Podcasts about environment canterbury

I hope Environment Canterbury isn't bothering listening to Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey. He's not impressed that the regional council is going to spend money doing a business case for a rail passenger service between Rangiora, Christchurch, and Rolleston. Matt Doocey says it's nothing more than a pie-in-the-sky idea and, given we're in a cost-of-living crisis, he says ECAN should stick to its knitting and focus on getting costs down and reducing rates. But what Matt Doocey should be doing —instead of criticising ECAN— is praising it for showing some initiative. He should be praising it for showing that it's prepared to do the kind of big sky, big picture thinking that local government hasn't been doing, and which we've been saying it should be doing. I think Doocey isn't reading the room, and I suspect that there will be a lot of excitement about ECAN pushing this rail idea. What's more, ECAN has put some money aside for a possible rail project. Plus, it's talking about not just limiting this rail passenger idea to Rangiora, Christchurch, and Rolleston. It's saying that, once up and running, the service could be extended to places like Amberley, Ashburton, Timaru, and even further south into Otago and Southland. I'm loving the idea. I'm also loving the fact that ECAN is prepared to put some skin in the game. To spend some money and find out once-and-for-all how much of a goer this could be. ECAN is onto something because if there's a common complaint about how the earthquake rebuild played out, it would be the fact that, despite all the talk that Christchurch was going to be the most modern city in the country, it's not. Because we've just stuck to the same old, same old when it comes to things like transport. And local government has to carry some of the blame for that. But now, ECAN wants to make good on that. What this comes down to for me is this: what do expect of local government? Do we just expect it to stick to its knitting and do the basic boring stuff? Or do we expect our councils to be the big picture thinkers? If you're like me and you want to see councils doing the big picture stuff, then you'll agree that we've lost the ability to think big. Mark my words, there'll be no shortage of people running in the local body elections later this year banging-on about sticking to the basics. Whereas ECAN is showing that it's thinking about the future, which is exactly the kind of thing I want to see not just from ECAN, but all our councils. Tell that to Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey, though. He's saying today: ‘Rather than coming up with pie in the sky motions, ECAN should focus on reducing rates which have rapidly increased - putting more pressure on ratepayers in a cost-of-living crisis.'' Compare that to the likes of ECAN councillor Joe Davies who is saying we can't wait 20 or 30 years, and we need a solution in the next five to ten years. He says: ‘There's a corridor already in place so there would be significantly lower set-up costs and this is an opportunity to link Rangiora and Rolleston to the city.'' So he sees opportunity. Matt Doocey sees obstacles. ECAN sees opportunity and is doing something about it, which is the approach I want to see a lot more of from our local councils. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David discusses the latest events in North Canterbury including updates in Kaikoura's annual plan, Environment Canterbury is boosting bus services and raising fares, and the restored Soldiers' Block in Hanmer Springs was officially opened on Anzac Day.

The Canterbury Regional Council is being criticised for its management of Lake Ellesmere, with residents frustrated the lake was not opened to the sea before last week's storm. Environment Canterbury's director of science Tim Davie spoke to Alexa Cook.

Canterbury is bracing for heavy snow, strong winds and even more rain. Environment Canterbury general manager of hazards Leigh Griffiths spoke to Alexa Cook.

