Over the past few months (and even well before then) water pollution and water safety issues have reared their ugly head in Wānaka and surrounds. Most recently the Wānaka Sun reported on the presence of human faecal matter in Lake Wānaka, with concern that people are bathing in the lake and nearby waterways.

Concern over local waterway protection related to continuing development and infrastructure has also been raised as possible causes of water pollution in our region. Developers, in conjunction with QLDC for their oversight and approvals of land developments, have an obligation to ensure that the environment is being considered and any pollution risks are mitigated in any development. To find out more about what QLDC is doing about water pollution and environmental protection management in the context of infrastructure and land development, contact Members of the Wānaka-Upper Clutha Community Board: Environment- Linda Joll (+64 21 921 665 or linda.joll@qldc.govt.nz); Economic- Lyal Cocks (+64 27 438 1443 or lyal.cocks@qldc.govt.nz).

If you’re concerned about water quality and safety, you can contact us at info@fobc.kiwi, or contact WAI Wānaka at getinvolved@waiwanaka.nz. You can also report instances of pollution by calling Otago Regional Council on 0800 800 033 or by completing a report online at https://www.orc.govt.nz/environment/report-pollution/

*Find out more about water quality monitoring at https://www.orc.govt.nz/environment/water-care/water-quality/

You can check out the original Wānaka Sun article here: https://digital.thewanakasun.co.nz/html5/default.aspx

Sadly, we are again seeing flooding at the Wetlands and Bullock Creek discoloured with sediment when the sediment ponds from the Alpha Series Development were breached last week.

While the rainfall was significant (88.6mm in 24 hours), our Bullock Creek neighbours will tell you that before the Alpha Series development, even in periods of serious flooding (1999), Bullock Creek did not break its banks nor were the waters discolored.

The Otago Regional Council attended the Wetlands during the downpour to witness the flooding and to take water samples. Representatives from the Wanaka Retirement Village also joined us during our visit.

FOBC will be continuing to pressure QLDC to invest in the critical stormwater infrastructure needed to protect Bullock Creek and Lake Wanaka from inundation and contamination.

You can help too!

In addition to supporting FOBC, don’t forget that you can help by spreading the word about the threats facing Bullock Creek and Lake Wanaka.

• Talk about the storm water management problem with your friends and family.

• If you connect with us through social media - like and share our posts. Facebook and Instagram

• Contact our QLDC Councillors and UC Community Board Members and let them know your concerns and lastly,

• submit your views to the various Projects and Consultations on the QLDC Let’s Talk website

In case you missed it, here’s the link to the FOBC email to members detailing recent correspondence with QLDC.

FOBC and our Community Stakeholders continue to express our extreme disappointment with QLDC's lack of urgent and substantive commitment to protecting our fresh water bodies in the Roy's Bay catchment.

NEXT STEPS…

Our plan is to discuss QLDC's response at our next Friends of Bullock Creek committee meeting. We will also liaise with our Community Stakeholders, to work out what actions we can take going forward. It is proposed that our actions will be to get traction for local government investment in infrastructure and operational initiatives for freshwater protection and look forward to the continue support of our FOBC Members.

WATER QUALITY Vs. HOUSING

Regardless of your views whether or not we need more housing in Wanaka - this month sees a real push by QLDC :

• to open new areas up for housing development: Spatial Plan 2024 Gen 2.0 - Call for urban growth sites: https://letstalk.qldc.govt.nz/spatial-plan-2024-gen-2

• and make district planning changes for the intensification of existing residential areas. Variation to Proposed District Plan - Urban Intensification

The question is: "Can this development be done in a way to ensure no further contamination of our precious Bullock Creek and Lake Wanaka?"

FOBC will be submitting on the QLDC Spatial Plan to ensure that our views regarding the importance of fit for purpose urban stormwater management are recorded. Submissions close on 16 July.

If you'd like to support our submission (or make your own) more details will be posted in this News Section of the FOBC website in the week 3 - 10 July. You can also make your own submission via the QLDC Lets Talk portal - click here.

