People are being warned to stay out of the water during and after 'emergency works' repairs planned for an outfall pipe at the 'Pipe' break, on Gisborne's Midway Beach. Photo / Local Democracy
Matthew Rosenberg, Local Democracy Reporter
Urgent repairs to Gisborne’s wastewater outfall pipe will close a section of Midway Beach for at least five days.
From October 2, Gisborne District Council is set to make repairs to the structure, following damage from Cyclone Gabrielle.
Silt build-up around the discharge ports and excess pressure from high pumping rates had resulted in a crack forming, meaning 8m of the pipe needed to be replaced, the council said.
To make the repairs, a section of the beach would need to be closed to the public while treated wastewater would be discharged into shallow water.
People have been advised to stay away from the sea for five days after the discharge stops, putting a halt to swimming, surfing and gathering shellfish during that time, the council said.
Council acting director of community lifelines Dave Hadfield said the pipeline’s capacity had been compromised, which meant overflow valves in the river had to be opened at lower than normal flows.
Reinstatement was critical, he said.
The council planned to undertake water quality testing of the water the pipe discharges into, before, during and after the discharge, Hadfield said.
The wastewater would pass through filter screens, a biological trickle filter, clarifier, tertiary filter and undergo ultraviolet disinfection.
“The monitoring and compliance team has been informed of the issue, the implications of repair, and that the work is being done under Section 330 of the Resource Management Act - which is the emergency works provision, and in this case applies to Cyclone Gabrielle,” Hadfield said.
But one concerned resident with a background in environmental advocacy believed the issue could have been avoided through routine maintenance.
Resident and environmental advocate John Kape was disappointed sewage needed to be discharged on to one of the region’s most well-used beaches.
He had raised concerns about the work, which he said was outside of existing consent conditions and “questionable” as to whether it was emergency work.
“It’s an old pipe, and maintenance should address this work,” Kape said.
Work on the pipe had been scheduled to begin this week, but was postponed due to forecast rain.
· Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.
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