A Whitewater Park for Christchurch?
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Page 1 of 13 A WHITEWATER PARK FOR CHRISTCHURCH? INTRODUCTION A community-funded park should have broad appeal. Citizens of Christchurch should be drawn to such a facility over their lifetimes, as children, youth, adults, through to retirement. From kids’ picnics, to fun recreation, to elite competitive sport, to fitness in their middle years, and as a place to just sit and watch lots of activities in a natural setting in later years. It should transcend fashion and short-term trends. The concept of an active water-based broad spectrum recreational facility combining ecological benefits and ongoing nature restoration is a very compelling one. Sports like mountain biking and whitewater provide the excitement and contrast that enliven our urban environment. We will more likely than not find it increasingly difficult and expensive to travel into the mountains to participate in these outdoor activities in the foreseeable future. The urban setting for whitewater, rowing, cycling, running, walking, located in a natural setting that is both convenient and accessible, are the attributes that are critical to success. We know of no such place anywhere that combines all these attributes. There are urban whitewater parks, but most are in restored industrial spaces. There are rowing lakes on reclaimed gravel pits. Some parks have a few complementary activities like indoor climbing. Few are set in areas of natural beauty or genuinely incorporate wildlife or botanical benefits. Very few cities have the space and the fresh water close to a city centre with good public transport. This is our opportunity to turn a disaster recovery project into a multi-use, multi-purpose asset found nowhere else in the world. We have been given the space and we have the water. Our plea is to include active whitewater kayaking and commercial rafting in the mix because experience demonstrates it provides the high energy and attraction that draws people to the venue and contributes far more than it costs. I am an engineer by profession, with experience in mechanical systems in buildings and energy systems in industrial plant. I am an experienced recreational and professional kayaker and rafter. My professional experience includes being the Project Consultant to a multi-million dollar regional tourism project involving all three District Councils, Ngai Tahu, and the Department of Conservation on the West Coast, and being a Head Judge for the New Zealand Tourism Awards. In my professional career in adventure tourism I introduced 30,000 people to kayaking in the Abel Tasman, and have won a number of National Tourism Awards and had international recognition. I have visited whitewater parks in Australia, Canada, USA, UK, and France. I currently work at Lincoln University at Lincoln Agritech Ltd as Manager, Environmental Group, working in the field of groundwater, researching and advising on hydrology and water quality. I am a member of the Canterbury Regional Water Committee, and the National Objectives Framework Reference Group. I prepared this report because I believe inclusion of a whitewater park in the planned East Christchurch park will deliver many benefits to Christchurch and I would like decision-makers to verify these broad claims independently, and I am confident that a viable case will subsequently be made. Hugh Canard 16th July 2014 Whitewater Park for Christchurch. A discussion paper. Hugh Canard and friends. July 16th 2014 Page 2 of 13 PURPOSE OF THIS REPORT This report gives brief outline of the benefits that the inclusion of a whitewater course as an anchor facility will bring to the proposed Christchurch East water park. This report outlines the synergies and benefits of having a number of sporting, recreational, cultural, and educational activities co-located in a critical mass readily accessible to an urban population. I have based much of the input data on other similar facilities and my own estimations based on owning and operating adventure tourism businesses. Most sporting venues, including rowing lakes, cycle tracks, and skateboard parks, are, like rugby, football, netball, cricket and outdoor sports in general, subsidised by the local council. They are considered civic amenities. Whitewater parks are more akin to swimming pools or more accurately aquatic centres, where there are a lot of purely fun activities, cafes and gyms, to complement the competitive swimming activities. These facilities require more expense to operate and are expected to generate some revenue. Few make a profit, or in the case of community facilities, a surplus. The nearest whitewater park that is known to return a surplus to its council is Penrith Whitewater Stadium1 in Sydney. Most artificial whitewater courses cover their operating costs by charging passengers for guided raft rides. Canoe and kayak slalom training and competition alone do not generate enough revenue, any more than walking, cycling and flat water sports do. The mix of all these activities is the critical success factor. Integration, Co-location and Synergies. Penrith has a rowing lake and whitewater course co-located. The rowing lake is an integral component of the stormwater system. Facilities and services are shared. 