Lower Waitaki Zone Committee focuses on water monitoring and farm portals

The Lower Waitaki – South Coastal Canterbury Zone Committee will meet at 9:30am in Oamaru on Wednesday 18 November for its monthly water management meeting.

A key focus for the committee will be on discussing how an integrated water monitoring framework could incorporate Environment Canterbury monitoring, consent holder monitoring, and voluntary monitoring. The purpose would be to share all the water monitoring data in a central place, so everyone can see how effective our collective work is. A pilot programme will be discussed.

The committee will also receive an update on progress towards notification of the Waitaki sub-regional section of the Land and Water regional Plan. The committee has completed recommendations for water quality and quantity in the South Coastal Canterbury part of the zone and water quality in the Lower Waitaki part. These recommendations are being translated into planning provisions and a suite of non-statutory actions.

As part of the update, the committee will receive a presentation on the Farm Portal which is a tool designed to calculate nitrogen losses at Good Management Practice level as defined by industry. It is expected to be available for use later in the year.

At the meeting, the committee will also receive an update on Plan Change 5 which includes new region-wide nutrient management policies and rules that relate to the use of land for a farming activity. These rules will eventually replace the existing nutrient management rules in the region-wide section of the LWRP. There are also specific provisions that apply to the Waitaki sub-region.

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.

Meeting information

Lower Waitaki – South Coastal Canterbury Zone Committee meeting
9:30am, Wednesday 18 November, 2015
Waitaki District Council Chambers, 10 Thames Street, Oamaru

For a copy of the agenda visit the Lower Waitaki page at www.ecan.govt.nz .

ENDS

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