Experts to discuss freshwater management for the Waikato

Five freshwater experts will discuss the implications for the Waikato from the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management.

The panel discussion – which is free to attend - is being hosted by the Waikato branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand and takes place at the University of Waikato on 2 September.

The panel will consist of Waikato scientists who are experts on various aspects of freshwater management and use.

Dr Bryce Cooper is general manager – strategy for NIWA and has expertise in land use effects on water quality and the role of riparian zones. He is chair of the Technical Leaders Group advising the Healthy Rivers/Wai Ora Project for the Waikato and Waipa catchments.

Dr Alison Dewes is lead consultant for Headlands, an agribusiness consultancy that specialises in helping farmers design their farm systems with the future in mind. She is currently completing an MSc covering freshwater ecology, policy and nutrient management in agriculture. She is a trained vet, has been in agribusiness roles and farmed herself for 25 years. More recently she has been a Sustainable Land Use Advisor with Raukawa Charitable Trust and has been an expert witness on agricultural matters contributing to four recent plan changes across New Zealand.

Professor David Hamilton is the Bay of Plenty Regional Council Chair in Lake Restoration at the University of Waikato and provides scientific support for management actions taking place in the Rotorua Lakes. He has also been involved with science panels providing input to the National Objectives Framework of the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management.

Dr Mike Scarsbrook is Environment Policy Manager at DairyNZ. He has expertise in freshwater ecology, water quality and catchment management and leads DairyNZ’s ‘Farming with Limits’ Programme, is a member of the Healthy Rivers Technical Leaders Group and is leading the project on the Upper Waikato Sustainable Milk Project.

Bill Vant is a scientist with the Waikato Regional Council. He has been a government scientist for 35 years, and oversees and advises on the Council’s water quality networks in rivers, lakes and coastal waters, and on its management of these environments.

The programme will comprise a short introduction by each panel member followed by a question and answer session.

The discussion takes place in Room A.G.30, Waikato University on Tuesday, 2 September at 7.30.

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