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Mataura residents nervous as Environment Southland shares information about flood bank issues

Friday, 19 August 2022

Mataura resident Ken Fredericksen talking about the Mataura river flood bank. [File photo].

Ken Fredericksen watched news coverage of flooding in Nelson this week and worried that it would happen to him.

“I lived in Nelson and I’ve never seen anything like that. The whole country has a problem with the weather. It’s just storm after storm, and we’re not ready for it,’’ he said.

He’s worried that his Mataura home will flood again, like it did in 2020, when he was evacuated.

“It’s not good to hear that the stop banks on the river might fail and not keep us safe again. You do think about it a bit,’’ he said.

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Mataura resident Ken Fredericksen discusses the flood banks with Environment Southland works supervisor Clint Cartwright during the drop in flood bank information session held at the Mataura Senior Citizens Centre.
Mataura resident Ken Fredericksen discusses the flood banks with Environment Southland works supervisor Clint Cartwright during the drop in flood bank information session held at the Mataura Senior Citizens Centre.

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Graeme Kirk, of Mataura, discusses flooding with Craig Sinclair of Emergency Management Southland.
Graeme Kirk, of Mataura, discusses flooding with Craig Sinclair of Emergency Management Southland.

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A week ago, Environment Southland issued a press release saying residents in Gore, Wyndham and Mataura may need to be evacuated at a lower river level than they have previously because of issues with the capacity and integrity of the stop banks.

The Mataura River at Mataura township. Environment Southland reports residents in Gore, Wyndham and Mataura may need to be evacuated at a lower river level than they have previously because of issues with the capacity and integrity of the stop banks.
The Mataura River at Mataura township. Environment Southland reports residents in Gore, Wyndham and Mataura may need to be evacuated at a lower river level than they have previously because of issues with the capacity and integrity of the stop banks.

On Friday, Frederickson was at a drop-in information session held by the regional council at Mataura.

“It’s good to know that people are aware of the problem. But we need to know what they’re going to do to fix it, so that people don’t have to leave their homes again.’’

Environment Southland general manager integrated catchment management Paul Hulse at the drop in flood bank meeting held at the Mataura Senior Citizens Centre.
Environment Southland general manager integrated catchment management Paul Hulse at the drop in flood bank meeting held at the Mataura Senior Citizens Centre.

At a Gore District Council meeting on Tuesday, ES chairman Nicol Horrell said there were vulnerable spots that in a high flood event could collapse, with ‘’catastrophic effects”.

However, Mataura resident Graeme Kirk says he won’t be evacuated his home if floods threaten the town again.

“They’ll have to drag me out,’’ he said.

“I went to Edendale last time and the water didn’t come near my house.’’

Despite that, he was also worried that the stop banks might collapse.

“The news came as a bit of a shock. I guess the stop banks might get spongy after a while because of the material they use to make them. They need to stabilise them,’’ he said.

“My real concern is that they need to take gravel out of the river, it hasn’t been done for a long time and that’s building up with all the gravel coming down,’’ he said.

He spoke to several Environment Southland and Emergency Management Southland staff members at the drop in session, but said it didn’t make him feel any less worried about the situation.

Environment Southland general manager integrated catchment management Paul Hulse said the flooding in Nelson had not added any impetus to the work that needed to be done to assess the 100km of flood banks on the Mataura River.

Detailed geotechnical investigations and 2D hydraulic modelling needed to be carried out, which would take about six months, he said.

“People can be assured we will work as quickly as we can, but the work is technical and we need to be thorough.’’

Hydrologist Chris Jenkins said monitoring stations on the upper Mataura and Waikaia Rivers would give the regional council plenty of warning if there was going to be a flooding issue.

“We have a good warning system in place with those monitors and once it gets to the Pyramid Bridge we have a pretty good idea of what is going on,’’ he said.