Northland’s most flood-prone gathering centre to get resilience boost

The first project of its kind in New Zealand, 35 gathering centres in Te Tai Tokerau’s most flood-prone areas will be made more resilient.

Experts from the Northland Regional Council (NRC) will work with gathering places to improve their flood resilience – for a small number of gathering places this may mean relocating their location permanently.

Areas from the marae near Cape Reinga in the north to Naumai at Kaipara near Ruawa in the south were affected.

These gathering places and their connecting roads continue to be affected by flooding.

The survey found that one-third of gathering centers are located in flood-prone areas, and up to 30% of gathering centers are prone to landslides.

They are often found in a range of remote areas, including along coastal and inland rivers.

The effects of climate change will exacerbate the impacts of today’s river and ocean flooding, increasing the resilience of the mahi mahi.

All three gathering centres in Pawarenga, a small west coast settlement on the shores of Whangape Harbour in the hard-hit Far North, are part of the project.

NRC river manager Joe Camuso said the $630,000, one-year restoration project at the flood-affected Marais Hall in Northland will begin in July.

He said the NRC was currently in the process of contacting the Marae project.

Camuso said the work will have many benefits.

“Apart from the obvious benefits to the centre’s infrastructure, improving the centre’s resilience to flooding could also reduce pressure on Northland’s emergency services and rescue crews,” he said.

Cyclone Gabriel clearly demonstrated the importance of the Marae gathering place during floods and severe weather.

Some gathering places house families, while others are used as local emergency response centers for isolated communities.

The project work combines the NRC’s river, civil protection and climate change teams.

Camuso said civil protection authorities were helping with preparedness plans for gathering places.

The Climate Change Group is offering help to a handful of gathering centers for which relocation may be the best option.

He said the district council’s plans focused on how best to protect the gathering place from flooding.

Some people need to work harder than others to achieve this.

The Commission will work with agencies to develop individualized approaches to improve flood resilience.

“There is no ‘one size fits all’ solution.”

Camuso said the effort was made possible by the NRC’s new flood hazard mapping, which enabled the worst-hit gathering places to be clearly identified.

The meeting houses were impacted by the 10-year flood, which means they are in turn impacted by the larger 50-year and 100-year floods.

The commission’s maps show that the effects of climate change will get worse in the future.

Camuso said physical construction work was the best option for some gathering centers. Flood prevention work could include projects to stop river levees or widen river banks.

For those gathering places that believe long-term retreat is the best flood protection option, planning and design efforts are more likely to prevail.

Camuso said a community that decides to move a venue might decide not to spend money on renovations and instead put that money toward a more long-term move.

The one-year project was funded almost entirely by the government, with $600,000 provided through the Crown Infrastructure Partnership and $30,000 from the NRC.

The project is part of the NRC’s three-year, $700,000 flood defense program for Mahi, with taxpayers contributing a total of $100,000 to Mahi.

About 70% of the project’s gathering centers are located in the Far North.

Camuso said the project identified the worst-hit areas by combining flood mapping and analysis of the distribution of Marais.

There are 350 gathering centers in the North.

The 25 Far North District congregations in the project are – Te Hūruhi and Ururangi in Awarua; Ngāi Tawake in Mataraua; Mohinui and Kawiti in Waiomiao; Waikare (Turkey) in Waikare; Otiria in Otiria; Tuhirangi and Ōtātara in Waima; Death, Ohaki and the Environment in Pawalunga; Ngāti Manawa (Te Waiariki) and Waipuna in Panguru; Waimirirangi in Waiho; Te Pīti (Omanaya) in Omanaya; Mataitowa in Horake; Te Arohanui (Mangataipa) at Mangamuka Bridge; Mangamuka in Mangamuka; Matihetihe in Mitimiti; Awanui Waimanoni in Te Hapua; Tauteiihihi (Ngātokimatawhaorua) in Kohukohu; Tauratumaru in Utakura and Aputerewa in Mangonui.

Its six Whangarei marae are: – Mōkau in Mōkau; Ngātiwai in Ngāiotonga; Akerama in East Outer; Maungārongo in Poroti, Whakapara in Whakapara and Ōtetao in Punaruku.

The five Kaipara marae for the project are: Ahikiwi in Kaihū; Ōtamatea in Whakapirau and Te Houhanga in Dargaville.

LDR is a local news organisation jointly funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.