In compiling Living with the River the Regional Council has tried to anticipate questions
people may have on the nature of the Hutt River floodplain and the risks of flooding.
The report is in three parts:
The Executive Summary provides a useful overview of the report. We hope you will read
this first, and that it will entice you into the body of the report.
Part One describes the nature of the floodplain and the risks of flooding by explaining the
existing conditions and effectiveness of the flood defences. The resulting issues for future
floodplain management are collected together at the end of each chapter. The results of a
survey of the communities’ perceptions of the risks and benefits of living within the floodplain
environment complete Part One.
Part Two describes the development of floodplain management planning in the Hutt
Valley. The process proposed by the Regional Council to complete the floodplain management
plan is outlined. The issues from Part One are summarised and collated into three functional
areas;
• policy issues
• technical and operational issues, and
• issues for local territorial authorities.
Between Part One and Part Two we have inserted a Scrapbook of clippings and articles
which record some of the experiences of flooding in the Hutt Valley over the last 150 year