Sand Dune Recovery Underway At Sunset Beach

Heavy storms these past two weeks have caused extensive damage to the sand dunes at Sunset Beach in Port Waikato.

Waikato District Council has restricted pedestrian and vehicle access from the Sunset Beach car park as recovery work is carried out.

Waikato District Council Acting Water and Facilities General Manager, Mervyn Sumanaratne, said large tides and storms had caused erosion damage to access areas affecting public access to Sunset Beach.

“There is also a 12 metre section of dunes near the viewing platform where plants have been damaged or haven’t established themselves due to pedestrian and animal traffic. This has caused this section to become unstable and collapse down onto the beach. In the past month we installed fencing to stop access to this area so nature could have a chance at repairing itself. Sadly this has been washed down in the storms,” he said.

Council is working alongside Waikato Regional Council and consultants to survey the damage and develop future plans to ensure storms and erosion events cause minimal damage in the future.

“We are working towards a solution that will provide a vegetated dune buffer zone between the sea and land to enable a natural dune recovery following erosion events,” said Sam Stephens, Waikato Regional Council Beachcare Coordinator.

“We will be asking the community for help in vegetating these areas once the reshaping is completed. We hope to complete the reshaping and plantings before the busy summer period,” he said.

Council would like to urge the public to please keep themselves and their dogs off the dunes to allow the plants, which hold the dunes together a chance to recover.

Vehicle access to Sunset Beach is still possible from Maraetai Bay and off Mission Road. Pedestrians may use the old vehicle access point but please look out for trees trunks that may cross the access way.

For more information contact the Waikato District Council Tuakau Reserves Team Leader on 0800 492 452.