1 Built in 1999 for the Sydney Olympics. Has a history of financial success. Its steady growth in patronage and net profit builds a strong case for the viability of other whitewater parks in urban centres. Source: WPI Ltd, designers. Whitewater Park for Christchurch. A discussion paper. Hugh Canard and friends. July 16th 2014 Page 3 of 13 Description of a Whitewater Course A modern stand-alone whitewater course is a “U” shaped concrete channel with a small lake from which water is pumped up to the top of the channel where it flows over various designed features to create rapids and swift-flowing water. The pumps are large and located underground for aesthetic and noise reasons. The standard parameters for such a course, patterned on the Olympic model, are a length of about 300 meters, a slope of 2% (20 m/km), and a flow rate of 10 to 18 cubic metres per second. This is the minimum, and most modern courses are longer, with the latest ones having two or more courses to enable novices and children to be separated from the rafting and expert kayakers. Strange as this will seem to Christchurch residents, one of the major issues for such whitewater courses elsewhere is availability and cost of sufficiently clean water2. Pumped courses incur electrical costs for pumping and therefore need to have energy usage managed carefully, just like large aquatic centres. The attraction of whitewater All studies of whitewater parks state that the whitewater is the principal attraction. Auckland has just approved a whitewater stadium in Manukau. In the Athens Olympics, the only venue that was booked out for every event was the whitewater stadium. Whitewater is now a standard fixture at the Olympics, China now has four whitewater courses, there is a great facility in London, and Rio is building one right now. Communities all over the world are building whitewater parks, partly to reclaim their over- developed urban waterways and to create visitor attractions and community recreational facilities for the 21st Century. There are 40 whitewater parks under construction the USA, and there are whitewater parks in 19 countries globally. 2 The US National Whitewater Centre costs $175,000 just to fill. In Christchurch this would be almost zero. Whitewater Park for Christchurch. A discussion paper. Hugh Canard and friends. July 16th 2014 Page 4 of 13 Whitewater kayaking and rafting is exciting and energising to participate in, and it’s very interesting to watch. It is one of the trending outdoor activities 3in the USA, for example. In the 3 years between 2009 and 2011 recreational kayaking grew by 32% and whitewater kayaking by 28%. Stand Up Paddling (SUP) grew by 18% in one year. Many ‘mainstream’ outdoor activities suffered a drop in participation in the survey period – Boardsailing (-11.9%) and Surfing (-15.8%). The earthquakes in Christchurch have had many unforeseen negative impacts on outdoor recreation. Port Hills walking and MTB trails, water quality and sedimentation in the Avon and Heathcote Rivers, demolition of swimming pools, and general upheaval in people’s lives. Whitewater kayaking has held its levels of participation, but other forms of water-based recreation have probably declined due to degraded venues post EQ. This proposed park will not only bring them back, but will initiate a measurable expansion in numbers and quality of all the forms catered for. Kayaking generally is a life-long activity. You can start at the beach on summer holidays, enjoy canoe polo (if your school can access a pool), take up more adventurous wilderness whitewater at university or polytech, travel to West Coast rivers as a young(ish) adult, and then settle into moderate whitewater in your family years. During this time you will enter races, multi-sport events, scare yourself on hard rivers, and enjoy overnight trips with friends on the Clarence or the Waimakariri. Having urban facilities; specifically indoor pools, and one day, a whitewater course is the essential link to growth in participation. Why Christchurch? We could ask - why Auckland? Whitewater kayaking and rafting is almost entirely absent from Auckland at present. Rotorua is the nearest reliably available moving water. Christchurch has a large and active kayaking population, evidenced by having the two biggest clubs in New Zealand. Canterbury’s rivers are a wonderful resource, with the west Coast being a premier international whitewater destination. The number4 of participants in kayaking in Christchurch is estimated at 8-9% of the population over 16 years of age. This is around 30,000 people who kayak more than once a year, and it does not include all the high school age kids who participate in pool-based canoe polo and outdoor education activities that include paddle sports.