Project Aqua Play Hole
Submitted by jurgen on Mon, 2002-10-21 22:24.
Probably not the best place to stick this query.
By reading in the newspaper and the vibe I pick up here in the waitaki valley it sounds like it is not a matter of will Project Aqua happen but rather when will it happen.
If so does anyone out there have experience in dealing with Meridian Energy and the best way to get a rodeo play hole out of them ?
Shouldnt have to cost much and the huge advantage here is that the water will flow all the time and not just a few days a year such as with Pukaki, Tekapo, Hawea etc..
Kurow is fairly central for south Island and it would be pretty awesome to have a lovely park & play wave going all the time.
Hi Jurgen,
I am a teacher at St Kevins college in Oamaru and I have recently started the ball rolling with building slalom course at the black point irrigation intake near Duntroon. If you are interested in joining or expanding on this to include a play hole (perhaps at a steeper location) our combinedefforts would probably yield more in terms of sponsorship dollars andresource consent issues than each of us working alone.
Drop me a line.
Aidan
P.s the approval process for the slalom course is already underway, with
lots of support from the landowners.
Thanks for your opinion, Simon.
In my personal opinion, if the NZRCA submits at all, it will likely submit to have the Aqua resource consents declined. However, we also need to outline what kind of mitigation Meridian would need to undertake in order to preserve the recreational amenity as much as possible, in the event that the request to decline is rejected.
Since resource consents are assessed on a case-by-case basis, a submitter would need to make the case for the significance of the recreational opportunity that would be affected by the granting of the consent.
The NZRCA does not have an unlimited supply of time and energy. We need to prioritise our battles very carefully to preserve our energy and funds for the most significant threats to kayaking opportunities.
Individual paddlers, especially those have direct experience of the sections, should submit according to their preferences. The NZRCA can assist you with a submission- you may wish to contact conservation@rivers.org.nz
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Interesting that this disscussion is going on on a conservation page????? Conserving rivers in their natural state, or as close to it as we possibly can is surely what paddlers should be working towards. Project Aqua is by no means a done deal and we should be really aware of appearing to support the scheme. If a group of rivers uses such as kayakers are seen to be supporting Meridian this may just tip the balance in the favour of Meridian and not the way of the river! Even though the lower Waitaki doesnt have great rapids will set the precedent for other rivers if Aqua goes ahead.
And I thought paddlers liked rivers in their natual state...Where are your priorities at people? Remember the Nevis is next on the list. Not to mention the Hirinui, and the Arnold. The (Southland) Waiau would have been cool before they dammed it too. And the Roxbourough Gorge. What about the Kawarau at the Clutha confluence? And imagine if they'd put a dam on the Kawarau downstream of the Nevis Confluence and piped the water to downstream of Meg. No Meg, no Citrin, no Dog Leg no Nevis Bluff, no Retrospect. Perhaps we should be working to preserve the amazing resources we already have rather than piggybacking on a project that will @!#$ on the last tiny remnet of the biggest braided river system in the country. While it might seem like you're trying to make the most of a bad situation, adding a playhole to the benefits of Aqua may tip the balance in its favour.
Not much on the web that I can find.
Try www.hydroenvironments.com. They've developed a mobile hole. Simple design and not much power but a usable pourover.
Also www.hurleyweir.com
This is an artificial structure, Hurley Weir in London UK which is a good rodeo spot and has the advantage of being designed and constructed. The excellent wave developed through sheer good luck, not through any concerted effort by the engineers. Search "Hurley Weir" on Google, loads of shots.
You could also check out Holme Pierrepont Canoe Slalom Course, although the waves aren't as good there.
My suggestion is to get hold of the engineering drawings of Hurley Weir, then contact the LEGEND known as Shaun Baker (shaun@hurleyweir.com), he should be able to tell you about optimum discharges and upstream/downstream levels, or put you in touch with the lockmaster.
