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.