Also coming down the line in mid July is a variation to the Proposed District Plan regarding Urban Intensification. Importantly many of the areas proposed for intensification are directly south of the headwaters of Bullock Creek and will impact the creek’s health if not managed well.

Further information

• Map showing areas in Wanaka affected - click here and go to Map 4

• Interesting news article from law firm Todd & Walker summarising some of the proposed changes

Source: F&G Council Facebook Post 19 May 2023

The Otago Fish and Game Council have added their voice to the FOBC calls for the promised $6M remedial works to be re-instated in the QLDC Annual Plan.

A media release by the Otago Fish and Game Council has been made today and should appear in the ODT. A full copy of which you can read here, but in summary:

Hearings on the QLDC Annual Plan are being held this coming Monday 22 May in the Armstrong Room at Lake Wanaka Centre. Nancy Latham will be presenting the FOBC submission. Please come and support her if you have a moment.

Stormwater remedial works deferred for 7 years!

As you maybe aware, FOBC recently submitted on the QLDC Annual Plan which has proposed the deferral of $6M Stormwater remedial works for a period of 7 years.    Please feel free to read our full submission here - QLDC Draft Annual Plan  But in summary, FOBC has submitted that:

"Deferring investment in the Stone Street stormwater upgrades as proposed in the QLDC Draft Annual Plan 2023 – 2024 is offloading past generational financial liability as a result of consented regulatory failure, to future governing bodies; and creates an unjustifiable legacy for future generations. 

The ecological health of Roy’s Bay and the tributary creeks will continue to decline with no redress, and the financial and social wellbeing of segments of our community will be impacted. Investment in upgrading the stormwater infrastructure now would enable protection of Lake Wanaka and Bullock Creek, and prevent another seven years of degradation. This timely investment would support the objective of being committed to Te Man o Te Wai, and complying with the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. 

Friends of Bullock Creek request that not only is this deferral of $ 6 million for the Stone Street Storm Water upgrade within the Draft Annual Plan 2023 – 2024 reversed, but a further $4 million is added to this sum to ensure that the upgrades are carried out in an expedient manner and supported by robust analysis to reflect the value we place on our environment and our dependence on our infrastructure for resilience."

This is the second time within a week.

After moderate rain, the storm water pond directly above the spring fed headwaters of Bullock Creek overflowed into Fish and Game’s land, through the Wetland and into Bullock Creek.

On both occasions, the storm water was full of silt and sediment and turned the creek a muddy brown. On the 12thAugust, the water was particularly dirty and it appears that could be due to some of the storm water originating from earthworks or development happening above the Alpha subdivision. This is being investigated by QLDC.

The turbidity, sediment or silt in the creek not only discolours the water but also settles onto the gravels which is not good for the trout spawning areas or the overall ecology.

We have uploaded photos and video of the flooding and subsequent damage to the wetlands to our website gallery. This includes edited video from councillor Quentin Smith who visited the site at 10pm on 16th August when the overflow was at its peak –the video is a disturbing record of how just how bad it was.

Coming just five weeks after the last storm water overflow, this repeated contamination of the wetlands and creek is intensely annoying and frustrating.

As before, the two Triton arches (underground storm water retention tanks/sumps installed by the developer at the bottom of the Alpha Series subdivision) were both completely full. Once again, the pump that QLDC put in to transfer excess storm water out of the pond and into the tanks was not operating.

FOBC has taken this up directly with QLDC, seeking answers to what happened, why and what council is doing to provide solutions. This continuing pollution of Wanaka’s iconic spring-fed water way cannot continue.

You can also view and share photos and videos on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

We’ve had a fair amount of rain recently, but it was not a 1:100 year event by a long chalk.

Yet again, the storm water pond serving the Alpha Series subdivision directly above and adjacent to the spring-fed headwaters of Bullock Creek was filled to capacity and overflowed onto Fish and Game land, through the wetland and into Bullock Creek.

We have uploaded some photos of the flooding and subsequent damage to the Wetlands, to our Website Gallery.

