Just a reminder that another round ORC public meetings and consultations start again, one tomorrow at 7 pm Cromwell press button church. These meetings will form the frame work for the new values based system for creating nrw rules. The last one I went to seemed to be about preserving and enhancing natural wonderness.
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Well everyone, last nights meeting was very interesting, so if you dont know by now, please keep in mind that the health of the river comes first, then the state of the water, and lastly commercial interests and interests of the community. Now, what is of greater interest, they look at the land of the catchment and how it affects the water quality. So most discussions surround urbanisation and its effects on the water, farming and forestry. What is being completely ignored or unspoken about is activities that occur within water bodies all together, so you can guess which way the rules are going to be heading. My breif discussion with kaumatua that were present was interesting, while Ed was easy to talk to, the younger one, Tim I believe his name was, wouldnt appear to hear anything about how flooding changes river morphology, effects on ecosystems were minimal etc. He basically said quite deliberately, that while flooding might disturb the top 6 inches or so, the deeper life forms within the river bed were affected by dredging. Wow folks, I don’t recall ever seeing life forms ever, deep in the river gravels. When I asked the head planer about what rules would then govern commercial jet boat operations, it was stated that it was difficult to generate any rules for this activity for one reason or another. I guess Ngai Tahu jet boat operations wont be subject to any rules, unlike the rest of us.
So please folks if you can you need to start turning up to remaining meetings and get heard, or our industry will simply become a historical fact.
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This is very concerning. There is no way all the people that this affects can make it to the meetings.
Based on your comments where is there scientific evidence. Some floods may only move the top 6 inches other floods move everything, thats how the bottom of the river got there in the first place not to mention the gold of course.
When a river floods the whole river is affected, when dredging only a small part. I don’t see there argument.
But if some politician thinks they can get a few extra votes somewhere then the science doesn’t come into it.
If some people in this country are so worried about the environment then why do we still mine coal, it may be burnt overseas but its still our pollution.
Maybe we should all get together and donate some money as a group to the labour and national party, then everyone will be happy.
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It is very concerning, but it has been discussed before, and no one really pays attention. Turning up to meetings isnt really that hard is it? But given that the meetings are just so that the public consultation box can be ticked, is all I think they are about. End of the day, Kia tahu have been doing the co-governance thing in the back ground, and rules cant be implemented until the policy statement has run its full approvals course. At best we may get dredging provisions in the Regional Plan, at worst we might get 3 to 5 more years before new Regional plan is ratified.