Interim $150,000 for flood repairs

Press, 14 March 1987, Page 1

Interim $150,000 for flood repairs

Wellington reporter The Government will provide an interim fund of $150,000 to enable a start to be made on repairs to flood protection works damaged in this week’s Southland floods. Damage assessments will be made by the Southland Catchment Board and Ministry of Works and Development staff. The Minister of Works and Development, Mr Colman, said the total damage bill would exceed $150,000. This amount had therefore been recommended as appropriate for interim funding of urgent work. Further claims would

follow once a closer look had been taken at the flooded areas. These claims would be considered as they arose with a view to repairing the damage as soon as possible, Mr Colman said. Christchurch water and soil scientists will immediately begin a regional flood study, which could boost the economic viability of flood protection schemes planned for Southland.

The scientists, from the Ministry’s hydrology centre in Christchurch, would be assisted by the Southland Catchment Board and the Water and Soil Directorate in Dunedin, Mr Colman said. This week’s flooding

clearly showed the need for an urgent up-date of hydrological data. If the study revealed new information another look would have to be taken at protection levels in the area.

“What we are always seeking in these cases is a balance between the costs of protecting property and the costs of replacing it. “If we are facing a more frequent flood than previously estimated, clearly the costs of damage are going to be higher and consequently a higher level of flood protection can be justified,” Mr Colman said. The Government will meet the full costs of the study in its initial stages.