Whakatane River dredging campaign

Whakatane District Council, New Zealand, is undertaking maintenance dredging of the Whakatane River in the vicinity of Otuawhaki Wharf.

“We’ve kicked off mahi to dredge around the Otuawhaki (Green) Wharf. This will ensure this facility remains usable for all water users,” the Council said. “The channel can get too shallow at times due to shifting sands, so we’re staying on top of it to keep the water depth just right for boaties.”

The Council is aiming to finish the dredging work by the end of the week, weather and tides permitting.

Maintenance dredging of the Whakatane River is being undertaken to maintain access for vessels up to 25m long and with 2m draft.

The dredged sand is taken out to sea in the tidal current, to a point where a proportion of it will carried away by the west-east current along the coast.