Mr Smith saw the damage first-hand in a flyover with glacier-based helicopter pilot James Scott after the devastating flood last week.
Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage is due Franz Josef later this week to see the extent of the damage.
The washout on March 27 came only a month after the access road to Fox Glacier was closed by the largest active slip in New Zealand, with no plans to reinstate the road.
That means the only way to view or touch the ice at either glacier is by helicopter.
Ms Sage wrote on her Facebook page last week that the loss of access to the glacier valleys "is a major issue".
Mr Smith said yesterday a large chunk of the Franz Josef access road had been washed out "to bedrock".
"What could you do? They could rebuild. Will it work long term? I'm not sure."
- By Laura Mills
