As South Wairarapa reels from a string of devastating floods, mana whenua representatives are coming together to discuss their role in how the region rebuilds.
South Wairarapa District Council’s Māori Partnerships Committee, chaired by Gillies Baker, is set to meet on Tuesday night to discuss flood management activities and the impact of recent flooding on the roads and environment.
The district was hit by a string of infrastructure-degrading bad weather events in February, April, June, and July, causing damage to roads, flooding, and land slips.
In the meeting agenda, Baker said these significant weather events had caused awa (waterways) across South Wairarapa to exceed capacity.
“These events have affected local roads and increased pressure on Greater Wellington Regional Council to manage flood protection activities,” Baker said.
“Mana whenua input is needed to guide works being undertaken on the awa.”
The Māori Partnerships Committee provides mana whenua perspectives and advice on tikanga, mātauranga Māori, and kaitiakitanga to the councils’ long-term planning.
By the end of the meeting, the committee would agree on a clear statement of Māori priorities for the affected awa, formal advice they wanted to provide the district and regional council, and follow-up action to ensure accountability and ongoing oversight.
Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC), responsible for providing flood protection services in the area, said a comprehensive review of flood protection in the lower Wairarapa Valley was underway with public engagement starting soon.
In a recent statement, GWRC deputy chair Ros Connelly said the severe weather had highlighted the vulnerability of land and infrastructure in South Wairarapa and reinforced the need to review how flood risks were managed in the area.
She said the council’s immediate focus was on supporting affected communities and restoring access.
“At the same time, we know communities want answers about what these weather events mean for the future, and we are committed to working openly with them as we assess longer-term solutions,” she said.
Last year, Greater Wellington initiated a review of the flood protection provided in South Wairarapa in light of expiring consents, climate change, mana whenua obligations, farmer concerns and environmental concerns.
As part of this work, flood hazard modelling was being produced alongside analysis of environmental impacts.
A progress report on this work would be presented to GWRC’s next Environment and Climate Committee in August.
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