Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui beach sand issue: The problem is blowing in the wind

Laurel Stowell
By Laurel Stowell
Reporter·Whanganui Chronicle·
10 Mar, 2021 04:00 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Contractors clear sand from the carpark at Castlecliff Beach in December. Photo / Bevan Conley
Contractors clear sand from the carpark at Castlecliff Beach in December. Photo / Bevan Conley

Contractors clear sand from the carpark at Castlecliff Beach in December. Photo / Bevan Conley

An annual spend of $50,000 to shift sand around on Castlecliff Beach is "dumb" and people who want it changed should tell the Whanganui District Council, councillor James Barron says.

The long-time problem of windblown sand at Castlecliff Beach became a focus for the Coastal Restoration Trust conference's free workshop Working with Nature on Tuesday, March 9.

Before leading the 70 participants out into the dunes, Castlecliff Coast Care co-ordinator Graham Pearson said the council spent about $40,000 a year on shifting sand and driftwood off the swimming area by the Surf Club, only for westerly winds and longshore drift to bring it back.

The sand was pushed into the sea or taken away, and removing driftwood left splinters and nothing for people to sit or leave beach towels on, he said.

"It seems to me there's things that could happen differently."

Open up the latest news from Whanganui

Get daily headlines from the Whanganui region straight to your inbox.
Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time.
By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Read More

  • Castlecliff Beach sign the latest project for Whanganui driftwood artist - NZ Herald
  • Beach grooming restrictions upset Castlecliff residents - NZ Herald
  • Lives at risk at Castlecliff, say lifeguards - NZ Herald
  • Orca whales spotted at Whanganui's Castlecliff Beach - NZ Herald

What's been suggested is dunes planted in native spinifex coming out in a pincer shape and collecting the sand; or a thin line of spinifex planted on the sand side beside the seawall on the carpark boundary.

Coastal scientist Jim Dahm told the workshop that managing windblown sand was difficult without a dune.

"Native plants in the dune, spinifex and pingao, trap the windblown sand.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Most of it travels close to the ground. Those plants slow the wind down, and the sand drops out. The plants trap that sand and build a new dune with it."

Using spinifex dunes to capture windblown sand has been a known method for 30 or 40 years, he said. Castlecliff Beach had enough space for some, and they would be easy to start.

Discover more

Beach clean-up bags 168kg rubbish haul

06 Mar 04:00 PM

Koitiata resident group aims to protect biodiversity

28 Jan 04:00 PM

New bridge, Winter Gardens, Bason Botanic Gardens attract record visitors

24 Feb 04:00 PM

Taking care of coastline a labour of love

04 Mar 04:00 PM

People's desire for views and access have been the main hindrance to dunes being allowed in other places.

"I'm hoping there's someone here from council to explain why it's so complex and why they haven't built a dune in the past," Dahm said.

Graham Pearson explains how Whanganui River moles trap sand and enlarge Castlecliff Beach. Photo / Bevan Conley
Graham Pearson explains how Whanganui River moles trap sand and enlarge Castlecliff Beach. Photo / Bevan Conley

Deputy mayor Jenny Duncan and Barron were at the workshop.

Barron suggested people with strong views make a submission to the council's long term plan, and hinted that people interested in coast care will like what it contains.

Duncan said a conversation with stakeholders about the matter is planned.

Dahm has been involved in coastal planning across New Zealand. He said implementing a report from a consultant without talking to local people would be a waste of money.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"You have got to get people around the table, and come up with something that works for everybody."

The issue of windblown sand drifting across the carpark, and driftwood spread across the swimming area, is an old one.

Beach grooming was done for 30 years before the district council applied to Horizons Regional Council for resource consent in 2004. At that time it gave a five-year consent and required the council to come up with alternative ways to deal with the sand by a 2007 deadline.

Horizons has been asked what consent the district council now has for beach grooming.

NewsletterClicker
NewsletterClicker

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Work begins on key phase of port project

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

04 Jul 04:57 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
School holidays dragging on? Try this fun kitchen activity for kids
Lifestyle

School holidays dragging on? Try this fun kitchen activity for kids

05 Jul 12:00 AM
‘I've done wrong:’ How jailed sex offender tried to fool drug test with chamomile tea
New Zealand

‘I've done wrong:’ How jailed sex offender tried to fool drug test with chamomile tea

05 Jul 12:00 AM
Junior Tall Blacks reach U19 World Cup semifinals
Basketball

Junior Tall Blacks reach U19 World Cup semifinals

04 Jul 11:25 PM
650 properties assessed after damaging floods in Nelson and Tasman
New Zealand

650 properties assessed after damaging floods in Nelson and Tasman

04 Jul 11:19 PM
Insurers back using Takapuna golf course for flood prevention
New Zealand

Insurers back using Takapuna golf course for flood prevention

04 Jul 11:11 PM

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

Kāinga Ora needs to be ‘responsive to need’, says minister

04 Jul 06:00 PM

'We want to take a very detailed specific look at what Whanganui needs' – Chris Bishop.

Work begins on key phase of port project

Work begins on key phase of port project

04 Jul 06:00 PM
Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

Pop star to speak on new book at Whanganui Literary Fest

04 Jul 04:57 PM
Premium
Gardening: Pruning deciduous fruit trees and roses

Gardening: Pruning deciduous fruit trees and roses

04 Jul 04:00 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search