Kaituna Catchment Control Scheme

When taking on a project, Managing Director of Romanes Construction, Paul Romanes, always looks to employ locals to be part of his crew. 

“It’s an important part of our business model. It always has a positive flow-on effect – from the large crew we hire, there are stand-outs, and those people tend to become part of our regular crew for project after project. They’re also more likely to hire other locals for their own projects.”

When it comes to the benefits of a local team, Paul says there are many: “Local employees know the area, they know the people and know good suppliers. They also have a real pride in their place; we’ll often hear of them popping down the road to the work site, making sure it is tidy and that the equipment isn’t getting destroyed in the elements.”

The construction company has partnered with Bay of Plenty Regional Council on both the construction of the Kaituna Mole and the final stage of the Rangitāiki Floodway – two jobs which aligned well to Paul’s company ethos.

Both projects are part of the Climate Resilience Programme, a joint initiative between Kānoa (the Regional Economic Development and Investment Unit), regional councils and the community focused on developing and upgrading vital river management and flood protection schemes in Aotearoa.

These two projects attracted Kānoa funding for their ability to support new and existing local employment opportunities, and help grow local sectors impacted by Covid-19, for a more productive, sustainable, resilient regional economy.  

The final stage of the Floodway is the installation of two sets of swing gates across two roads (McCracken and McLean) near Edgecumbe. To construct the gates, it involves cutting into the road to create a new concrete pad. They then set up two concrete walls at each site for the gates to attach to (the steel gates were made off-site by Page Macrae and were brought in when the concrete work was done).

The design of this swing gate system is unique to New Zealand – while stoplogs and sliding gates are commonplace, hinged gates across a road are the first of their kind.

In a flood event, these swing gates will act as a barrier on the road, keeping cars from entering a flood zone, and maintain the stopbank height of the Floodway, creating a channel that will help send water out to the Rangitāiki River mouth.

Sub-contractor Tim Walters (Te Arawa) has worked with Paul on both Kaituna and Rangitāiki River projects, along with his brothers, Justin and Tom, cousin Kaia and neighbour TK. The Maketū local had been working in Australia on form work construction and returned home to New Zealand in 2018. He met Paul when he was recruiting local iwi to be involved in the Kaituna Mole construction.

“We had about six of us from Maketū get involved, all with different levels of experience, which was good as we could help build up the younger fellas.

“Being from Maketū it was a project I wanted to be part of, so I could go down there with my son and tell him, ‘Yeah, I built this’.”

When Paul secured the contract for the Rangitāiki job, he gave Tim a call to come and carry on working together. While it’s 40 minutes away from Tim’s home, it’s like another home to him, as his partner and her whānau have strong connections to the area.

“Her grandfather was Bill Kerrison, the ‘kaitiaki of tuna’ in the East, so although this is a different site, the Bay of Plenty is a small community where everyone knows everyone.

“For me and the other guys working on the site, it feels special to be part of these kinds of projects when you know what the purpose of it is – to help protect the people. We really enjoy it.”

Tim says there are plenty of advantages when it comes to locals working on local projects, particularly the pride that is put into them.

“Bringing in people who know the area, who know the people, is important. It gives the community peace of mind about who is working in their backyard as they know they will respect the place that they are working in.

“It’s also a great way to get the word out what’s happening, and encourage other locals to get involved and employed on these jobs.”

Paul says he is really enjoying the Rangitāiki project and he’s got a great team around him.

“Our crew have gelled together really well and we really enjoy working with Regional Council. The boys (Jordan and Peter) are straight-up when it comes to supporting local business and we’ve built a really good relationship.”

Bay of Plenty Regional Council received $10.28M for the Rangitāiki Floodway and Spillway, and $1.63M for the Kaituna Mole from Kānoa.

Tim Walters and Harry Thomson from Romanes Construction at the McCracken Road swing gate site. 

Partnership and collaboration have won Toi Moana Bay of Plenty Regional Council and consultancy firm WSP a silver in the General Category at the 2021 Association of Consulting and Engineering (ACE) Awards.

