Pumphouse Progress
The pumphouse arrived at the new site on November 8th 2006 and was established on the new foundations by Wednesday 22nd November.
Work at the site for the next two weeks is mostly cosmetic and is focussed on:
- pouring concrete to form a frame around the pumphouse and the new foundations
- removing lower level internal steel bracing
- removing stress bars
- removing concrete pushing blocks
- constructing a simulated No 5 shaft at the western side
- backfill around perimeter of pumphouse and simulated No 5 shaft
- site demobilising for contractors
View of the eastern side of the pumphouse at the new site 15th November 2006.
Pumphouse and Walkway Landscapes
The Landscape Design Company, based at Athenree, is contracted to Newmont Waihi Gold to plan and project manage the designs and plantings for the Pit Rim Walkways and the area surrounding the new site of the Cornish Pumphouse at the top of Seddon Street.
LDC has created a landscape design and detailed planting plan. An abridged version is shown to the right. The plan uses a mix of native and exotic species to honour previous land uses. The species range from kauri, totara and ferns to hydrangea, dahlia, quince and feijoa. One section features a grove of golden elm trees. Existing rhododendron, oak and walnut trees are retained in enhanced surroundings.
Success at Ellerslie
The Landscape Design Company has been winning prestigious awards since the company was formed in 1988 – at shows in Ellerslie, Melbourne, Chelsea, as well as a host of Landscape Industries Association awards including Landscape of the Year in 1990.
At the renowned Chelsea Flower Show in London in 2004, directors Doug and Trish Waugh’s garden won a gold medal. This was the first garden from the southern hemisphere ever to win gold and only the second exhibitor to win a gold award on a first outing at Chelsea.
Recently the company was again recognised when Hannah Williamson and Sue Peachey won a gold medal AND the Supreme Award for Design Excellence at the 2006 Ellerslie International Flower Show. The ‘Incredible Edible Garden’ they designed for their client Tharfield Nursery of Katikati featured edible plants in a modern and relaxing ‘outdoor lounge’. The fruiting courtyard showcased a wide range of plant varieties in a compact setting including blueberries, strawberries, sugar cane and two new raspberries ‘Ebony’ and ‘Ivory’. Edible plants were used as shade trees, screening plants, groundcovers, climbers and hedges.
Congratulations to the team on their success!!
A hive of activity on the southern stability cutback.
Southern Stability Cutback
Earthworks to excavate the southern stability cutback are taking place at the same time as works to implement landscaping designs and planting for the area surrounding the Cornish Pumphouse and the new pumphouse walkway.
During November it is expected that up to 190,000 cubic metres will be removed from the south wall, soon increasing to around 200,000 cubic metres each month.
Currently the trucks and excavators are working on a bench about ten metres below the high point of the pit rim behind the pumphouse.
It is anticipated that earthworks taking place between now and the end of the year will remove the top 15 to 20 metres from the south wall and the pit boundary will be redefined to its fullest extent to the south by then as well.
HELP for Waitete Stream
The Cornish Pumphouse hasn’t been the only big thing on the move in Waihi over recent months. Hordes of Waihi school students, volunteers and the HELP (Habitat Enhancement and Landcare Partnership) team have been travelling down to the Waitete Stream for many weeks planting more than 6000 native trees, shrubs and sedges along the banks of the stream. The vigorous and enthusiastic planting by the many helpers over the last two planting seasons has created a long corridor of native vegetation stretching from the transfer station near Dean Crescent all the way upstream to Waihi Motor Camp, a distance of nearly two and a half kilometres.
The project, built around a partnership between Hauraki District Council, Newmont Waihi Gold and Environment Waikato was given a large boost last year when HELP received more than $20,000 from the Ministry for the Environment’s Sustainable Management Fund.
Starting from scratch last year under Environment Waikato’s Clean Stream programme the project has attracted a great deal of interest and diverse inputs. In addition to tremendous support and assistance offered by all adjacent landowners (many of whom provided labour to construct new farm fences ten metres back from the stream) the project is also under the watchful eye of NIWA scientists, who have committed to a long-term research programme.
This will be augmented by aquatic life surveys conducted by Environment Waikato monitoring staff.
If you would like more information about this project please contact project manager Andrew Jenks on 027 458 5286, or Pieter Fransen at Newmont Waihi Gold 07 863 8192. A field day will be held on site at the stream in autumn 2007 and will be advertised through Update.
The Newmont Waihi Gold freephone is attended 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
0800 NEWMONT
(0800 639 6668)
