Northland water storage

Fast track of Northland water storage set to lift GDP and employment

Changes to the Resource Management Act to fast track infrastructure projects as part of the COVID-19 recovery have been welcomed by a much-anticipated water storage scheme in Northland.

A new reservoir near Kaikohe which will be available for farmers and growers for irrigation, as well as supporting town water supply for Kaikohe, is set to begin construction this year, the first of 17 infrastructure projects fast tracked under the new legislation.

The reservoir is just one in a series which are planned to be built by Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust on the northern Pouto Peninsular in Kaipara and in the Mid-North around Kaikohe. Combined, the water storage and distribution schemes would allow landowners to plan potential land use change with confidence and would support approximately 7,000ha of new horticultural development, an approximate 50 percent increase in Northland’s current area under production.

The Provincial Growth Fund has provided $67.5 for development of the schemes.

Construction of the first reservoir called Matawii, near Kaikohe was hoped to begin before the end of 2020. Two others, one each in the Mid-North and Kaipara, are planned to start early in 2021. Water could be available for use as early as summer 2022.

Previous studies analysed the entire province of Te Tai Tokerau (Northland) and determined the Mid-North and Kaipara were the best places to develop the schemes due to suitable horticultural soils, demand and opportunity due to climatic conditions and significant potential for economic growth of local communities.

Development of the scheme in the MidNorth is expected to potentially lift the areas’ GDP by $67 million per year and employment by 12 percent, and in Kaipara GDP could rise by $83 million per year and create a five percent lift in employment. The project also aimed to address disparities in Māori access to water for land development.

The scheme will create small scale reservoirs within both regions. These will be filled from natural water catchments during high flows. A network of pipes and pumps will then deliver water under pressure to landowners throughout the areas where water is available. Landowners who wish to have access to water will need to buy shares in the schemes, however final costs have not yet been determined. Development of the full scheme is likely to be over a longer period in response to demand.

The Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust (TTTWT) was set up in June 2020 with the responsibility of developing the schemes. Made up of Northlanders, it is likely the Trust will transition to a private company once the schemes are established.

TTWT Chairman Murray McCully said while there might have been plenty of rain in Northland over winter there were still problems with water scarcity in the North, and the water storage scheme was a once in a lifetime transformational opportunity for the region.

“You only have to look to Kerikeri to see what a reliable source of water can do for a community. The success of the horticultural industry there has been largely built on the back of government funded reservoirs which were built in the 1980s. Now it’s time for other areas in Northland to get the same opportunity and we are very thankful for the government support to help us address the issue,” Mr McCully said.

The schemes would also be available to bolster municipal water supply to Dargaville and Kaikohe.

Preliminary geotechnical engineering investigations have been completed at sites in both areas and archaeological work, conducted in partnership with local hapū, was also underway, Mr McCully said.

Project advisory group member, Terence Brocx, who owns a 200 cow dairy farm near Ohaeawai said there was strong interest in the project from within the wider primary sector in the Mid-North and a belief that there was significant potential to grow high-value horticulture in the region if a reliable source of water was available.

“The whole area is ripe for development because there are top class soils, which along with a desirable climate, has the ability to grow high value crops, but the only thing that is missing is reliable water,” Mr Brocx said.

“I’m excited about the prospect of what this water scheme could mean for the community and region.”

He said some landowners would develop their own land, some would diversify part of their property and some would sell to other developers who would be attracted to the region by the security a water scheme would provide for horticultural development.

“Either way, the region will benefit from increased investment and economic activity.”

The Te Tai Tokerau Trust (TTWT) team at a potential resovoir site in Kaipara, (from left) Fiona Kemp, Te Uri o Hau; Snow Tane, Te Raroa; Anna Curnow, Kaipara District Council Deputy Mayor; Dover Samuels, TTTW Trustee; Ron Walters, Oturei Marae Trustee; Murray McCully, TTWT Trustee; Richard and Carly Smith, Kaipara landowners; and Kathryn de Bruin, TTWT Trustee.