Funded: $4.48m by Kānoa Regional Economic Development and Investment (COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund)
Total project cost: $7m
Project duration: 3.5 years
Jobs expected over project life: 29.75
This project upgrades up two pump stations critical to the ongoing flood protection of productive farmland to enable safe passage of native fish, and undertakes scoping for three other sites. The current infrastructure is due for replacement and the old flood pumps do not enable safe downstream passage of tuna (eels). Tuna live in streams and drains for many decades but breed once in their lifetime at sea. Non fish friendly pumps have significant implications for the species and their mortality rate can be very high during migration.
The issue of fish passage is a complex legacy issue. Many of the assets were installed 50-60 years ago by central government when little consideration was given to native species. Pumps are expensive so remediating the issue is a costly exercise for ratepayers.
We’ll be installing enclosed Archimedes screw pumps built in the Netherlands which offer many benefits over conventional pumping assets. They rotate very slowly, deliver very high efficiency, and their design means the screw does not inflict damage on fish, even significantly large tuna.
Benefits:
- Reduced mortality rates of tuna.
- Improved tuna fishery for Waikato and Hauraki iwi.
- Meets current and future legislative requirements and national directives regarding fish passage.
- Aligns with the development of Pathways to the Sea, our regional fish passage strategy for flood protection infrastructure.
- Savings for targeted ratepayers.
- Maintaining the required level of flood protection to productive farmland for 80 years.
- Pump protected by a trash screen reducing the need to remove weeds.
- Improved energy efficiency.
Progress update:
- Construction of the Mangawhero pump station is complete. The pump, which is the first fish-friendly enclosed Archimedes' screw pump in New Zealand, has been installed and commissioned.
- Detailed design of Churchill East pump station upgrade is complete with construction planned to start at the end of 2023.
- Procurement of two fish-friendly pumps for Churchill East pump station, which are on track for arrival in New Zealand on 24 December 2023.
- Planning and investigation of the next three sites is complete.
Next steps:
- Review of Churchill East pumps upon delivery to New Zealand.
- Construction of Churchill East pump station over summer 2023/24.
A fish friendly Archimedes screw pump being tested in the Netherlands before being sent to New Zealand for installation at Mangawhero pump station.
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