The award — for the Kaituna River Re-diversion and Te Awa o Ngatoroirangi/Maketu Estuary Enhancement Project — was announced on Tuesday (22 February) at an online awards ceremony. The team also won a Special Award acknowledging outstanding collaboration leading to exceptional outcomes.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council Coastal Catchments Manager Pim De Monchy said WSP was brought in by Regional Council to undertake the consenting and support stakeholder engagement.

“The local community had been calling for this project to happen for generations, so we knew we needed a pretty special team of people to get the best possible outcome for all parties involved.

“The success of the project demonstrates the importance of a forward thinking group of consultants who listened, collaborated, and developed an ongoing relationship with communities to achieve significant change and positive environmental outcomes,” Mr De Monchy said.

WSP Technical Principal of Planning, Steph Brown said the ability for the project team to collaborate with stakeholders to understand any potential concerns and then work with them on solutions was first and foremost.

 “This included working with Maketu Coastguard, commercial fishermen, Maketu Ongatoro Wetland Society, landowners and of course collaborating with tangata whenua to ensure the project was implemented and managed with a culturally sensitive and holistic view of the environment.”

“The success of the project demonstrates that applying sound engineering practice, supported by scientific knowledge and tangata whenua and community input can achieve great things.

“The project is a major step toward addressing past modifications that have led to the declining health of the estuary over time,” said Ms Brown.

For the tangata whenua of Te Tumu, Te Tumu Cut where the Kaituna River meets the sea was a wound that never healed. In 1956, the ‘cut’ or diversion of the flow of the river away from its natural outlet to be drained and turned into farmland, came at a significant cost. 

The health of the estuary collapsed due to the loss of freshwater flows and 90 per cent of wetlands were lost. Populations of finfish and shellfish plummeted, and along with environmental damage, traditional practices and generations of cultural knowledge were lost.

Since completing the project up to 20 percent of the Kaituna River's freshwater flows into the estuary have been restored. As well as the re-creation of a 20 hectares wetland around the estuary margin, which helps filter nutrients and creates breeding areas for birds and fish.

Past awards this project has picked up are:

• New Zealand Planning Institute — Rodney Davies Project Award (2020).
• New Zealand Coastal Society — Terry Healy Award (2020). 
• Resource Management Law Association of NZ — Project Award (2020).
•  Commonwealth Association of Planners — Commendation for Inclusion, Diversity and Engagement (2020).
• Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia (IPWEA) — Projects over $5 million - Highly Commended (2020).

Did you know that Bay of Plenty Regional Council maintain over 350km of stopbanks to help keep you safe?

Stopbanks are our key defence against flooding. They are compacted earth banks built next to rivers and floodways to help contain water in flooding events.

No matter how well they are designed, constructed and maintained, stopbanks are only as strong as the weakest link.

That’s why protecting them from damage is vital.

What can damage stopbanks?

Did you know that a lot of things can damage stopbanks? This includes, vehicles, sheds, and structures, and any digging or excavating. Some large trees can also be a problem as roots can create weakness in the stopbank.

What are my responsibilities?

As a landowner or resident we rely on you to protect the stopbanks on or near your property and inform Regional Council of any damage.

You must follow the Flood Protection Drainage Bylaws and remember to contact Regional Council for permission before doing the following on or near a stopbank:

• Planting or cutting down trees
• Digging
• Building or demolishing any structures e.g. patios, sheds, or fences

How you can help protect stopbanks:

• Please don’t try and fix any issues before contacting Regional Council as this can cause more damage
• Report any pest damage to Regional Council
• Report anything that you are unsure of, or that doesn’t look quite right
• Don’t throw any grass or plant

Report damage

• Help keep our flood systems and stopbanks safe by keeping an eye out for damage. If you see a fallen tree, or people, or vehicles damaging stopbanks, please report it to Bay of Plenty Regional Council:
  Email riversanddrains@boprc.govt.nz
  Call 0800 884 880