Share A Stake In The Sand

Did you know we have more than 400km of coastline across the Coromandel? It stretches from our white sandy beaches on the east coast, through to the rugged, rocky contrast on the west coast heading up the Thames Coast and on to Coromandel Town.

But historically when it comes to how we manage and protect our coast there’s been an “ad hoc” approach in different areas of the Coromandel, and not an overarching strategy for the entire district.

That’s why we are developing a Coastal Management Strategy, which will also help us advocate on your behalf when we’re dealing with other agencies (including regional council and central government) on policy and funding of coastal management practices into the future.

"We've developed some suggested goals, objectives and actions that we'd love to hear what you think of and what else we should be doing," says Erin Clarke from our Strategic Planning Team.

The Draft Coastal Management Strategy covers 5 themes.

1. Natural environment/amenity. Looking at how we maintain our estuaries, rivers and the health of our aquifers (groundwater). We also want to focus on healthy rivers and streams.

2. Coastal hazards, physical processes and community resilience. This is about making informed choices around how we respond to changes to our natural coastal systems including erosion, accretion, inundation and tsunami. It’s also about looking at our preparedness for natural disasters. We need to work closely with Civil Defence, DOC, NZTA, Waikato Regional Council, iwi and other stakeholders.

3. Maori values. This is about recognising tangata whenua’s special relationship with the coast.

4. Recreation, open spaces and access. Ensuring public access to our coastline and rivers is well-maintained, while balancing the impact on the natural environment. This also takes into account events and commercial activities in coastal open spaces.

5. Community assets and infrastructure. Ensuring we have high quality, fit-for-purpose infrastructure that is in keeping with the coastal environment and takes into account climate change and coastal hazards. It’s also about having a sound understanding of our existing infrastructure assets around the coast.

We welcome your thoughts on what should be included in our Coastal Management Strategy. Feedback is being taken from 2 October - 18 November 2017.

You can provide feedback by coming to one of our community engagement meetings:

• 10 October 2017 - 10am-1pm Matarangi Fire Station

• 10 October 2017 - 3pm - 6pm Coromandel Citizens Hall

• 11 October 2017 - 10am-1pm Te Puru Hall

• 12 October 2017 - 10am-1pm and 3pm-6pm Thames Civic Centre

• 13 October 2017- 10am-1pm and 3pm-6pm Whitianga Town Hall

• 17 October 2017 - 10am-1pm Whangamata Town Hall

• 18 October 2017 -10am-1pm Tairua Hall

• 18 October 2017 - 3pm - 6pm Hahei Fire Station

Or go to www.tcdc.govt.nz/cms to fill in a survey and read more. Or visit one of our District Libraries or Council offices.

ENDS

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