Healthy estuary another step closer

A resource consent has been approved for the Kaituna rediversion and Ongatoro/Maketu Estuary Enhancement project.

The Maketu community is a step closer to having a healthy estuary after the Bay of Plenty Regional Council gained resource consent approval for the Kaituna Rediversion and Ongatoro/Maketu Estuary Enhancement project.

The project will return an average of 600,000cu m of fresh water from the Kaituna River into Ongatoro/Maketu Estuary on every tidal cycle, and create at least 20ha of new wetlands.

Regional council chairman Doug Leeder said this was a big milestone for both the Maketu community and the environment.

He said the Kaituna River was diverted away from the estuary for flood protection and land drainage in the 1950s.

"The estuary has been gradually degrading ever since. Tangata whenua and the wider community have been asking for river flow to be returned since 1979. It's great that we've now found a way to make that happen."

The planned rediversion will direct 20 per cent of the river's flow back into the estuary while maintaining existing flood protection levels and channel navigability at Te Tumu cut.

Regional council Kaituna Catchment manager Pim de Monchy said the council was grateful to iwi, landowners, environmental groups and the wider community for their support for the project so far.

"There are lots of interested parties. It's a complex project involving more than 100,000cu m of earthworks in a sensitive environment, both ecologically and culturally. We need to make sure we get it right."

The council lodged its application for resource consent and associated land designations in July last year.

A panel of independent planning commissioners approved the application yesterday, following review of 46 public submissions at a hearing in May.

The consent approval is subject to 40 pages of conditions designed to manage the potential environmental effects of the project. Mr de Monchy said his next task was to do a cost analysis on the consent conditions and check that the project is still affordable.

"After that we'll respond to any appeals and start the process of detailed design and construction planning. If land acquisition processes go smoothly and there are no appeals, construction could start by September 2016."

A copy of the full consent decision, including conditions and the commissioner's report, is available at www.boprc.govt.nz/kaitunamaketurediversion.

A public meeting will be held at Maketu in August to discuss the decision and what it means.