Latest news with #Tūhura
Scoop
07-07-2025
- General
- Scoop
Tunnel Boring Machine Returns After Installing Watercare's $22 Million Outfall
Press Release – Watercare Watercare programme delivery manager Dave Kennerley says the outfall will initially carry highly treated wastewater from the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently being upgraded. A 19.5 tonne tunnel-boring machine docked at Onehunga Wharf after successfully tunnelling Watercare's $22m Clarks Beach Outfall over the past seven weeks. The 1.2 metre-wide TBM was secured to the keel of a 4m-long barge for its journey back to land. The outfall is a key component of a broader infrastructure programme designed to support the projected population growth in Auckland's south-west, which is expected to reach approximately 30,000 people by 2050. Watercare programme delivery manager Dave Kennerley says the outfall will initially carry highly treated wastewater from the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently being upgraded. 'The outfall has been designed and sized to support future population growth, as well as to store and discharge treated wastewater approximately 100 metres into the Waiuku Channel – a highly dynamic part of the harbour where it will quickly disperse. 'The wastewater that will be dispersed from the outfall will be of exceptionally high quality – and will only be discharged on the outgoing tide.' Watercare project manager Jason Salmon says it took the TBM seven weeks to tunnel and install the outfall, which popped out at a receiving pit 10 metres under the sea mid-last month. 'After completing a seamless 240 metre drive – chewing through soil, weathered and formation rock to a depth of around 13 metres underground – the TBM sat on the seabed for two weeks. 'This allowed a crew of specialised divers to securely plug the outfall, preventing seawater intrusion, and safely secure the TBM to the underside of the pontoon. 'The pontoon is part of a larger fleet which includes three other hardworking vessels: The Combi, Iona and Tūhura, all of which can be seen working on the harbour from Clarks Beach.' Salmon says the TBM is now undergoing crucial maintenance. 'The crew is focused on carrying out the piling work to establish a solid foundation for the 66 metre long diffuser. 'The Tūhura will drive seven large columns into the ground to create a sturdy base for the diffuser that will connect into the outfall the TBM has dug and installed. 'The role of the diffuser is to disperse treated wastewater through 22 rubber nozzles, which look like duck bills due to their shape. 'The duck bill design allows the periodic release of treated wastewater to flow out but stops sea water flowing in.' Salmon says the outfall will be brought into service at the same time as the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades, which are expected to be completed by June next year. 'People will be able to continue to watch the vessels hard at work from Waiau Beach, the Clarks Beach Gold Club or near the Clarks Beach Yacht Club until late 2025 when the outfall is complete.'
Scoop
07-07-2025
- General
- Scoop
Tunnel Boring Machine Returns After Installing Watercare's $22 Million Outfall
Press Release – Watercare Watercare programme delivery manager Dave Kennerley says the outfall will initially carry highly treated wastewater from the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently being upgraded. A 19.5 tonne tunnel-boring machine docked at Onehunga Wharf after successfully tunnelling Watercare's $22m Clarks Beach Outfall over the past seven weeks. The 1.2 metre-wide TBM was secured to the keel of a 4m-long barge for its journey back to land. The outfall is a key component of a broader infrastructure programme designed to support the projected population growth in Auckland's south-west, which is expected to reach approximately 30,000 people by 2050. Watercare programme delivery manager Dave Kennerley says the outfall will initially carry highly treated wastewater from the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently being upgraded. 'The outfall has been designed and sized to support future population growth, as well as to store and discharge treated wastewater approximately 100 metres into the Waiuku Channel – a highly dynamic part of the harbour where it will quickly disperse. 'The wastewater that will be dispersed from the outfall will be of exceptionally high quality – and will only be discharged on the outgoing tide.' Watercare project manager Jason Salmon says it took the TBM seven weeks to tunnel and install the outfall, which popped out at a receiving pit 10 metres under the sea mid-last month. 'After completing a seamless 240 metre drive – chewing through soil, weathered and formation rock to a depth of around 13 metres underground – the TBM sat on the seabed for two weeks. 'This allowed a crew of specialised divers to securely plug the outfall, preventing seawater intrusion, and safely secure the TBM to the underside of the pontoon. 'The pontoon is part of a larger fleet which includes three other hardworking vessels: The Combi, Iona and Tūhura, all of which can be seen working on the harbour from Clarks Beach.' Salmon says the TBM is now undergoing crucial maintenance. 'The crew is focused on carrying out the piling work to establish a solid foundation for the 66 metre long diffuser. 'The Tūhura will drive seven large columns into the ground to create a sturdy base for the diffuser that will connect into the outfall the TBM has dug and installed. 'The role of the diffuser is to disperse treated wastewater through 22 rubber nozzles, which look like duck bills due to their shape. 'The duck bill design allows the periodic release of treated wastewater to flow out but stops sea water flowing in.' Salmon says the outfall will be brought into service at the same time as the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades, which are expected to be completed by June next year. 'People will be able to continue to watch the vessels hard at work from Waiau Beach, the Clarks Beach Gold Club or near the Clarks Beach Yacht Club until late 2025 when the outfall is complete.'
