Chris Frost: New Reservoirs for New Zealand’s Northland Region
The construction of stage 1 of the Te Waihekeora Reservoir is near completion. The first stage holds approximately 300,000 cubic meters (243 acre-feet) of water, but ultimately, it will be expanded to around 3 million cubic meters (2,432 acre-feet).
T
he Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust was created in 2020 to build new water storage and distribution infrastructure in New Zealand’s Northland Region. The trust’s goal is to create economic opportunities in horticulture for two areas in Northland by providing a reliable water source and eventually developing full irrigation schemes. In this interview, Chris Frost talks about the project’s history and potential.
Chris Frost: I was born and raised on a small dairy farm in Northland, where I reside now. Like a lot of kids who grew up where I did, I didn’t finish school. I got into the workforce, and a few years later, after getting some work experience, I started studying again. I moved to the South Island of New Zealand, where irrigation is relatively prevalent. I studied civil engineering and computer-aided design and modeling while working for a large consultancy
8 | IRRIGATION LEADER | June 2022
Irrigation Leader: Your current company is called Frost and Sons. Are you the father or you one of the sons? Chris Frost: I’m the father. My sons are only just 7 and 5 years old. The name was chosen as a small reminder that the decisions we make and the things we choose to do now are likely to have a profound effect on them and future generations. irrigationleadermagazine.com
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE TE TAI TOKERAU WATER TRUST.
Irrigation Leader: Please tell us about your background and how you came to be in your current position.
firm that has now been rebranded as WSP, a Canadianowned engineering company. Later, I returned to Northland and established a strawberry farm with my wife, who had studied horticultural commerce. After operating the farm for 10 years, we closed it down a year and a half ago because of the need to focus on our young family and other projects. I wear two hats a lot of the time. I’ve been working on this water project in Northland as a contractor for the Te Tai Tokerau Water Trust, and I work for other corporate growers and iwi entities to develop relatively large orchards in the region and in other parts of the country.
