This project involves removing existing floodwalls along the Rangitāiki River and building new, upgraded flood defences.
The new defences are built by inserting sheet piles (big sections of sheet steel with interlocking edges) into the ground and covering them with an earth stopbank or concrete floodwall. This design will provide more effective seepage control below ground.
Once complete, these new flood defences will form part of a network of protection along the Rangitāiki River. This includes the Rangitāiki Floodway and Spillway and future stopbank work along the lower catchment.
In a flood event, these defences will work together to help protect communities along the awa, by managing the increased water levels and alleviating pressure off the stopbanks.
Crown Infrastructure Funding
Bay of Plenty Regional Council received funding from Central Government’s Crown Infrastructure Funding for this project. This funding was granted as part of the Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund. The funding covers 75% of the initial project cost and was one of six projects Bay of Plenty Regional Council received funding for.