Cyclone Gabrielle: Mountain of silt engulfs Esk Valley property, no way to move it | Stuff.co.nz
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- Опубліковано 9 жов 2024
- Steve Wheeler has up to 2 metres of silt blanketing his property in Esk Valley. The smart move would be to leave it there, he says. Read more: bit.ly/41vrAZT | Subscribe: bit.ly/2JPg8oB
Read more: bit.ly/41vrAZT
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For a bloke that’s lost just about everything of material value, I am simply amazed at how stoic, pragmatic and sensible he is about what to do with his land. Makes a lot of sense but I can’t quite get my head around how hard this must be for him to simply, let it all go! He’s a far better and stronger man than I’ll ever be. If I can find you, I’ll buy you a beer when I’m down in the Bay at the end of May. 🙌🏼🙏🏻
From a price of beer. Is a handful of seed. That will feed. A family.
He has my respect that's for sure!
I can't even imagine how hard it would be for those who have lost everything but this Man makes so much sence.....Ultimate respect for you Sir 😌
The most sensible man I’ve heard. I’m so impressed with his way of thinking ❤
"Let nature retake nature" thank you for your pragmatic and ecologically sound response to losing your land in this eco disaster. I'm glad your family is safe.
There was an experiment where industrial food waste was used to reactivate dead soil. (It was orange skins with the oil removed.) Years later rainforest was shown to have exploded there. It stunk a bit at the time. Creative solutions are needed. And as he says, the power of nature to stabilize land
This is the first honest, sensible, pragmatic suggestion I've heard. Nature has a way of healing herself and as a Napier resident I would rather see money invested in relocating the residents than wasting it on a clean up with no guarantee it wont happen again in 3,6,12 months time. Dont even get me started on the slash 🤯🤯🤯 forestry MUST be held to account
This gentleman is sensible and pragmatic. Wonderful NZer. I am so sorry for his loss.
Totally agree with this gentleman, how incredibly positive he is much love from the South Island.
I think he’s a wise man with a good plan. I wish him and all affected families the best for recovery.
BEST THING I'VE HEARD AND FAR MORE HEALING THAN ANY MEDICINE OR MOTIVATIONAL PARAGRAPH FROM LEADERSHIP.
What a great attitude, I wish all the best for the future for this man and his family.
My heart goes out to this man and his family for his loss, but Oh!! his wisdom!! I pray his thoughts about how to heal his land will be permitted. What a guy!! 😊💚😇🌿
After losing everything, i have nothing but utter love and respect for your amazing positive outlook for the your future. Absolute brave man!!
What wise thinking in every sense.Thankyou and all the very best for your family going forward.
I'm so sorry for the losses you & others have gone through. What you stated is a postive approach to take. I really hope that you are paid out so you can start afresh.
Wisest commentary I’ve heard thus far… respect sir
Pragmatic man. Bless you, you’re a true survivor. Hope you can find a new home and peace in what’s left of your life. Shame on forestry industry for poor lazy land management.
This man makes good sense in such a terrible situation. Time more people got involved with great ideas like this person. Open consultation opportunity. Eg the idea of Pole houses or Queenslanders
To overcome the emotion, and formulate positive solutions... that's inspiring!
What incredible insight. I wish you & your family eventually a wonderful future.
Sensible man I pray him and his family will be safe and well
Steve -what you say makes a lot of sense. Re-build on higher ground and leave the silt and slash where it is. My heart goes out to you all.
What a lot of sense this guy makes. And let’s not forget the idea of leaving slash on hillsides belonged to the loonie, but currently very silent greens.
Thank you for this video. He is a very wise person. Let nature heal. Bring in legislature to ensure that foreign forestry companies are being held accountable (fines) for voiding social licenses.
Thats absolutely the best advice i have heard.
What a wise man. But what painful words for those affected
We have owned a paddock on the edge of a river for 30 years. every time it has flooded the paddock gets another small layer of silt. Putting up banks and trying to keep the water out means the water will always want to get in. You have the right idea, move you house to the highest spot and higher on piles and leave the silt. Your paddocks will not flood in an average flood because they are higher.
