Government grants $25m boost for cyclone-hit businesses, at least 58 migrants dead after boat sinks off Italy and our Emergency Departments still under strain in the latest New Zealand Herald headlines. Video / NZ Herald
Genesis Energy has pushed back on claims that it may have contributed to the flooding that hit Wairoa last week.
The power company, which runs the nearby Waikaremoana Power Scheme, said it had deliberately lowered the level of the lake in anticipation of the heavy rain that Cyclone Gabrielle brought.
The Gisborne Herald reported that Wairoa residents were concerned the power company might have made a poorly-timed decision to open a floodgate at its Lake Waikaremoana dam, creating the sudden surge of water that spilled over the banks of the Wairoa River.
Interim chief executive Tracey Hickman said she was comfortable that there was no impact on the flood-damaged town from the company’s operation of the scheme.
“The flooding at Wairoa was not as a result of our operation of Waikaremoana,” she told the Herald.
“During the peak of the flood a week or so ago, we were discharging around 40 cumecs (cubic metres per second) - which is a little less than is required by our resource consent,” she said.
“That was around one per cent of the peak flow that was experienced at Wairoa during the flooding,” she said.
In the lead-up to Gabrielle, Genesis had been able to lower the lake’s level by about 6 per cent.
“We had seen it coming and, of course, it came on the back of a very wet period over many weeks and months beforehand, but we had seen that particular rain event.
An aerial view of the flooding in Wairoa, in the Hawke's Bay. Residents displaced by the cyclone damage will add to pressure in the region's rental market. Photo / Wairoa District Council
“We were able to put a ‘hole’ in the lake and significantly reduce the outflow.
“We have continued to do that with even less discharge ever since.”
Hickman said running the scheme was nevertheless a balancing act as the region needed power.
“That is the one asset now – given the constraints in the area - that is keeping the lights on for the East Cape,” she said.
Hickman acknowledged that it had been “hideous” time for people in the area following the cyclone and that the company’s data was open for review.
Genesis, 51 per cent owned by the Government, earlier reported a 42 per cent increase in its operating profit for the first half to $298m.
In a statement issued to local media last week, Genesis acknowledged the tragic and catastrophic effects of Cyclone Gabrielle across the North Island.
“We understand in such trying times it is natural to look for answers as to how this situation could have occurred or if there are things we can do to prevent them happening again,” the company said.
“We believe there should always be a forum for these types of questions to be asked and we are open to sharing information and cooperating with any reviews.”
However, Hickman said the company was concerned about “misunderstanding or misinformation” circulating regarding Genesis’ management of water in the Lake Waikaremoana catchment before and during the cyclone.
