Funding for short-term flooding mitigation has been approved by the Christchurch City Council.
The Mayoral Flood Taskforce has delivered its final report about flood mitigation options that have been completed, are underway or planned to help vulnerable households until long-term solutions were decided.
Area-wide solutions and maintenance measures, designed to mitigate flooding during heavy rain events, will be funded by the council.
An additional funding increase of $1.75 million from $4.35 million to $6.1 million for the Tay Street drain pumping station was also approved.
Taskforce leader John Mackie said the council's decision to approve the planned works would help to minimise flooding risk.
"The total cost of works completed, in progress or scheduled is $10.7 million, bringing flood mitigation benefits to 65 percent of the most vulnerable households. Being able to progress further work gives us additional measures to prevent flooding in the hardest-hit areas of Christchurch."
Mr Mackie said while the solutions would benefit many residents, some residents would not be protected by the wider solutions and work was being done with other agencies on funding individual house defences.
"We need to work with the Government and our other partner agencies to identify potential funding avenues for house tanking or raising. The individual solutions would act as interim flood defence measures for these residents while long-term options are investigated," he said.
"There's still work to be done on the longer-term measures and the future costs"
Council asked staff to prepare a report on flooding issues in the central city and potential defence options for residential and commercial properties in this area.
The council was also supporting the establishment of community flood defence plans, linking community groups and organisations with metropolitan and civil defence planning.
The two long-term proposals for Dudley Creek would be reassessed and the council would also review the floodplain management options for the Lower Heathcote to be included in the 2015 Long Term Plan and consider the possibility of permanent or temporary relocation or retreat.
Work proposed and currently underway to mitigate flooding in Christchurch:
- Major waterway channel widening and deepening.
- Temporary pumping solution in Flockton.
- Reinstatement of stop-banks in some areas.
- Installation of backflow prevention mechanisms on drains.
- The repair of flap gates in the Avon and Heathcote rivers.
- Removal of sediment, vegetation and debris from waterways.
- Bridge and culvert removals.
- Raising the height of the sides of timbered drains.
- Installation of the Tay Street drain pump station, Kensington Avenue.
