The Hawke's Bay Regional Council (HBRC) is reviewing a plan from Eastland Group to stop the discharge of sediment from the Waihi Dam into the Waiau River near Wairoa.
A massive amount of sediment has been pouring through a sluice gate that was damaged when it was opened by electricity generator Eastland Group during a storm in November 2015.
Local farmers say the discharge from the dam is stopping them from being able to pump water from the stream for their stock, so is hitting them financially.
The council has issued two abatement notices requiring the gate to be closed, but the damage to it is preventing this.
HBRC resource management group manager Iain Maxwell said council staff were reviewing Eastland Group's plan for resolving the issues at the dam.
Mr Maxwell said the council had engaged a specialist dam engineering company, DamWatch, to provide advice on the options being proposed.
He said any resource consents needed for the work to get underway would be processed under urgency, with the aim of having the sluice gate closed as soon as possible.
Mr Maxwell said last week he hoped the discharge of sediment from the dam would cease by the end of this week.
