Whangawehi repairs

Sea, salt, wind and rain are constantly reshaping Whangawehi Harbour so this month Quality Roading and Services staff have been working tidal shifts as they repair parts of the narrow coastal road.

Arnold Smith, Jarel Tarawhiti, Sami Banuve and Dason Haapu say they’re enjoying their time working on the northern side of Mahia Peninsular.

Despite being at the mercy of the tides they’ve found time to appreciate the view and once had to rescue a visitor’s vehicle that got stuck in the heavy sand. 

Whangawehi Harbour is located at the mouth of Whangawehi Stream. There are two public boat ramps there helping visitors and locals explore the waterways.

In some places Mahia East Coast Rd is protected by rock revetment seawalls, but in other areas relentless sea and weather conditions have battered the coastline and over time the land has weakened and crumbled. Eventually, the road is eroded.

Strengthened rock revetments help control erosion by armouring beachside faces. They dissipate the energy of storm waves and prevent further recession of land if they are well designed and maintained.

The large corner revetment will in time feature a base course and sealing as well as a vegetated wall system which gets stronger and greener as time goes on.

QRS is doing around $300,000 worth of repairs in the area on behalf of Wairoa District Council.

27 August 2020

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