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HEAD OF LAKE WHAKATIPU

COMMUNITY UPDATE 36 | MAY 2024

Kia ora koutou,

In this edition we introduce you to a new team member, Senior Flood Hazard Analyst Nate (Nathan) Anderson. Nate will be based in our Queenstown office and is very much looking forward to working with the community.

There’re also a few reminders below about the online presentation on the socio-economic impact assessment on Wednesday, 22 May, from 7pm, the public release of the assessment on 6 May and its presentation to the ORC Safety and Resilience Committee on 8 May, and our art competition.

Sharing the findings of the socio-economic impact assessment with the community

We look forward to sharing the findings of the first phase of the socio-economic impact assessment in an online presentation at 7pm on Wednesday, 22 May.

This online presentation will be recorded and uploaded to our programme web page for those who could not attend the live session or would like to view it again.

Please note - the Zoom meeting has been updated since the last newsletter, so please use the link, meeting ID and passcode provided below to join this presentation.

New Zoom meeting details:
The meeting link is here.

Meeting ID: 841 5125 9791
Passcode: 962954

Public release of the socio-economic impact assessment report

The socio-economic impact assessment report will be published on the ORC website at the same time that the ORC Safety and Resilience Committee agenda is published on 6 May.

All council agendas, including reports, are available two days before a meeting. This report will then be presented to the committee on 8 May. You can also watch this meeting on the ORC YouTube page.

Image: view of the Buckler Burn, Glenorchy

Future community engagement

We are coming back to the community later in the year to tell you about the findings of two technical assessments, and to work together to understand which adaptation pathways are preferred. These assessments are:

1. Flood and erosion mitigation and nature-based solutions feasibility assessment. This is an assessment of potential engineered flood and erosion management and a ‘nature-based solutions’ approach for the Rees and Dart floodplain areas, and the Glenorchy township. Partially funded by the Ministry for the Environment through the ‘Nature-based Solutions for Resilience Planning’ programme, this project is in progress with the team from Damwatch Ltd and is due to be completed by the middle of next year.
   

    

2. Glenorchy and Kinloch natural hazard risk assessment. Led by consultants at Beca, this natural hazard risk assessment project is progressing well. The hazards with the most detailed risk assessments will be flooding from the Rees and Dart rivers, Lake Whakatipu and the Buckler Burn, and liquefaction and lateral spreading at Glenorchy.

Your feedback is appreciated as we work to come up with a strategy for adapting to and managing some of these hazards.

Image: the Glenorchy wharf

Don’t miss your chance to enter the Head of the Lake Youth Art Competition!

All you need to do is to create a picture using the theme ‘What does the Head of the Lake mean to you?’

We are looking for entries from children and young people aged 17 and under to show us what they love about the Head of the Lake!

Be creative — your art could be a painting, drawing, collage or anything else you choose.

Entries close 12 noon Thursday, 9 May 2024.

The top entries will receive a voucher for books or art supplies, and have their artwork featured in the ORC’s Head of Lake Whakatipu natural hazards adaptation strategy.

Who can enter?

Children and young people aged 17 and under.

How do you enter?

1. Download the entry form here.
   
   

2. Create your picture.
   
   

3. Drop your completed form and your artwork into collection boxes at Glenorchy Primary School or Glenorchy Motors by 12 noon Thursday, 9 May 2024.
   
   

4. Or, send it via email to headofthelake@orc.govt.nz. Please ensure scanned images of the artwork are high resolution (minimum 300dpi) if sending via email.

Image: view of the Dart River delta

Adaptation education continues at Glenorchy Primary School

We are really excited to be working with Enviroschools at Glenorchy Primary School again this month.

Our focus is on how the landscape changes over time, how people have adapted to these changes in the past and present, and what adaptation could look like in the future.

Meet the Team

Nate Anderson — Senior Flood Hazard Analyst

Nate joined the Natural Hazards team in April. He is a senior flood hazard modeller focused on flood mapping, planning, and identifying flood risk areas. He will also be looking to study potential projects to evaluate their overall effectiveness prior to implementation.    

Nate is originally from the United States, where he spent much of his career as a civil engineer in the private sector designing a variety of flood control structures and drainage improvements. Nate also has an agricultural background and has worked with private landowners to design and implement conservation measures. He enjoys fishing, gardening, and bee keeping.

Image: Nate Anderson

As always, we value your feedback

This adaptation programme was initiated because complex, increasing natural hazards in the Head of Lake Whakatipu require a comprehensive management response that takes a long-term view and encompasses all types of natural hazards.

This is your community, and we want to work with you to develop understanding and resilience. Check here to learn more about the whole programme.

If you have questions or need information, visit our website to see the reports and get answers.

You can also speak to a member of the ORC Natural Hazards team on 0800 474 082 or email us for more information at headofthelake@orc.govt.nz.

We will provide responses to any emailed questions and facilitate answers from our consultants if needed.

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Contacts

If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with us, please email us at headofthelake@orc.govt.nz.