{"id":440200,"date":"2026-05-22T15:31:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T15:31:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/440200\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T15:31:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T15:31:18","slug":"sunlive-swimming-hole-disappears-after-earthworks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/440200\/","title":{"rendered":"SunLive – Swimming hole disappears after earthworks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Earthworks carried out on the Waiaua Stream have left some in the \u014cmarumutu community near \u014cp\u014dtiki dismayed at the loss of its popular swimming hole.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no public river beach access and no swimming hole anymore in the Waiaua Stream,\u201d resident Grant Kelly said.<\/p>\n

He has questioned the Bay of Plenty Regional Council\u2019s process in allowing the work to be done without the community or hap\u016b being consulted.<\/p>\n

Kelly said the river was used by swimmers, including \u014cmarumutu School students, whitebaiters, flounder fishers and paddleboarders.<\/p>\n

He is trying to establish a care group for the Waiaua River valley to plant native trees and shrubs along the river, which he feels has been neglected, with invasive willows prominent and regular flooding.<\/p>\n

The regional council agrees the river is prone to flooding adjoining farmland.<\/p>\n

Coastal catchments manager Charles Harley said the Waiaua River was not part of the council\u2019s river management scheme and ongoing river maintenance was generally the responsibility of adjoining landowners.<\/p>\n

He said the council had been aware of the work being undertaken and liaised with local landowners beforehand.<\/p>\n

The earthworks did not require a resource consent as they met the permitted activity rules contained within the regional council\u2019s Natural Resources Plan.<\/p>\n

These rules allow certain river management and maintenance activities to occur without a consent, provided a range of environmental conditions are met.<\/p>\n

These include requirements relating to erosion control, protection of fish passage, timing of works, and management of sediment and debris.<\/p>\n

Harley said Waiaua River had a highly mobile riverbed and was prone to changing channels during floods.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn these environments, targeted works can help reduce erosion loss,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"

\nThe Waiaua River valley regularly floods.<\/p>\n

Although the work did not require any public notification, in the lead-up, the regional council engaged with Te Whakat\u014dhea to discuss the background to the activity, why the work was being proposed, and the relevant planning framework, he said.<\/p>\n

Kelly felt the earthworks contrasted hugely with modern thinking about river management, which was to leave the river alone and retreat further back and plant natives along the edges.<\/p>\n

The local hap\u016b had previously carried out native planting on the road side of the river.<\/p>\n

\u2013 LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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