MEDIA ADVISORY
16 August 2013

Lower Waitaki Zone Committee meeting

The Lower Waitaki – South Coastal Canterbury Zone Committee will meet in Waimate for its monthly public meeting on Wednesday, 21 August.

Now the committee’s Zone Implementation Programme (ZIP) for water management has been finalised and endorsed by councils, the focus for the committee is on implementing its recommendations.

In particular, the committee is focussed on developing outcomes for water quantity and water quality limits as part of sub-regional planning processes for the zone.

The zone committee’s focus is on building its understanding of the impacts of various water quality and quantity limits (via scenario testing) so it can make technically and socially informed recommendations.

Following the zone committee meeting (at 3:30pm) the committee is hosting its third public meeting for South Coastal Canterbury to discuss their ideas and concerns about local water quality and water use.

The meeting will explore what local people consider is acceptable for water quality and quantity in the South Canterbury Coastal Streams area (from the Otaio River in the north to the Morven Drain in the south, with the western boundary the Waihao River catchment in the Hunters Hills).

Community feedback will help the committee develop recommendations that meet the goals of the community, and the targets in the Canterbury Water Management Strategy (CWMS). These will then be reflected in the Waitaki and South Coastal Canterbury sub-regional section of Environment Canterbury’s proposed Land & Water Regional Plan (pLWRP).

At the zone committee meeting the committee will also discuss feedback from the second community meeting held in Studholme in late July and receive an update on the Waihao Box.

The Lower Waitaki - South Coastal Canterbury Zone Committee operates as a joint committee of Environment Canterbury and the Waimate and Waitaki District Councils. The zone extends from the Otaio catchment in the north, to the Waitaki Dam in the south, taking in Waimate, Kurow and Duntroon.

Committee meetings are typically held on the third Wednesday of each month. They are open to the public and attendees are given an opportunity to contribute.

Regular monthly Zone Committee meeting information
1:00pm, Wednesday, 21 August, Waimate Community Centre, Waimate
Link to agenda: http://ecan.govt.nz/publications/Council/lw-meeting-210813.pdf .

Limit setting community workshop details
3:30pm to 7:30pm, Wednesday, 21 August, Waimate Community Centre, Waimate (light supper provided).
Visit: www.ecan.govt.nz/south-canterbury-streams or Phone 0800 324 636.

ENDS

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