Wow what a refreshing view point, and a great idea.
I like Mr Wheeler suggestion that he he and his family move on, and let nature take its course. A very brave person, considering they lost virtually everything.
Incredible wisdom & composure. Spoken like a wise elder.
What a wonderful attitude 👏
Beautiful strong man, with very considerable sense..
Very wise advice, hopefully the authorities will listen to him
Yep great advice and our thoughts are with you all😢
You are one gutsy man sir...🇿🇦🕊🇳🇿
My neighbors driveway disappeared down the hill in a bad slump, and in what might be a vain attempt at some sort of recovery, I gathered as many native plant seeds as I could, mixed them in mud and put it in Jiffy pots. Now they have dried I am throwing them as far and near as I can..may be peeing into the wind,,but maybe not. Be nice if something grew ☺
great idea about the native seed balls.
Rivers creeks and streams will need to be dredged for future prevention of these weather conditions
As heartbreaking as it may seem, this is totally logical and makes perfect sense to me, well said.
First sensible thing I've heard! Put this man in charge of restoration 👍
Agree with you. Sending healing vibes from Canada
I've been saying the same thing to family and friends since last month! 🤣 Someone give this man a 🍺!!!
Finally someone talking sence about what to do with the silt, debris and natural order
Totally agree , pull up the wire and post if possible and leave , sorry to see you in this predicament,. If it wasn't for that back eddy I think we would have been seriously effected on the beach front .
So true this man is on to it. Put the money into long-term solutions for river banks, bridges, service connections, and native reforestation etc.
You are so right let nature take care of all this.❤❤
You just make so much sense. Fix what you can but just throw the grass seed everywhere let is grow. Build an outdoor firepit and burn slowly what you can. Nature fixes itself. Prayers for you all. It is so sad but there are survivors.
Most sensible words yet.
Love his sentiment
Agreed. The sheer arrogance and ego of humans to think we can manipulate our surroundings in any way we choose is exactly what will be our downfall imo.
I think that's probably smart. It would be impossible to remove. Great idea to seed natives through it.
Agree with his view. Huge Respect
This guy is making a lot of sense. The real financial and time cost to try to return the area to what it was will be astronomical. It needs a differwnt approach. Retreat and replant / sow at top of silt pile. Where would we move the millions of cubic meters of silt & slash too ? . New approaches needed.
Sorry for your loss
Talks a lot of sense!
Very wise words.
What a great chap. He's so right. There simply isn't enough money available to clear these tracts of land. Let them regenerate naturally. Maybe in years ahead, they can be re-puposed for some form of agriculture, but not now. Perhaps the huge new river banks will give a degree of protection to the land in the future ......
@Trillia Robinson Saw another comment describing the storm banks that stayed intact around Napier, and the ones that broke. Then allowing all the floodwaters to surge across agricultural land./I'm wondering whether some of this silt could be repurposed for storm bank repairs or redesigned replacement banks (like the new, higher levees constructed in New Orleans after H.Katrina). Or maybe that silt is too contaminated to re-use for anything. (Reports have said it's filled with ag. chemicals, fertilisers, other pollutants and untreated sewage.)
Smart man. I hope the ones in charge listen to him.
NZ: Listen to him.
Don't build residential buildings or infrastructure on the Esk Valley flats. Records say this has happened in Esk Valley before.
Perhaps plant fruit trees in with natives too, turn it into a food forest.
Kia Kaha Aotearoa!
I thought silt although awful at the time , was what made the soil so productive .
@Anne Thomson Hawkes Bay farmers described the silt as "dead or inert". They said they can't use it for pastures or growing because apparently the silt contains no organic life. Their trees and crops were visibly dying buried in the stuff. Plus, it's contaminated with all the run-off - ag. chemicals, fertilisers, other pollutants, and untreated sewage.
The Nile river valley was famous for its fertile soil due to regular floods and resulting silt deposits, so the same probably applies everywhere. Building and living on flood plains is not a good idea though.
@@comealongcomealong4480 It takes a while for the microbiome to re-establish, but in a year or two it will all be green again and the chemical pollutants will be broken down.
