Project Start Year: 2024
The Wairau River Flood Protection Scheme represents a significant investment by the Council and Central Government aimed at alleviating pressure on the primary Wairau stopbank. This measure is essential in safeguarding the entrance to a historic secondary flow path that directs towards the community of Renwick and ultimately to the regional hub of Blenheim. The main stopbanks at this location are vital for protecting both Renwick and Blenheim; without them, both towns would be flooded by significant floodwaters.
The project involves the completion of stopbank retreat and realignment work, the construction of five intermediate groynes, the retreat and reconstruction of two groynes, rock edge protection at the Waihopai/Wairau confluence, and the upgrade of a critical Waihopai stopbank that overtopped during the 2021 flood event.
Benefits, Adaptation and Resilience
Enhance the protection of the Southern Valleys Irrigation Scheme intake and provide greater flood resilience for housing, particularly in lower socio-economic areas, which are disproportionately affected by failures in the primary stopbank.
Strengthen the resilience of existing flood protection infrastructure that safeguards important regional centres and nationally significant infrastructure.
Collaboration
This project is co-funded by Marlborough District Council and central government through Kānoa’s Regional Infrastructure Fund, promoting regional resilience and economic growth.
This co-investment underscores the national significance of flood management infrastructure, which safeguards not just the river but also vital infrastructure and communities.