You can see in the photos which were taken on Wednesday morning that there is a fair amount of turbidity, sediment or silt in the creek that is both discolouring the water and settling onto the gravels which is not good for the trout spawning areas - and not good for the overall ecology. Note that water in the pond looks brown and muddy and there’s evidence of industrial rubbish.   We don’t know what contaminants might be in the storm water but given the subdivision is full of occupied houses and builders are constructing new homes near the pond, it’s fair to assume the storm water did contain pollutants. The two Triton arches (underground storm water retention tanks/sumps installed by the developer at the bottom of the Alpha Series subdivision) were both completely full. Hence the pump that QLDC put in to transfer excess storm water out of the pond and into the tanks was not operating.

 ORC Environmental officers were on site on Wednesday observing and recording conditions and FOBC has filed a complaint through ORC’s Pollution Hotline, submitting both photos and video evidence.

You can view further photos and our videos on our Facebook and Instagram pages via the link above.

Alpha series stormwater pond overflowing onto Fish and Game Hatchery Springs land and into Bullock Creek

The pond which collects stormwater from 10 hectares of the Alpha Series subdivision is overflowing on the Hatchery Springs land and into Bullock Creek.

This is after moderately heavy rains - we’ve had 82.6mm over four days, but nothing that could be described as a one in 20 or 50 year event.

The pond which is ultimately designed to attenuate stormwater from one third of the area of the Alpha Series subdivision is full to the brim and overflowing at a rapid rate.

So much so that by 9am this morning, Thursday 30th May, it was ponding across a large area of land adjacent to the Wanaka Retirement Village, up to 200mm deep and creating a flow alongside the boardwalk, at much the same rate of flow as Bullock Creek on the other side.

Untreated stormwater from the overflow eventually enters Bullock Creek.

Friends of Bullock Creek is deeply concerned that the stormwater attenuation pond will never be able to handle the amount of stormwater from 10 hectares of residential housing on the Alpha Series subdivision. It cannot contain the runoff from a few days rain, the stormwater drain from the catchment into the pond is underwater - and that’s before all the hard, impermeable surfaces of houses, rooves, driveways etc are built or completed.

The environmental threat to Bullock Creek and Lake Wanaka is major as is the threat of downstream flooding to properties along Bullock Creek.

FOBC has registered its detailed, researched and factually based concerns to Council and we will be meeting the Mayor and Chief Executive, Mike Theelen on June 12th to discuss how QLDC can prevent the destruction of Bullock Creek and risk of flooding to property owners’ land through Wanaka town.

We believe this is a stormwater time-bomb with the capacity to devastate both Bullock Creek and Wanaka.

You can register your support via our Facebook page but more importantly by contacting council and expressing your concerns as a matter of urgency.

Thank you

Andrew Waterworth, President - FOBC

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Republished from Otago Daily Times.

By Richard Davison.

A recent fish survey has given further impetus to a project to assess and conserve Wanaka’s urban waterways. The survey was conducted in Bullock Creek by members of Fish & Game Otago and the Upper Clutha Lakes Trust as part of the Wanaka Urban Streams survey.

A wider water quality study was announced last week and will examine stormwater flowing in Lake Wanaka from the township. Fish survey spokesman Paul van Klink, of Fish & Game Otago, said the exercise had yielded more than 100 fish, which were caught, measured and released along two separate 100m sections of the creek.

Among them were 70 brown trout ranging from 5cm to 48cm, 28 rainbow trout from 5cm to 54cm, and two native koaro (Galaxias brevipinnis) both about 8cm in length. The koaro is a threatened species and is ranked as declining. Although it has not been recorded in Bullock Creek before, it has been found in other inflowing tributaries of Lake Wanaka.

“A high number of juvenile brown and rainbow trout in both the upper and lower sections confirms the importance of Bullock Creek as a nursery stream for the Lake Wanaka catchment,” Mr van Klink said.
”This is one of only a few spring creeks in the Central Otago region. The survey shows its importance, and the need for it to be protected to support and maintain its freshwater values.”

The Upper Clutha Lakes Trust Wanaka Water Project has more than $385,000 in funding, and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.