Scoop
06-07-2025
- General
- Scoop
Tunnel Boring Machine Returns After Installing Watercare's $22 Million Outfall
A 19.5 tonne tunnel-boring machine docked at Onehunga Wharf after successfully tunnelling Watercare's $22m Clarks Beach Outfall over the past seven weeks. The 1.2 metre-wide TBM was secured to the keel of a 4m-long barge for its journey back to land. The outfall is a key component of a broader infrastructure programme designed to support the projected population growth in Auckland's south-west, which is expected to reach approximately 30,000 people by 2050. Watercare programme delivery manager Dave Kennerley says the outfall will initially carry highly treated wastewater from the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently being upgraded. 'The outfall has been designed and sized to support future population growth, as well as to store and discharge treated wastewater approximately 100 metres into the Waiuku Channel – a highly dynamic part of the harbour where it will quickly disperse. 'The wastewater that will be dispersed from the outfall will be of exceptionally high quality – and will only be discharged on the outgoing tide.' Watercare project manager Jason Salmon says it took the TBM seven weeks to tunnel and install the outfall, which popped out at a receiving pit 10 metres under the sea mid-last month. 'After completing a seamless 240 metre drive – chewing through soil, weathered and formation rock to a depth of around 13 metres underground – the TBM sat on the seabed for two weeks. 'This allowed a crew of specialised divers to securely plug the outfall, preventing seawater intrusion, and safely secure the TBM to the underside of the pontoon. 'The pontoon is part of a larger fleet which includes three other hardworking vessels: The Combi, Iona and Tūhura, all of which can be seen working on the harbour from Clarks Beach.' Salmon says the TBM is now undergoing crucial maintenance. "The crew is focused on carrying out the piling work to establish a solid foundation for the 66 metre long diffuser. 'The Tūhura will drive seven large columns into the ground to create a sturdy base for the diffuser that will connect into the outfall the TBM has dug and installed. 'The role of the diffuser is to disperse treated wastewater through 22 rubber nozzles, which look like duck bills due to their shape. 'The duck bill design allows the periodic release of treated wastewater to flow out but stops sea water flowing in.' Salmon says the outfall will be brought into service at the same time as the Clarks Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrades, which are expected to be completed by June next year. 'People will be able to continue to watch the vessels hard at work from Waiau Beach, the Clarks Beach Gold Club or near the Clarks Beach Yacht Club until late 2025 when the outfall is complete.'
