The Kaituna River re-diversion and Te Awa o Ngātoroirangi Maketu Estuary enhancement project was announced yesterday as the winner of the Rodney Davies Project Award from the New Zealand Planning Institute (NZPI).

The NZPI Rodney Davies Project Award recognises innovation and creative excellence in the undertaking and completion of a physical work or development. It has been awarded jointly this year to Bay of Plenty Regional Council who led and funded the $16.5m project, and consultancy firm WSP who assisted with the consenting and project management aspects of the project.

“It has been a fantastic experience for us to collaborate with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, stakeholders, and the community on this project. Regional Council empowered the WSP planners to play an integral role throughout the project, from concept development, through consenting and appeals, to completion of construction. This continuity helped to ensure that the project was implemented in a collaborative way and built social capacity and knowledge throughout the community, so that they can nurture the environmental benefits of the project,” said WSP Technical Principal – Planning, Steph Brown.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council Coastal Catchments Manager Pim De Monchy said that it was a privilege to have been able to work together with the community on the project which has recreated 20 hectares of wetland and returned up 20 twenty percent of the Kaituna River’s freshwater flows into Te Awa o Ngātoroirangi/Maketu Estuary.

“The award is a credit to everyone involved and we’re really grateful for the support, patience and co-operation we received as we worked together to try and solve a really complex environmental and social challenge.

“Completion of this project is just the beginning of more work planned to be delivered with our Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority partners in the coming years, to support thriving communities and environments by improving the care of the Kaituna awa and its catchments, as outlined in Te Tini a Tuna – the Kaituna River Action Plan,” Mr De Monchy said.

Further information about the Kaituna River re-diversion and Te Awa o Ngātoroirangi Maketu Estuary enhancement project is available at www.boprc.govt.nz/kaitunarediversion

The official announcement and further details about the NZPI 2020 Awards are available at www.planning.org.nz/Category?Action=View&Category_id=2182

Video available: A video overview of the award-winning project is available on Youtube at https://youtu.be/4PX9godMaUM or by downloading it from this link.

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