Work begins to repair historic Reefton landfill
Repair work on the river rock wall protecting the historic Reefton landfill began this week.
The Buller District Council said the northern bank of the closed Reefton Landfill was scoured away by the Inangahua River during February 2022's severe weather event, causing waste to be swept away.
Major clean-up and river training works have been ongoing since to prepare for work to shore up the wall to withstand a 1 in a 50-year flood.
Council infrastructure delivery manager Eric de Boer said the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) would contribute nearly $1 million towards the project.
"This NEMA funding will help Buller repair its essential infrastructure following the floods. However, the funding does not extend to strengthening the full length of the wall as some sections were not directly affected by the floods."
The council had resolved to contribute $250,000 to strengthen these remaining sections, meaning the whole project was expected to cost about $1.3m, he said.
The work was being carried out by Reefton-based Rosco Contractors Ltd. It began on Monday and was scheduled to be complete by mid-August.
WSP Consulting Engineers (WSP) designed the remedial work on the landfill and prepared the resource consent application.
The repair would involve 12,000 tonnes of rock being placed into the protection works. The rock would be sourced locally, the council said.
“This is great progress for the community and for the environment as it will see the risk of future damage to the old landfill significantly reduced. A lot of planning and careful consideration has gone into this project, and it is great to see it get underway,” de Boer said.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!