Project - Discharge

Ōpaoa River catchment discharge studies

The Ōpaoa River in Marlborough has become highly modified and is considered a degraded waterway in the Marlborough Environment Plan. There are 36 wineries on the Wairau Plains with several of these wineries and other industrial activities being located along the course of the Ōpaoa River with consents to discharge wastewater to the berm land beside the river.

Marlborough District Council has engaged Lowe Environmental Impact to quantify the cumulative impact of industrial wastewater discharges, including winery wastewater, and added grazing pressure alongside the Ōpaoa River.

This work will seek to understand the nutrient inputs from discharges, impacts of grazing animals and the surface and groundwater fluxes that could be impacted by these discharges. This work is not intended for public release but to inform Council about the adequacy of its monitoring regime in this area.