Our infrastructure teams were on alert this week when MetService issued orange heavy rain warnings for parts of the district.

When notified about such events, council staff and contractors immediately prepare by clearing drains and sumps at known flooding spots, and reducing flow in stockwater races.

During the event we closely monitor our water, wastewater, stormwater and stockwater networks and respond to issues as they develop, which can sometimes be overwhelming in severe rain events, as in May 2021.

The Council Infrastructure Services Group is responsible for the management of drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, stockwater, roads and waste minimisation (rubbish and recycling).

This past year, we have ticked off some significant projects for the district.

The CBD upgrade, at around $18 million, started just before covid struck and despite some pretty big challenges, including two lockdowns and maintaining access for businesses and their customers, the project finished on time and within budget. The only outstanding issue is the installation of the parking sensors, as they are currently held up overseas due to supply chain disruptions.

The upgrade was important as a vibrant CBD is essential for the town and Council is doing its part alongside building owners and businesses to encourage more people into the CBD.

The $10m Ashburton Relief Sewer project was completed recently, and is already taking wastewater (sewage and grey water) from the eastern area of Ashburton under the Ashburton River to the pump station and treatment facility at Wilkins Road.

This kind of infrastructure will help Ashburton town cope with the anticipated population growth over the next 50 years, and if the demand for more development continues, we will certainly need it.

Our roads continue to be a big focus with an extra $1.7m put into this year’s budget for improvements.

Water is the enemy of roads, and last year’s big flood and rain like this week can lead to more potholes and failures of the road surface. When potholes open up at this time of the year, we temporarily repair them until we can permanently repair them in the warmer months.

As a result of consultation on our Annual Plan, Council added some new footpaths to the roading programme.

One is a grit path alongside State Highway 77 from Methven to the new Opuke hot pools, and the other is a grit path on Racecourse Road, from Charlesworth Drive to Allens Road. This latter path won’t be sealed until EA Networks has completed undergrounding their electricity network in the area, but will provide safer passage for pedestrians in the meantime.

Key projects for us in the water space include the Methven and Methven Springfield combined water treatment plant, the Mount Somers water treatment plant, a second bore for Rakaia, and a host of sewer main renewals and relining work.