During the final year of my engineering degree I did some research on playhole hydraulics, unfortunately I didn't get very far due to my lecturers not having a clue what I was trying to achieve and being unable to offer any guidance, and the fact that hydraulic theory is too macroscopic to be able to predict detailed flow paths. Hydraulics is more of a 'big picture' science. Fluid dynamics doesn't throw much more light on the issue and it's REAL complicated. I'm afraid it's still pretty much a question of intuition, trial and error!
To my knowledge there are no computer models available that will compute 3D liquid flow paths over a given surface. If you want to run experiments you'll need a flume and a reasonable knowledge of fluid dynamics, namely Reynolds numbers and how they affect your scaled down model.
One day I'll go back to do a Masters or PhD and sort it out properly, now that I've got some real civil engineering experience. For now it's still chuck some concrete in, set the juice loose and see what happens :)
I noticed the following site has been added to the NZRCA Links page. Have a look at for some potentially useful information on artificial whitewater courses and features around the world, including some research papers.
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I am involved with developing a playhole at Meeting of Waters power station tailrace in New Plymouth.
At this stage we have all permissions to proceed with the work, and have had one session with the digger.The result was a partial success and we have some more work ahead of us.We are in fact going to use some waste concrete blocks- the local mould is 1150*760*500 deep. These will be used to create the ledge.
Anyway some questions-can anyone help here.
1.Are there any websites on how to build playholes
2.Is there anything available in regard to hydraulic design of a playhole. There really needs to be some guidelines otherwise there is a lot of trial and error involved. The main variable is waterflow, with the other variables being width of the constriction, difference in height between upper and lower pools, and position of the ledge. In our first attempt our constriction was 3 meters.
With a flow of 7 cumecs this resulted in a height difference between upper and lower pools of 500mm- a pourover really, good for pirouettes and quick flips. We want a controlled cartwheel practice hole. We are now aiming for a height difference of 200mm and to achieve this we are going to lower the ledge and increase the width to 4 meters. More trial and error perhaps.
Perhaps someone could publish the vital statistics of a successful playhole e.g. the one on the Mangahao Slalom site.
Whereabouts is the stop,n throw spot by the way.Is it the Mangahao Slalom site or the Manawatu river?
I agree Muzz - we need to get some resources together - we've been eyeing up the tailrace of our local powerstation here for a while..... a little wave/hole with a eddies either side would be quite nice.... Any tips on getting a proposal together for a feature that will work as intended, and how to talk to power companies and councils would be handy!!
Hi, I am from Palm Nth and have spent some time building waves and holes at our local Stop'nThro spot. Resource consents are the biggie. Making friends with the local concrete supplier is a good move. We got free 1m x 1m blocks with a steel eye in them free (they empty the mixer into pre-boxed moulds everytime they finish a job. These can be used, in conjunction with a small digger, crane and steel cable to create a very cheap and effective feature.
As part of the consultation process for local residents which is happening in Kurow next week I am going to request/propose a surfing wave (or 2 or 3 next to each other) such as the top wave at the Tekapo WW course. This will entail minimal costs and because water will be flowing ALL the time should bring a smile to the faces of all rodeo paddlers.
The NP playhole project sounds really exciting.
have you been swapping ideas with the Palmerston North crew, as I understand they are doing great things too.
Soon theres going to be a lot of good knowledge around the country about how to do these things well - which will always be very useful. I'd be keen to hear some more about your project.
Cheers
Muzz
Hi Jurgen
Interested in your playhole proposal
I belong to the NP Kayak Club and we are currently in the process of building a playhole in the tailrace of the local powerstation. Physically this involves moving a few boulders with a digger (this is going to happen in December). Work is financed by a grant of $2500. There has been quite a lot of permissions to get from DOC, Regional & local councils, Trustpower, etc. Also design of playhole
issues. Finding out who's land the playhole was on was tricky. So its been 2 years to get this far from conception.
Do not know anything about your scheme and whether our experience is at all relevant. However feel free to swap notes if you wish. Otherwise best of luck with it.
Cheers Mark
Jurgen
Try again contact me at niconservation@rivers.org.nz
Graeme.
Hi Jurgen
You have a good point. Can you contact me on the above e-mail address so we can discuss this.
Graeme.