MEDIA ADVISORY
11 July 2013

Hurunui - Waiau Zone Committee meeting

The Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee will meet for its regular monthly water management meeting in Cheviot on Monday, 15 July.

The committee will begin the meeting with an update from the Regional Committee, before being updated on its Immediate Steps biodiversity programme.

The Immediate Steps programme is a key component of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy (CWMS). The programme aims for the protection of ecosystems and habitats to conserve indigenous freshwater diversity. Zone Committees decide the priorities for each zone and distribute the funding, which also requires a third party contribution.

The zone committee identified three priority areas for biodiversity in late 2011. These include the North Pegasus Bay Coastal Wetlands, Coastal Conway streams (including both the Conway and Waiau river mouths) and the Sumner Lakes Complex.

Earlier this year the committee agreed that projects outside the initial three priority areas which met the Immediate Steps criteria would also be considered for funding. At Monday’s meeting the committee will consider two local fencing and planting projects, and a predator trapping project for funding.

To date around half ($250,000) of the committee’s Immediate Steps funding has been allocated by the zone committee. There is still significant funding available for local biodiversity projects. Application forms can be found by searching ‘Immediate Steps’ at www.ecan.govt.nz.

Next, the committee will be updated on update on Land Use and Water Quality (LUWQ) and biodiversity implementation in the zone.

Land use intensification is having a significant impact on water quality in Canterbury. The LUWQ project is a collaborative project between Environment Canterbury and a number of primary sector and non-governmental organisations.

The project works alongside the CWMS and aims to assess the effects of land use on the region’s waterways and their associated ecosystems. It also involves extensive work with the community to develop processes and tools which can be used to reduce nutrient run-off and leaching into waterways. 

Following the meeting’s conclusion at 6:30pm, a community meeting will be held from 7:30pm to talk with people about how the proposed Hurunui and Waiau River Regional Plan (HWRRP) affects them.

The proposed HWRRP was notified on April 27 and sets a nitrogen limit in the Hurunui catchment which allows for more development. It also makes recommendations for water storage in the zone, and changes the minimum flows for the Hurunui and Waiau Rivers.

The limits in the plan align with the key recommendations the Hurunui – Waiau Zone Committee developed through collaboration with community members.

The meeting is the third in a series of four held around the zone. The final meeting will be held on Tuesday 16 July at Waiau Community Hall from 7:30pm.

Meeting information

Hurunui-Waiau Zone Committee meeting

3.00pm, Monday 15 July, 2013
Cheviot Community Hall , Cheviot Area School, Hall Street

Link to agenda: http://ecan.govt.nz/publications/Council/hurunui-meeting-150713.pdf

ENDS

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