Still no clarity on $24m ‘shovel ready’ Franz Josef scheme

Waiho Flat farmland under a winter feed crop. Photo / Brendon McMahon/Greymouth Star

The West Coast Regional Council still has no clarity on the status of the lower Waiho (Waiau) River flood protection project at Franz Josef, which received a $24 million ‘shovel ready’ injection from the Government in 2019.

Since then, the council has been authorised to start half the work, to extend and raise existing stopbanks on the northern bank.

A short section on the southern bank near the existing main road bridge has also been authorised, to protect the bridge approach.

Yesterday, council chief executive Heather Mabin said she had been trying to get clarity from the government departments involved about the future of the second part.

“I’m concerned that we still have no answer yet about stage two of the Waiho scheme,” Mabin said.

“That’s very concerning. They should have made a decision by now.”

Its importance, and the need to give the affected Waiho Flat residents some surety, had again been pressed during a recent meeting with officials on the West Coast for the visit of Minister of Conservation Poto Williams.

The end of the current lower Waiho River protection works, looking inland towards Franz Josef Glacier. Photo / Brendon McMahon/Greymouth Star

Mabin said it would be one of the first issues before the new council meeting on October 25.

At the last meeting of the old triennium, Mabin pointed out the funding had been granted on the basis of a combination of two former rating districts for the Waiho.

Contractors for the West Coast Regional Council and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency work on new rock 'riprap'. Photo / Brendon McMahon/Greymouth Star

Today, she said it was not clear if the new Westland constituency for the council would change that.”

We have already spent $406,000 on engineering works on the south side on areas that were outside stage one,” Mabin said.

Meanwhile, the substantial work for stage one should be under way very soon.

”I’ve been assured that the Franz Josef contract is going to start in the last week of October.”

Mabin said an investigation into the Wanganui River protection issue was also now under way with the administrator of Government infrastructure money Kanoa in the picture.

An eroding bank downriver from Franz Josef. Photo / Brendon McMahon/Greymouth Star

A river modelling project was also underway to assist a future project.

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