Abstract

The presentation will cover the successes, challenges and failures of using fixed cameras and drone technology to capture surface velocity in Taranaki Rivers.

Regan attended STIV training in Wellington and further training in Cairns with assistance from the Hydrological Society.

The Taranaki Regional Council were in the process of establishing fixed cameras in main river sites for the purpose of public viewing on the Taranaki Regional Council website. The training provided insight as to where the most reliable data could be collected. Therefore the cameras were repositioned to most accurately record surface velocity across those rivers.

There were successes using STIV such as in the Waiwhakaiho at Rimu Street, where a fixed camera achieved excellent results, 32 surface velocity gaugings were conducted and processed, all within 8% of the rating curve. The fixed camera gaugings were able to capture the peak of the Waiwhakaiho in flood, and was also able to capture the highest discharge on record for Rimu Street. This was recorded at 100.602 m³/s, which plotted 4.6% off the extrapolated rating curve.

Fixed cameras were not as reliable at other sites and accurate results were not recorded. Some factors included limited camera position, river access, river topography, site specific environmental factors. These resulted in poor or no visible trace lines. However using drone technology at some of these sites have recorded encouraging results, to be further investigated.

Overall, this technology works well in Taranaki rivers capturing discharges that we were previously unable to be captured.

Presenter bio

Regan Diggelmann lives in New Plymouth with his young family. He works as a Hydrology Officer for the Taranaki Regional Council.

Regan enjoys the outdoors and doing activities with his family and is a passionate hunter gatherer.

Presentation

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