Mataura River Crossing Project

We will be looking further into the option of putting the pipelines under the Mataura River. Thanks for taking part in this project.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to give us feedback. You can read the feedback and an analysis by following the links on the right of this page.

The Council considered your responses at a meeting on 16 May and decided to go peoples' preferred option of drilling the pipeline under the river. Our staff will report in the near future on the next steps including:

recommended investigation works to minimise the risk associated with drilling,
recommended procurement methodology,
estimated project programme, and
budget breakdown.

We’re working to improve the quality of drinking water supplied to our communities onContinue reading

Thanks to everyone who took the time to give us feedback. You can read the feedback and an analysis by following the links on the right of this page.

recommended investigation works to minimise the risk associated with drilling,
recommended procurement methodology,
estimated project programme, and
budget breakdown.

We’re working to improve the quality of drinking water supplied to our communities on the west side of the Mataura River.

Our new treatment plant in East Gore is now complete - but we need to get two water pipelines across the river to the Jacobstown Wells so we can deliver water that meets national drinking water standards. Right now, a third of Gore residents are missing out.

There are a few ways the water could be pumped across the river – but before we spend money on additional technical investigations, we’d like to know what you think.

A bit of background

In 2019, we planned a new bridge across the river near Surrey Street that would not only carry the water pipes but would also allow for cyclists and pedestrians. We saw this as an opportunity to add a great asset to our town, providing a facility for people who love to walk and cycle to have another way of getting across the river.

However, we know now we moved too quickly with this proposal and didn’t check in with you, our community, as to what you would like to see. We could have done better. So - we’ve gone back to the drawing board.

This time, we’ll work closely with mana whenua and the wider community to come up with a way to get the water pipeline across the river.

We asked consulting firm Beca to look at our options and rank them based on four factors:

cultural
social
economic
environmental

The high-level assessment considered things like:

The cost to ratepayers and alternative funding opportunities,
Constructability,
Possible impacts on people,
Impacts on the river/floods and
Sustainability.

Beca also worked with representatives from the Hokonui Rūnanga to consider cultural wellbeing and values.

Its report covered 13 options and various locations. Based on the report's findings, we are asking for feedback on:

Drilling the water pipes under the river at Maitland Street, or
Building a bridge at one of four locations to carry the pipelines over the river and provide a link between east and west Gore for cyclists and pedestrians.

You can read the report here - Options Assessment Report

We’d like your help

There are different ways to get the water across the river and each comes with its own risks, benefits and costs.

The original cable stay bridge design is NOT among the options.

The costs below are high-level estimates. We will need to complete further investigation and design work before we have a more accurate understanding of the costs.

It is our understanding a Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency partnership will bring 59% funding, which would reduce the overall cost to ratepayers.

Some options may not be eligible for this funding because their location wouldn’t encourage as many people to walk or bike to school and work.

Building a bridge would take around two years, including consenting, design and construction.

If we choose to forget about the pedestrian and cycling options, we will just focus on getting the pipelines across the river. This would likely involve drilling under the river at Maitland Street.

Trenching directly through the river is not favoured as it’s unproven under current legislation. We are not aware of any other similar projects where trenching has been used to install a pipe across a river like the Mataura.

It’s a tough call and whatever we pick will involve more technical investigations.

Before we go any further, we want to know if people want a walking and cycling bridge across the river. Or do you simply want the water just to get where it needs to go?

Drilling under the river means:

It’s the shortest route from the East Gore treatment plant to the Jacobstown Wells
It is less likely to be susceptible to flood damage
There’s an unknown degree of difficulty therefore risk of significant cost increase
It doesn’t add to Gore’s lifestyle values
There would be no co-funding potential
It wouldn’t need a publicly notified resource consent
Estimated cost to the Council: $3.6m to $4.1m

While each bridge option has different pros and cons (we talk about these later), there are some common factors.

These include:

It will add to the town’s amenity values
It will provide a safer route for pedestrians and cyclists to cross the river
It will be built to higher specifications than the existing traffic and railway bridges
It will take longer to complete than drilling under the river
It is estimated to cost more than drilling
It’s likely to require a notified resource consent

Information on each of the four bridge options can be found under the 'bridge options' tab below. Please familiarise yourself with these options before completing the feedback form. To view these bridge options on a map, click on the map tab below or follow this link - Go to map