Ben and George Muir at the site of the bridge washout. Photo: John Borren/Sun Media.
Kiwifruit orchardists in Te Puke could lose millions if truck access isn’t restored to their road before harvesting begins.
A bridge over Raparapahoe Stream on No 4 Road washed out on January 29 after severe weather, affecting the 30 properties above it.
Initially, the Western Bay of Plenty District Council said a temporary Bailey bridge would be in place on February 9.
Now, the portable truss bridge is around six weeks away – something those with kiwifruit orchards find “stressful”.
The Muir family have around 40 hectares of kiwifruit including 30 hectares of the gold variety that will be ready for picking in mid-April.
Those with the new red kiwifruit variety pick earlier than gold and there were a few hectares of that on the road as well, said George Muir.
He told Local Democracy Reporting they could lose $4 million if the fruit was not picked in time.
He estimated there were around 200 hectares of kiwifruit across the affected properties that could result in a loss of $15 to $30 million, depending on people’s yields.
“It’s pretty stressful because we’ve outlaid several million growing the crops,” said Muir.
His brother Ben said they had spent around $2m growing the fruit.
“We’re nearly at harvest time now, so we’ve invested all that money into growing crops and then if it can’t get harvested, we’re in big trouble.”
He estimated around $20m had been spent on crop establishment across the orchards on the road.
“That could be crippling for some [people]. If someone’s got high debt loading, that would probably be enough to tip them over.”
Another potential issue was whether truck and trailer units would be able to get to the orchards. The turning circle at the end of the Bailey bridge may not be wide enough for truck and trailer units.
Ben Muir said they also have forestry, beef and sheep farming that would need to be trucked out soon.
“There’s quite a few impacted parts of our business if you can’t have truck and trailer units.”
Residents have access via a private road and bridge that connects with Manoeka Road but it is not suitable for heavy vehicles.
The Muir’s also had concerns about emergency services being able to get to residents.
Ben Muir spoke to a volunteer firefighter who suggested if there was a fire on the road people needed to be able to put it out themselves as a truck couldn’t use the private accessway.
“If we needed emergency help, they say you can get a helicopter, well you can only get a helicopter if the helicopter’s available and you can only get a helicopter if you’re in fair weather.”
The pair along with other residents want a timeline of when the Bailey bridge will be installed.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council transportation manager Jim Paterson said the approximate timeframe for the Bailey bridge installation was six weeks.
“Installation of a Bailey bridge is ever-changing and dependant on the site conditions, and our timeframe of completion could always move out.”
Paterson said the original February 9 estimate for the bridge opening was based on using the existing road which started subsiding after this date was communicated to the residents.
Geotech and engineering assessments located tension cracks on the southern embankment which raised concerns about the ground’s capacity to support the Bailey bridge, he said.
Longer and larger piles were needed to support the bridge and foundation, said Paterson.
The Bailey bridge would remain in place for more than six months but this would “very likely” be extended, he said.
In regards to emergency services access Patterson said the council had been in direct contact with emergency services to provide them with the latest information for their contingency plans.
“There have been no concerns from emergency services regarding access.”
Western Bay Mayor James Denyer said No 4 Road was the council’s highest priority in terms of getting infrastructure fixed.
A permanent bridge would take a year to 18 months to build, said Denyer.
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Local Democracy Reporting obtained the decision through the court.