Emily Ireland
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A sum of $300,000 may be needed to urgently fix an eroding road under which Featherston’s water supply line runs.
Wellington Water has raised concerns about an historic slip on Boar Bush Rd that has the potential to impact the water main that fills the Boar Bush concrete reservoir and the main supply line from the reservoir to Featherston.
The area was impacted by a slip in June 2020, which snapped the water supply line to Featherston.
Water supply was restored at the time by relocating the pipe away from the slip face and closer to the bank of the other side of Boar Bush Rd.
There is still an older pipe within one metre of the slip face, which concerns Wellington Water.
The risk of failure of this asset is considered high, according to a recent report to South Wairarapa District Council [SWDC], and urgent road stabilising works are needed to prevent ongoing erosion.
The council has now commissioned an engineering assessment that will provide remediation options and an estimate of costs.
It was due to take a number of weeks to complete, however, as engineers were also working on urgent aspects of the Hinakura Rd rebuild, which was impacted by a massive landslide earlier this year.
The council anticipated that the Boar Bush Rd works would be funded through the Rural Rd Reserve and may be “in the order of $300,000”.
In the interim, Wellington Water had contingency plans in place and would be able to react to any failure quickly to minimise the impact on Featherston residents.
This is not the first time in the past year that Featherston’s water supply has been labelled at risk due to failing assets.
In January, it was revealed that the pipe supplying drinking water to Featherston was exposed and leaking in the Tauherenikau riverbed.
The council and Wellington Water have since fortified the pipe for a short-term solution and are investigating long-term options.– NZLDR
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