18 May 2007 - Christchurch

Dam proposal threatens Hurunui River

Plans to dam the Hurunui River threaten the special environmental and recreational values of the river, Forest & Bird says.

This week a consortium of farmers, MainPower and Ngai Tahu announced plans to dam Lake Sumner and the south branch of the Hurunui River to irrigate farmland.

Forest & Bird South Island Field Co-ordinator Chris Todd says the proposal would destroy the magnificent landscape of the lake and river, wipe out endangered wildlife and ruin recreational activities.

"The upper Hurunui River above the Culverden Plains is a wild and scenic river containing outstanding wildlife, pristine lakes, popular kayaking gorges and a world-class trout fishery. If this proposal to dam the Hurunui goes ahead all this will be lost forever," he says.

The south branch of the Hurunui is one of the most important wildlife sanctuaries in the South Island and a stronghold for kiwi, kaka, New Zealand falcon, orange-fronted parakeet and mohua. Damming the river would stop river flows needed to maintain the gravel bed of the braided river, which endangered birds such as the black-fronted tern depend on to breed successfully.

"The Hurunui River supports 10% of the nationally endangered black-fronted tern population. A dam would ruin their breeding habitat and further threaten their survival," Chris Todd says.

"Lake Sumner is a scenic gem of the high country, surrounded by beech forest and mountains. It is one of the few large, untouched lakes left in the high country, and a dam would ruin its whole ecology."

He says Canterbury people have overwhelmingly shown in submissions to district and regional plans that they want the Hurunui protected.

The developers behind the proposal have said they will consult conservation and recreation groups to "mitigate adverse effects" but Chris Todd says that even with modifications the proposal would inevitably cause serious environmental damage to the Hurunui.

"Damming the Hurunui cannot be done in a way that will not cause serious harm to the river's special conservation, scenic and recreational values. The Hurunui is a valuable part of our natural heritage and we must protect it for this and future generations."

ENDS

© Scoop Media