Individual Special Rating Districts

As a result of the 1929 Murchison earthquake, slips dammed the Karamea and Little Wanganui Rivers. The collapse of these dams caused serious damage to property and heavy loss of stock. To rehabilitate the area after the earthquake, the Government financed the Karamea Flood Protection Scheme. The Karamea Rating District was adopted by the Westland Catchment Board on 28 June 1982 with the purpose of maintaining the existing protection works on the Little Wanganui River, Granite Creek, Karamea River and the Oparara River. The area protected is predominantly dairy farming with some horticulture and dry stock farming.

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Asset Management Plans

The Kongahu Swamp covers an area of 1,000 hectares in the Karamea District. The swamp extends from the Little Wanganui River to the Otumahana Lagoon over a length of approximately 8 kilometres. The area included in the Kongahu Rating District is predominantly dairy farming with part of the swamp set aside as a Wildlife Reserve and whitebait breeding area. The area of land within the confines of the rating district is 783 hectares.

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Asset Management Plans

The Mokihinui Rating District was formed in 1974 following a request from the Mokihinui Ratepayers Association after numerous river bank works were carried out to protect the Mokihinui Township from flooding and erosion. Work had originally begun in 1952 with rock protection works placed around the rivermouth and bay adjacent to the township on the south side of the Mokihinui rivermouth.

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Asset Management Plans

The Punakaiki Rating District was formed in 2005 after significant storm events continued to erode the foreshore threatening both residential property and State Highway 6. Work was carried out to construct a seawall funded by residents and the Punakaiki Management Group.

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Asset Management Plans

The Nelson Creek Rating District was formed in 1981 by the Westland Catchment Board after considerable work was carried out by landowners over the previous 20 years to protect the lower Nelson Creek area upstream of the State Highway bridge from severe flooding and erosion.

At a ratepayers meeting on 22 July 1985, it was agreed to extend the Rating District Classification to include all works downstream to the rail bridge.

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Asset Management Plans

Protection works on Red Jacks Creek have been in place since 1945 to prevent flood inundation of farm land and the main road. The Red Jacks Creek Rating District classification was adopted by the Westland Catchment Board in 1986 as a result of a further request from landowners for protection of the right bank upstream of the State Highway bridge.

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Asset Management Plans

Inundation of the area known as the Coal Creek Flats has occurred since pre-European occupation of the area. The Coal Creek Rating District was established in 1957 after a request was made to establish river protection to prevent further erosion of exposed river bank.

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Asset Management Plans

From the earliest days of settlement, the communities of Greymouth, Blaketown and Cobden have been exposed to the risk of flooding from the Grey River. Major floods have occurred periodically from 1867 to today. The very first stopbank construction work began in 1986. The first contract was let for the Cobden Stage 1 stopbank in November 1986 and the final contract for the raising of the Blaketown Tiphead Road was completed in September 1990. It was completed at an overall cost of $4M. (80% Government 20% Grey District Council). The floodwall was upgraded in 2010 with concrete work to increase the service level to allow for a higher level of flood protection.

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Asset Management Plans

The Inchbonnie Rating District was established in 1959 by the Westland Catchment Board after a considerable period of concern over the flooding of the Inchbonnie farming area and the consequential effect of increased flood flows on areas including Lake Brunner, Arnold River, Grey Valley lands and the town of Greymouth.

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Asset Management Plans

The Taramakau Settlement Separate Rating District area was first proposed by the Westland Catchment Board in 1962 after farm land in the area suffered serious erosion from flood events over the previous 13 years. In 1977 a revised scheme was proposed to protect a further 12.2 kilometres of land from flooding. This was adopted by the Westland Catchment Board in 1984.

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Asset Management Plans

Hokitika Joint Seawall Committee 10 September 2021 Special Meeting Minutes

The Hokitika Seawall Rating District was established in 2013 as a result of erosion at Sunset Point that began to migrate northwards resulting in a risk to the Hokitika Township. In July 2013, Council built a 650m seawall to reclaim some of the foreshore land taken by the sea and allow a grassed area with seaside amenities to be re-created.

