Damaging Storm Costs Waimakariri Council Nearly $1m

Tuesday, 1 July 2025, 6:03 pm
Article: David Hill - Local Democracy Reporter

Severe weather and rain which hit Canterbury in May cost Waimakariri District Council nearly $1m in emergency works, but council staff say it could have been a lot worse.

Speaking at a council meeting on Tuesday, July 1, the council’s utilities and roading general manager Gerard Cleary said the investment of more than $20m in drainage improvements in Kaiapoi in recent years has paid off.

Heavy rain swept through Canterbury between April 29 and May 2, causing flooding in Christchurch and Selwyn.

In Waimakariri, there was damage to roading and three waters infrastructure, resulting in 49 services request and a repair bill of $972,953.

‘‘This event really showed the benefit of some of the investment the council has made,’’ Mr Cleary said.

‘‘In previous events such as 2014 we saw substantial surface flooding in parts of Kaiapoi.’’

The extra drainage capacity also relieved pressure from excess water getting into the sewer network, he said.

Mr Cleary said around half of the nearly $1m of emergency works is being funded from existing budgets.

With the majority of the expense for road repairs, the council has applied to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency for emergency works funding.

The Christchurch and Selwyn councils declared local states of emergency following the flooding, but Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon said his council’s infrastructure investment had made the district more resilient.

‘‘When nature comes along we are bound to respond. It is what our community expects and we need to keep our community safe and protected.

‘‘We were close to a declaration, but because of the work which had been done and the updates we received from Environment Canterbury, we felt we didn’t need to.

‘‘These aren’t one off events and they are occurring more often than we would like so we need to keep on top of it.’’

The council’s investment from the 2024/34 Long Term Plan in an infrastructure resilience team also meant the district was prepared, he said.

Mr Gordon said more work is planned to improve the district’s resilience to future flooding, including for the Mandeville area.

‘‘In our capital budgets for future years there is quite substantial money set aside for drainage projects and I know that the Mandeville drainage project, which I know councillor [Paul] Williams has been pushing for, would mean about $22m in debt if we choose to go to stage two.’’

Mr Cleary said even with taking on extra debt to fund further infrastructure investment, the council would be able to respond to a future earthquake or major flood event.

He said the council has insurance to cover its three waters infrastructure in a major event, and it can apply for NZTA emergency works funding, alongside debt funding.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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