HBRC’s Heretaunga dam study a ‘complementary project’ to Central Hawke’s Bay dam, backers say

Hawke’s Bay leaders, including Ngati Kahungunu chairman Bayden Barber, are in favour of Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s feasibility study for a water storage facility.

Two groups with conflicting views have weighed in on Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s plans for a water storage facility on a Ngāruroro River tributary.

One group planning to build a dam in Central Hawke’s Bay says the plan shows just how much action is needed. While an environmental pressure group says the announcement of a feasibility study into a $225 million dam is a “nail in the coffin” for the Central Hawkes Bay project.

HBRC said on Thursday it would immediately start a study to see if plans for a 27 million cubic metre water storage facility for Heretaunga were viable.

Wise Water Use HB spokesperson Dr Trevor Le Lievre said the group couldn’t be sure of the merits of the proposed Whanawhana dam until more details were released, but they see it as “the lesser of two evils” if a dam is to be built in Hawke’s Bay.

“The dam promoters [in Central Hawke’s Bay] should take a reality check, this project is now completely unworkable.”

The backers of the Tukituki Water Security Project, formerly known as the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme, said they welcomed the feasibility study for the Ngāruroro project.

Chairman Mike Petersen said it was further validation of the importance of water storage as a key priority to help provide water security for the Hawke’s Bay region.

“This announcement supports our work.

“These are complementary projects, and by working together we can provide region-wide benefits using a whole of-catchment approach to future-proof our proud Hawke’s Bay region,” Petersen said.

“Importantly, the objectives outlined for the Whanawhana project are identical to the priorities for the Tukituki project, with environmental flows and community water leading before higher value food production and processing needs.

“The Tukituki Water Security Project has been through a full public hearing and consenting process and community engagement has been wide-ranging over the past three years.

“Inclusion of the Tukituki Water Security Project on Schedule Two of the Fast Track Approvals Act has added momentum.

“The project team is conducting commercial feasibility work, which includes further developing the concept of supplying water to commercial users in Whakatu to alleviate pressure on the Southern Heretaunga catchment,” Petersen said.

“We look forward to working with the Whanawhana governance group once it is established to ensure we complement each other’s efforts and ensure the citizens of Hawke’s Bay achieve cost-effective and sustainable water security to enable Hawke’s Bay to survive, thrive and grow.”

Le Lievre said there was a “glaring omission” from Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s feasibility study – the fact no environmental groups have been included.

HBRC chairwoman Hinewai Ormsby responded to the criticism saying “we hear that comment”.

“The principal and primary driver for the proposal is to protect and enhance the health of our waterways and our taiao [nature],” Ormsby said.

“Improving the natural environment is essential to the success of the project and this will be absolutely fundamental in new governance arrangements.

“Part of the rationale for moving future development of the project outside of council is to allow council to focus on its primary role for and on behalf of the community, as encapsulated in the vision statement.”

Central Hawke’s Bay Mayor Alex Walker said it was great news HBRC had now publicly shared its work and plans on water storage in the Ngāruroro catchment.

“I am absolutely aligned with Chair Hinewai that water storage has the ‘potential to be transformational’ for the future of the whole Hawke’s Bay region,” Walker said.

“The hurt to the rivers and the economy of the Tukituki catchment from a rigorous and restrictive catchment plan over the past 10 years has clearly shown that storage is a crucial tool, alongside other water efficiency and security initiatives for us to create a more sustainable future.”

A spokesperson for a group of major irrigators on the Heretaunga Plains, Greig Taylor, said the Heretaunga Plains were some of the greatest growing soils in the world and the economic engine of Hawke’s Bay.

“Water storage is a very important part of a range of solutions we must continue to implement.”

Chairman of Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated Bayden Barber also supported the feasibility phase.

“It is paramount that mana whenua and Ngāti Kahungunu iwi are engaged from the outset of any water storage project within our rohe.

“We will work with partners in the project to ensure it delivers for our taiao, the health of our awa, and the taonga that live within them, and for a thriving, prosperous Māori economy that delivers for our people into the future,” he said.

Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said the changing climate had brought both devastating droughts and large rain events like Cyclone Gabrielle.

“We are excited to understand the opportunity of this new water storage infrastructure project.”

Acting mayor of Napier, Annette Brosnan, said the council welcomed further investigations.

The cost of the study will be about $3.2 million and will be shared by Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC) and the Government, supported by a 2020 loan from the Provincial Growth Fund. The spending is budgeted for in HBRC’s Long-Term Plan.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.