The floods from Cyclone Gabrielle dumped an estimated five million cubic metres of silt on homes, orchards, farms, and roads in Hawke’s Bay.
The silt dumped on the region was one of the most challenging issues faced in the months immediately after the cyclone – not only due to the sheer volume and difficulty in removing it but the psychological impact of it remaining as a reminder of the devastation the flooding caused.
Hastings District Council and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council came together to set up the Silt Recovery Taskforce to deal with the clean up as effectively and efficiently as possible.
In the immediate aftermath of the cyclone, Frank Engagement worked closely with Hawke’s Bay councils, Civil Defence and Waka Kotahi on the response so we understood the needs of impacted communities. In April 2023, we stepped in to support the Silt Recovery Taskforce – communicating the strategy for silt, debris, and waste collection and long-term management of collection sites, informing and giving the community confidence in the approach, and demonstrating the collaboration between Hastings District Council and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council to address this significant regional issue.
The Taskforce had to develop systems and processes as it went for collecting the silt, waste, and debris, finding sites for disposal, consenting, and figuring out long-term options for the silt, debris, and waste.
Likewise, the methods for ensuring the impacted communities understood what they need to do to clean up Te Matau-a-Māui was rapidly developed alongside this – with newsletters, videos and social media key to quickly getting information out to impacted communities.
Frank Engagement provides a range of on-going communications services from strategic advice to directly engaging mana whenua, impacted residents, contractors, other councils and government agencies, and media.
