| Extraordinary Confidential Risk and Assurance Committee | Tuesday 17 October, 3.00pm |
| Council | Thursday 26 October, 1.00 pm |
| Extraordinary Council | Tuesday 31 October, 3.00 pm |
| Risk and Assurance Committee | Thursday 9 November, 1.00 pm |
| Cycling and Walking Committee | Thursday 16 November, 3.00 pm |
| Council | Thursday 23 November, 1.00 pm |
Photo: Peter Kurdulija on Flickr
Hokitika’s Carnegie Building once again looks like the grand old lady that she is. All the scaffolding has been removed and the interior rooms have walls again. Great progress has been made and now plans can be made to reopen the Museum space in the future.
In September contractors installed the external lighting system, which lights the building up each evening making the building a beacon in Hokitika.
See her all lit up here.
Hearings of the submissions to the Te Tai o Poutini Plan begin at the end of the month.
Meetings will be held where independent Commissioners will hear from submitters and technical experts.
This hearing process will include hearing from submitters on the plan, as well as staff preparing a report. Submitters have the opportunity to lodge further evidence in front of the hearing panel and speak to their submission.
The first hearing is due to start on 30 October and will be on the introductory section of the plan. It is envisaged hearings will be held into 2024.
Visit the TTPP website for more information and to view a schedule of hearings.
Photo: Ian Moone
Maritime NZ is responsible for safety management at Lake Kaniere as there is no regional council navigation safety bylaw in place there.
There are five reserved recreational areas at Lake Kaniere. Three (yellow) are reserved for water skiing and similar towed water sports. Two (green) are reserved for swimming, paddled and rowed craft, and similar activities.
Visit the Maritime NZ website for full details.
Photo: Carey Evans on Flickr
The Government is exploring whether a biodiversity credit system could help to incentivise the protection and restoration of native wildlife in Aotearoa New Zealand.
A biodiversity credit system would help to conserve habitats and species by enabling landowners, who protect and restore native wildlife, to earn credits for their actions.
The Ministry for the Environment and Department of Conservation (DoC) are seeking feedback on the need for and the design of a biodiversity credit system, and the different roles of government and Māori in implementing it. Our aim is for a system that has impact and integrity, tailored to Aotearoa New Zealand’s unique context and challenges. This includes how it could work with other programmes that support the environment.
Submissions close on 3 November 2023. Find out more on the Ministry for the Environment website.
Text: Ministry for the Environment; Photo: NZ Robin, Hugo Hercod on Flickr
As an Enviroschools partner, WDC is pleased that the programme is supporting students to learn about environmental issues and have the opportunity to contribute to their community. Thanks to Lauren Kelley, Te Tai Poutini – West Coast Regional Coordinator for the update and photos.
This year Enviroschools received funding from the One Billion Trees Programme through Te Uru Rākau NZ Forest Service to support the ecological restoration work that schools do on their grounds and in their communities. In Te Tai Poutini region, we used this funding to set up an action fund for our Hokitika-based schools to apply to for actions that contribute to the restoration of Wadeson Island.
Three schools, Hokitika Primary, Kaniere, and Kokatahi-Kowhitirangi applied and they’re now working to revitalise their native nurseries, installed in 2017 by Conservation Volunteers New Zealand, and grow trees for the Wadeson Island project. Students are learning about seed collection, how to plant seeds and seedlings and how to look after them until they are ready to plant. They’re also looking forward to visiting Wadeson Island and learning about the restoration project as well as planting out their trees in the long term when they grow big enough.
Construction of the new Cass Square toilets started last month. The digout for the foundations was completed and the contracting team is now working on building the concrete pad.
Glenys Byrne, Road Safety Coordinator for the West Coast has recently returned from attending the Australasian Road Safety Conference in Cairns, Australia. Glenys was one of two South Island Road Safety Coordinators to be offered a scholarship from the Australian College of Road Safety to attend the four-day conference.
There were many excellent keynote speakers, one in particular was Professor Jan Theeuwes – Professor of Cognitive Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Jan Theeuwes worked at the TNO Human Factors Institute in the traffic behaviour group conducting human factors research for various national and international government agencies, and automotive companies. This research indicated that roads should be designed in such a way that road users immediately know how to behave and what to expect on these roads, known as “self-explaining roads”. This has become the leading principle in road design worldwide. While at the conference, it became apparent to me that the relationship between the three West Coast Councils’ transport departments and Waka Kotahi, offer the same unified response to West Coast roading, and as Road Safety Coordinator for the West Coast, I am responsible for keeping the road safety messages aligned to the Councils policies and plans, this includes speed limits, signage, advertising and driver education.
Another workshop I attended was ‘Woman in Road Safety’, during which a group was formed to disseminate information to the Road Safety sector. I volunteered to feed information back to our New Zealand group (SASTA – Safe and Sustainable Transport Association of New Zealand).
The conference has allowed me the opportunity to network with others in the Transport and Road Safety industries, it has been a very valuable experience, and I am hoping to have the opportunity to deliver a paper at the next Road Safety Conference.
Text and images: Glenys Byrne
The Parliamentary Environment Committee’s Inquiry into Climate Adaptation remains open for public submissions, until the new Parliament convenes.
The Inquiry is seeking views on what would be needed for a community-led retreat system in Aotearoa New Zealand, how the system would work for iwi, hapū and Māori communities, and how costs might be shared.
To read the Ministry for the Environment’s chapter-by-chapter snapshot of the issues and options to support submissions, click here.
For more information and to make a submission, visit the Parliament website.
