Cook Islands National Environment Service has announced an awaited update on the Environmental Impact Assessment regarding the construction of the Empire Bridge will be ready by next week.

If approved, it will mean a green light for the final three phases of the project to resume.  

Site works started on August 11 under five stages of construction, with the first two stages completed and approved, and the final three put on pause.

Vavia Tangatataia from NES at the beginning of last month said that they were looking at a month and a half until full approval for the construction of the rest of the bridge would be given.

 “At the moment the EIA is at the final stage of the review and after that it will be tabled to the Rarotonga Environment Authority for approval and a final decision,” Tangatataia said on Tuesday.

“They are looking at having the EIA completed and submitted by Friday next week.”

Kiri Ataera from Infrastructure Cook Islands said: “While we are still awaiting a decision on the EIA, ICI would like to take this opportunity to thank the public for their patience and would like to remind everyone of the alternate route through Takamoa, Monday to Friday between the hours of 7.30am and 8.30am to try help alleviate traffic delays.”  

Meanwhile, Landholdings who are responsible for the physical construction of the project said their team and workers have been redeployed to other projects while they await a decision from NES regarding EIA.

John Batty, contractors representative for Landholdings said: “The process is as per the requirements of NES and when the requirements are signed off we can start work after the engineer informs Landholdings of a start work date.”

Batty said the company understands these are difficult times for all businesses and employees, but the reasoning for workers being given less work was due to no other reasoning than the current situation of awaiting the EIA.

“When the borders reopen in January, we will all be hard at work again and we need to be prepared for the hard Mahi ahead,” he said.