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Asset Management Plans

The Hokitika Southside Rating District was established in 2002 after a considerable period of erosion in the vicinity of the south bank immediately upstream of the current State Highway Bridge. The proposal for a special rating district was first presented to residents in the area in 1996. With no forthcoming support until September 2002, work did not commence on the scheme until July 2003.

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Asset Management Plans

The Kaniere Rating District was established in 1995 after consecutive floods eroded the true right bank of the Hokitika River immediately upstream of the road bridge, threatening houses and the approaches of the Kaniere Road Bridge.

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Asset Management Plans

The Raft Creek Rating District was established by the Westland Catchment Board in 1960 after an investigation into the drainage of the swampy area in the lower Kokatahi area surrounding Raft Creek. The initial proposal was to drain the area, including the deep peat swamp in the middle. However an economic report prepared by the Department of Agriculture suggested the deep peat swamp areas would not be suitable for dairy farming.

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Asset Management Plans

The Kowhitirangi Flood Control Scheme (Rating District) was established in 1958 as a result of requests for flood protection and maintenance of existing flood and erosion protection works. The very first flood and erosion protection work on the Kowhitirangi River was constructed in 1907 with some of this still evident today.

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Asset Management Plans

The Vine Creek Rating District was established in 1966 as a result of the build-up of large quantities of detritus from the Alpine Fault shatter zone that spread out onto the flats below causing severe flooding and frequent silting of pastures. Vine Creek is a 10m wide excavated diversion channel that flows parallel to Diedrichs Road into the Kowhitirangi River.

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Asset Management Plans

The Hari Hari Flat Protection Scheme (now the Wanganui Rating District) was established in 1962 with the first work on the Wanganui River being carried out as early as 1913. The Wanganui Rating District consists of flood and erosion protection works on the left and right banks of the Wanganui River, and a drainage scheme in part of the Poerua Valley, Wanganui River, La Fontaine, Hari Hari Township and Lower La Fontaine.

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Asset Management Plans

The Matainui Rating District was established in 1994 as a result of periodic flooding of the Whataroa Township and golf course as far back as 1960. The first works on Matainui Creek prior to the establishment of the Rating District, were the construction of a small stopbank as well as channel clearing, to block off an overflow channel preventing further flooding of the Whataroa School grounds.

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Asset Management Plans

The Whataroa Rating District was formed in November 2011 to fund unforeseen and urgent emergency river protection works.

The Whataroa Rating District consists of flood and erosion protection works and extends from the State Highway Bridge downstream for 1.6 kilometres on the true left bank. The area protected is predominantly dairy farming with some dry-stock properties. Community infrastructure such as roads, power and telephone lines all derive benefit from the river control system.

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Asset Management Plan

Flooding and erosion of land surrounding the Waitangitaona River has occurred as far back as the 1920’s. The first flood protection work was constructed on the Waitangitaona River in 1931. It consisted of a stopbank along the left bank, downstream of the state highway bridge, to prevent the main flow of the river from leaving its course and ultimately flowing into Lake Wahapo.

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Asset Management Plans

Flood and erosion protection works have existed on the Waiho River since 1957 in the form of wire crates on the right bank below the State Highway Bridge to provide protection for the aerodrome. Stopbanking was initially constructed in 1967 as a result of the threat of the river swinging northwards and possibly affecting the Tourist Corporation Hotel site and Airport facilities. As a result of the severe flooding risk and erosion, the Franz Josef Rating District was established in 1978.

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Asset Management Plans

The Lower Waiho Rating District was established in 1979 by the Westland Catchment Board as a result of flooding of adjacent land reported as far back as 1944. The first protection works were constructed on the Lower Waiho in 1954 consisting of stopbanking and rock protection on the left bank below Rata Knoll.

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Asset Management Plans

The Okuru Rating District was established in 1998 after local ratepayers requested a proposal to protect the western area of the Okuru Township from the Okuru River. Works did not commence on the rating district until August 2000 as a result of a reduction in erosion threat due to fewer flooding events and alignment of the river mouth to the north and south along the general Okuru foreshore area.

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Asset Management Plans