I suppose NZ is too green to just burn all that wood, but that'd be the way to get rid of it. but now the ground has been raised by up to 2 metres, isn't that going to cause flooding with much less rain on existing infrastructure of houses, bridges etc.? Maybe some places aren't really fit to be habited by humans and their machines, constructions and machinations?
Thanks stuff.
Hard to get any information from overseas
Finally a voice of reason, of acceptance and in support of nature and the natural order. 1938 flood provided the ideal growing conditions for 80+ years and now the land has been rejuvenated for the next 80+. It's reality and we could drop our arrogance and work with this knowledge or suffer. Much respect
Will forestry clean up their act too. What a great regeneration idea!
This man is the most realistic person in his ways about the future
such common sense, God bless ya mate.
I'm incline to agree, Obviously we live too Low and the only effective way of dealing with this is to level what you can quickly and seed bomb it.
Just don't use Pine as one of the seeds.
Bang on . Your onto it
Not all slash..forestries actually hold back alot..denuded farmscapes are not without blame..leaving the silt on the floodplain is a no brainer..moving structers etc off the flood plain ditto
Shocking ,Time the Government held Forestry to account .
Wise words.
wow ...very wise and ausome man ...hes right ...i totally agree
That option never entered my mind, "leave it and let nature heal itself"
Well said
So very sensible … one minor exception: the potentially toxic items should be dug up and removed if possible…the buried car for instance. But he’s right. Nature has spoken. This land will always be vulnerable in the future to more washouts. Let Nature have it.
What an amazing attitude.
Whoever owns the forestry that left this mess should be sued.
Wise words, but feeling for you 😢
Realistic thinking. So sorry for your losses. FORRESTRY has A LOT TO ANSWER FOR.
Yes buddy you’re right. Listen to this man
he makes sense, and even if they could move it..where would they put it?
Why did the Government mandate that all forestry slash be left i the bush. Surely they knew it would be carried into the rivers in the first storm to hit the area.
I hope they listen to you mate !!!
Very sensible
Humans didn't create this damage. The weather did, but I'd agree with leaving the silt. It would be easier to raise the house and repile it, than move the silt. As for the wood, it can be collected for the winters firewood...or many winters firewood. The small stuff can be burned in piles and the big stuff used for fireplaces. I think that's about the best that can be done. Eventually some of the silt will wash down the river by years of rainfall. I would not take this guys advice as a Govt policy. Sounds like a rabid greenie.
Seems you've acquired some free topsoil possibly great for planting a good healthy garden. If you foundation of your home is still in tact, you may consider extending it upward and rebuilding on it, while salvaging whatever is usable of the home. A good woodburning stove for winter heating may be a prudent investment, due to the abundance of free fuel God's provided you on your property. Not all is lost and whenever life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. ✨ good luck.
Finally a real man.
Very wise man!
True Kiwi Rolemodel Legend aka Steve Wheeler
The forestry need to be accountable for a lot of this damage.
What this man is saying in this video is a great solution for this mess that the forestry has left behind. Yes, I blame the forestry for most if not a lot of this mess part of our once beautiful county is in. I don't believe they have come forward with the dollars, machinery etc to help the area that they so recklessly/knowingly destroyed.
I also hope the council/parliament pay these home/land owners for there properties.
I believe you have a great idea let her heal from the wounds we humans have caused .
that's great but what about if a bigger storm came with a bigger flood?? wouldn't that just bury more????
Brilliant 👏 👏 👏
my god a man with common sence
He's not wrong, good on you mate
This man is on
A man talking sense. Will the Government even listen? Very doubtful. Very sad.
Slash %90 pine alright. Let Stuart Nash know he seems to be in denial.
Wise man !
Absolutely right
Nature does the work.
Can you not make the slash into wood pulp to be processed at the mill.
David Jeffares Not an expert. But my guess is that this slash timber is now contaminated from the flood waters. And unable to be processed. The hectares of silt contain massive amounts of agricultural chemicals, fertilisers, other pollutants and raw sewage.