Porirua Harbour Strategy Wins Best Practice Award

Porirua City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council, Wellington City Council and Ngati Toa Rangatira received a NZPI award last night for the Porirua Harbour and Catchment Strategy and Action Plan.

Their joint efforts were recognised by the New Zealand Planning Institutes as deserving of the Best Practice Award for Consultation and Participation Strategies and/or Processes.

“These key parties adopted a multi-agency approach to addressing the poor health of Porirua Harbour and tributary streams,” says Porirua Harbour Strategy Coordinator Keith Calder.

“This approach involved a total of 14 agencies working together over a four-year period to develop the Porirua Harbour and Catchment Strategy and Action Plan (the Strategy). It also involved a wider four year public consultation and engagement process.”

The Strategy which was adopted by the key parties in December 2011 recognises that the Porirua Harbour estuary is a unique and treasured natural environment and specifies prioritised actions to implement the three key objectives:

• reduce sedimentation rates
• reduce pollutant inputs
• restore ecological health

Porirua Mayor Nick Leggett says that the development, commitment, adoption and funding of the Strategy by the 14 agencies, as well as the wider public, ensures that its implementation will be a success.

"Porirua Harbour is a natural treasure and a focus of beauty for our city. Having the commitment of these groups to protect and restore it is important to us. It’s also great to see regional collaboration working so well and this being recognised in this way.”

Porirua’s 800ha harbour is the largest estuary in the lower North Island, has the only sea grass (a critical spawning and nursery plant) of any significance in the lower North Island and includes the nationally significant Pauatahanui Wildlife Management Reserve. The 175km2 catchment is home to over 80,000 people.

ENDS

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