Coastal erosion needed to
become a national issue, Cr Jim Hopkins told the Waitaki
District Council on Wednesday, calling for pressure on the
Government to fund dealing with it.
The council has produced a draft coastal roads strategy, now
going out for public submissions, looking at ongoing erosion
of the road along the coast from Oamaru, through Kakanui, to
Waianakarua.
The report predicts $6.5 million might have to be spent over
25 years to counter erosion and keep the road open. That was
too costly for the district's ratepayers.
It proposes ongoing maintenance, but closing sections of the
road when they become too costly to keep open.
The council will not make a final decision on the strategy
until public consultation is complete and it has considered
submissions.
Cr Hopkins said the strategy reflected the reality faced by a
small community and council.
But it was also a huge issue nationally and the council
needed to get the support of other groups, such as Federated
Farmers, for a national debate on the costs and who should
pay.
Waitaki Mayor Alex Familton said the council had already
raised the issue with Minister of Transport Steve Joyce, and
Cr Pam Spite said it was raised two or three years ago with a
governmental working party.
"There was a dead silence," from the working party, Cr Spite
said.
The council will place the issue on the agenda for a forum of
Otago mayors and chief executives on April 30.
• Weston water: Water for Weston consumers will be
supplied from the upgraded Oamaru treatment plant in a
project next financial year.
Yesterday, the council approved a recommendation from its
assets committee to construct a pipeline and pump to link the
Weston supply to the Oamaru treatment plant, make Weston a
zone of the Oamaru supply and call tenders for the project.
The pipeline would save about $1.7 million of the $2.7
million estimated to upgrade the Weston and Enfield water
treatment. Enfield has yet to decide on treatment.
The project is a less costly way of providing drinking water
to Weston able to meet new drinking water standards. The
alternative was upgrading the Weston supply taken from the
Kakanui River.
It will also provide enough water to meet future growth in
the Weston area.
- david.bruce@odt.co.nz
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