectares of whenua Māori.
Post-settlement trust chair Leon Symes says the trust supports Option 3, which would utilize old floodplains and historic river oxbow lakes as flood storage detention, maintaining the natural flow of the awa.
He says there is clear pressure from the central government, with a $70 million budget at stake and an urgent need for results.
“We want to do detailed research into the other catchment. We’ve been trying to keep our catchment in the upper catchment. The soil, that’s what affected the river. That’s what these are, the underlying issues. We’re not even addressing the underlying issues. We’re reacting to a problem, that’s not actually fixing the problems,” says Symes.
The Government requires a confirmed flood mitigation solution and a business case based on that decision by 31 March 2025.
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