'Authors of Buller's misfortune': Flood protection funding bid fails

Efforts to cover a shortfall in the more than $22 million Westport flood protection scheme have suffered a blow after a bid for Government funding was rejected.

In a statement this morning, the West Coast Regional Council (WCRC) announced its pitch for $6.7million from the Regional Infrastructure Fund (RIF) has been rejected.The funding was intended to build stopbanks at the settlement of Carters Beach, 7km southwest of Westport, which was not initially included in the scheme.

The council requested $6.7m from the total national RIF package of $84m.

Reacting, Buller Mayor Chris Russell said the West Coast mayors may now have to take matters into their own hands if the WCRC can't secure flood protection funding for various projects across the region.

Mr Russell said he is "extremely disappointed" at the rejection -- along with the cost blowout for the scheme earlier announced by the regional council after it took a number of years to identify the shortfall, with the scheme now expected to cost more than $33 million.

Snodgrass Road resident and Buller District councillor Paul Reynolds, a trenchant critic of how the flood protection scheme was conceived, today described the regional council as the "authors of Buller's misfortune".

Mr Reynolds said in light of the latest funding failure he continues to hold the WCRC responsible for the viability issues of the scheme.

He is planning a petition to Parliament seeking to remove the WCRC from oversight of the scheme.

The final costs of the new flood protection scheme remain his primary concern, he said.

"$33.8m may not be the final figure."This followed iterative rising costs being announced, initially an estimated $5m, then $8m followed by $10m and $12m."Now it is going to go 15. So, we can only look on the pessimistic side," Mr Reynolds said.

A fortnight ago, the council announced two options for a "reset" of the scheme.

Both proposals would nearly double the cost of the original project announced in 2023.

Westport residents will be consulted for a month from September 21 on an "optimised hybrid scheme" costing $38.7 million, with an additional shortfall of $22m.

It means the scheme will cost more while scaling back the level of protection under the original scheme to a one-in-67-year flood, instead of a one-in-100-year flood.

The new scheme does not account for future climate change scenarios, as requested by the previous government.

Mr Russell said in light of the uncertain future for the regional council anyway the West Coast mayors may have to look at other ways to secure funding for flood protection in the region.

He also questioned why the regional council had not opted in the first place for the 'optimised hybrid scheme'.

"My question is, if we are now going for plan B because plan A is unaffordable, then why didn't we go for plan B to start with if plan B is providing a level of protection for the town of Westport and its residents that can do the job, then why were we looking at some other option initially?"

Mr Russell said he has asked the WCRC to postpone its planned public consultation on its "reset" scheme until it can provide better financial and technical modelling for the two proposed options it has put up.He had not yet received a response from the regional council.

WCRC chief executive Darryl Lew today acknowledged the "frustration" and "anxiety" surrounding the scheme."

We recognise the community has had a lot to absorb with our recent announcements about a funding shortfall, and this could feel like another blow," he said in a statement."

We understand this can cause frustration and even anxiety about what is going to happen next."

Mr Lew said a significant amount of work, planning and effort had gone on "behind the scenes" to find further external funding, "and we aren't about to stop in our efforts to bring the scheme to fruition".