Otago Daily Times
05-07-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Photographers make finals
Oamaru's photographic talent came into sharp focus at Otago's largest nature photography competition at the Tūhura Otago Museum in Dunedin last week. The exhibition of photographs, titled "Otago's Lens on the Wild World", opened last week and runs until October 12 in the museum's special exhibitions gallery. More than 4450 entries were submitted across Otago, and finalists included Oamaru photographers Tom Davies and Gary Speer. Mr Davies had four images chosen from the wildlife, botanical and natural abstract categories, while Mr Speer had two images selected as finalists in the exhibition, which celebrates the region's biodiversity and creativity. Mr Davies said it was an honour and a shock to be recognised by the museum. "It came as quite a surprise, especially knowing how rich and diverse the talent pool is in New Zealand. "Now that the shock has worn off, I feel deeply grateful that I get to live in a part of the world as beautiful as Otago and how lucky we are to have all this on our doorstep," he said. Tūhura Otago Museum marketing manager Charlie Buchan said it was a "huge achievement" for both photographers to be chosen as finalists. Their entries included stunning photographs of fungi, flowers and Oamaru's local wildlife, showcasing the breadth and creativity of nature photography coming out of the North Otago region, Mr Buchan said. Oamaru made a strong impression with a significant number of standout entries, he said. "It highlights the town's growing reputation as a hub for amateur photographers inspired by the wild beauty of their local environment. "The exhibition brings together the best of what our region sees every day, through the lenses of people who really care about the natural world around them," Mr Buchan said. The 2025 Tūhura Otago Museum Photographer of the Year was won by Sam McGee, 17, of Dunedin, for his entry, Water Wings. He also won the wildlife youth section.
Scoop
29-06-2025
- Science
- Scoop
Coastal Survey Of Molyneux Bay Starts Shortly
Press Release – Otago Regional Council ORCs Natural Hazards Analyst, Julion [JULION] Wright, says the survey is to determine the current dimensions of the coastal Clutha sand wedge deposit, which ultimately spills river sediment into the Southern Ocean. ORC is about to begin a bathymetric coastal survey in Molyneux Bay to observe seafloor elevations of transects of the 6500-year-old 'sand wedge' made up of sediment from the Clutha – Mata Au River. ORC's Natural Hazards Analyst, Julion [JULION] Wright, says the survey is to determine the current dimensions of the coastal Clutha 'sand wedge' deposit, which ultimately spills river sediment into the Southern Ocean. 'The sand wedge deposit's an important part of the South Otago sediment system, containing a large volume of sediment that may, or may not be, contributing to the stability of the coast,' he says. The 'modern' sediment of the wedge is formed by deposits of material from the Clutha River over the last 6500 years. 'This survey will be compared to a similar ORC survey from 2013 to map any changes in the sand wedge deposit. The results of this will have future implications for coastal and river management in South Otago,' Mr Wright says. Those future implications could potentially include a better understanding of sediment accumulation and movement, as well as river mouth and coastal erosion effects, he says. Molyneux Bay is just south of Balclutha township and encompasses the mouth of the Clutha Mata Au River, down to the Nugget Point lighthouse, which is south of Kaka Point township. The offshore survey will be conducted by Geomatics NZ and use a single-beam echo sounder mounted on the University of Otago's Marine Science vessel, RV Tūhura*. The 6.5m vessel will not be streaming any devices astern, and over a week is expected to travel about 180 kilometres within Molyneux Bay (map below). The survey is scheduled for July, but the timing is otherwise entirely weather-dependent. Mr Wright says the shallower part of the sand wedge is influenced by discharges from the Clutha as well as coastal processes. The offshore surveying will also be extended onshore with land surveying techniques to cover the coastal morphology (shape and structure); the gap between the onshore and offshore surveys having already been covered by an earlier 2025 airborne bathymetric LiDAR survey (Light Detection and Ranging Once the survey is complete, it will take up to 3 weeks to process the raw data, to form 2D imagery, which will then be analysed to interpret what changes may, or may not, have occurred since the previous survey in 2013. The results will then be made publicly available. Survey area within Molyneux Bay *The university's RV Tūhura is described as 6.5 m aluminium powerboat for up to six people. It can support restricted oceanographic work, limited bottom sampling, trawling and diving, for operations around coastal Otago and inland
