Hawke’s Bay flood schemes under scrutiny

Leading the Hawke’s Bay Independent Flood Review Panel are, from left, Dr Phil Mitchell (chair), Bernadette Arapere and Kyle Christensen. Picture supplied

The process to independently review the performance of Hawke’s Bay’s flood scheme assets and river management programmes in response to Cyclone Gabrielle is under way.

The review has been instigated by Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HRBC) in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle and the flooding that significantly impacted the region.

It is independent of the council and covers all of Hawke’s Bay from Wairoa to Pōrangahau.

The review aims to comprehensively investigate the conditions and factors that contributed to the flooding.

This involves an examination of the flood management schemes and programmes, assessing their performance, scrutinising the decisions made by the council during the cyclone, and evaluating their ongoing viability.

The review is proposing a broader spectrum of catchment options to enhance the resilience of these schemes and programmes for the future.

The review is not looking at district or city council roles/responsibilities during the cyclone, the local civil defence emergency management response, or the recovery phase of the flood event.

A panel of three independent reviewers is conducting the review, with experience in resource management, engineering and the law, as well as experience in these types of reviews.

The independent panel are Dr Phil Mitchell (chair), Bernadette Arapere and Kyle Christensen.

Since their appointment in August, the panel has commenced the process of information gathering and completed planning their approach to engaging with flood-affected communities.

Dr Mitchell said it was important to get community input to guide the panel in the planning stage.

“Preliminary discussions with some key communities have helped us verify the process for the review and were vital to ensure we make it easy for people to share with us any information they have that can help inform our review. Dr Mitchell says the panel will be keen to hear from people about:

• their experience of river management and the maintenance of flood management assets prior to the cyclone

• what they saw happen to rivers and flood management assets during the cyclone

• their ideas about how flood risk can be better managed in future.

“The upcoming community input phase will be supported by public information so that people know how to get involved, the type of information the panel is looking for, and how to supply information,”  Dr Mitchell said.

• The review is expected to be completed by the end of May, 2024.

• Further information about the Independent Flood Review can be found at at www.hbifr.nz.