Here's how I would sum up the Government's changes to the free speech rules for universities. It wants more Posie Parkers and less posey political statements. Which I've got no problem with - but I don't think it should stop at universities. I think the Government also needs to look at other public entities, such as local councils, which actually seem to be making more posey political statements than universities. Because, if the Government doesn't want universities taking positions on things like the war in Gaza because - whatever position they take - won't reflect the views of all staff and students, then the same could apply to local councils, couldn't it? If a council boycotts Israel, for example, there's no way everyone who works for these councils or who pays rates to these councils will agree, is there? Let me come back to that. But the gist of all this is that the Government wants two changes to the way universities deal with free speech. For starters: It wants them to stop being so antsy about having guest speakers coming onto campus who might upset a few people with their views. Which has seen some universities pull the plug on certain events. Massey University, for example, stopped Don Brash from giving a speech there once because of what one person described as his "separatist and supremacist rhetoric". A more recent example is Victoria University cancelling a freedom of speech debate this year because of concerns it would turn into a cesspit of hate speech. So the Government wants no more of that. Because it thinks universities are places where all sorts of ideas and thoughts should be shared and debated. And I agree with that. So that's what I mean when I say it wants more Posie Parker. The other change it's making to the regulations that universities operate under, is to stop them taking positions on matters that don'tdirectly relate to their core business of research and teaching. Now this is not something that is going to impact academics who enjoy what's known as academic freedom - which pretty much means they can think and say what they want. Although some academics have questioned that in recent years, saying that they don't feel as free to think and say what they want as they used to. But, essentially, what the Government wants to stop is universities - as institutions - taking a view or a stance on international issues, for example. Some of our universities have been under pressure to condemn Israel for what's going on in Gaza and the Occupied Territories. But, as far as I'm aware, none of them have given-in to that pressure. The closest example I could find here in New Zealand is an announcement three months ago by Victoria University's fundraising arm - the Victoria University Foundation - that it would be getting rid of its Israeli government bonds and its shares in companies listed in Israel. So maybe this is a pre-emptive move by the Government, as much as anything. And it says the reason it's doing this, is that if a university takes a stand on something - it doesn't reflect the views of all staff and students, and that is unfair. So, if that's the motivation, then I reckon the Government needs to come down just as hard on other public entities. Public entities which, at the moment, seem to be going harder on this thing than any of our universities. And I'm thinking, specifically, about local councils around the country which have been more than happy to pile-in on Israel this year, with decisions to boycott companies which operate in Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. Christchurch City Council has done it. Environment Canterbury regional council has done it. And Nelson City Council's done it. They're the ones I'm aware of. There might be others. But, if we apply the argument the Government's using to stop universities taking positions on global issues - because they won't necessarily represent the views of all staff and students - then the same can be said of these local councils, can't it? In Nelson, for example, after the council there voted to go with a boycott - there were some pretty fired-up locals. The mayor Nick Smith, who voted against it, got a whole lot of abuse too. And who says everyone working at these councils agrees with the position their employers have taken? They won't. And who says everyone paying rates to these councils agrees with their anti-Israel positions? They don't. Which is why I think the Government should be telling councils not to take political positions on issues outside their core business, just like it's telling the universities.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environment Canterbury votes to delay notifying the Canterbury Regional Policy Statement, Kaikoura considers world heritage status bid, Amberley's proposed new cricket ground is approved, despite opposition, and we have updates on school building projects in North Canterbury.

After saying just the other week that I don't agree with central Government taking over local councils when things go pear-shaped, I've changed my tune. Slightly. And I've got an idea to run past you. First, though, can you imagine what it must feel like being a mayor and getting the phone call from the Beehive saying ‘you're doing a pretty cruddy job so we're sending someone in to sort you out'? It happened in Christchurch a few years back when the Government-of-the-day wasn't happy with the time it was taking the council to process consent applications. It happened more recently in Christchurch too when there was all that kerfuffle over housing intensifications laws. And then way before all of that, of course, there was the time that the government didn't like the way Environment Canterbury was doing things and so stepped-in, gave all the councillors the boot, and put commissioners in to run the place. And, yesterday, it was Wellington mayor Tory Whanau's turn to get the phone call. Which was hardly surprising and, from the coverage I've seen, she seems to have been relatively gracious about it all. But there was one thing she was adamant about - she's not going to resign, after what is clearly a vote of no confidence from the Government. The thing is, though, when you have no other option and you've got the Local Government Minister on the other end of the line spelling out what's going to happen, you're hardly going to make a clown of yourself and start chaining yourself to the front of the building in protest or locking the doors so the Minister's enforcer can't get in the place. Because we know, don't we, from experience that when a Government sends someone into a council, that person is there to enforce what the Government-of-the-day wants. It was the enforcer who was sent to Christchurch to sort out the council over the consenting and the housing density stuff. And it was the enforcer who was sent-in to sort out Environment Canterbury back in the day. But I don't think it needs to be this way. Because, when you get a Government intervening like it has here in Canterbury in the past, and the way it is in Wellington now, it does make a mockery of local Government, doesn't it? So I reckon the solution is to identify problems or issues before they become a crisis. Which councils themselves are never going to do. Because everyone likes to think they're on top of things and you're never going to get a council putting its hand up and saying‘ we're a bit of a basket case, we've cocked things up here'. Which is why we need another set of eyes and ears involved. And we already have a model here in New Zealand that I think could easily be replicated in local Government. We have the Education Review Office which sends out inspectors to keep an eye on what's happening in schools to make sure they're doing what they should be doing. And I reckon the same thing should happen with local councils. So, instead of the Crown observer only being sent-in when things are hitting the fan, the Government should have a team of observers who would go around all councils on a regular basis. Do you think all that strife at the Gore council between the mayor and the chief executive might have been avoided or might have been sorted out sooner if there was more of an external microscope being run over the place? I do. Do you think we might be more reassured that the councillors around the council table are actually the ones making the decisions and not the council staff, if someone from outside was doing a regular check on things? I do. Do you think the shambles we're seeing now in Wellington might have been avoided if we had this kind of external observation going on? I do. So the way I'd see it running would be very similar to the way school inspectors do their job. There'd be a checklist or a criteria that councils could be assessed against. So at school, for example, the inspectors might go in and see how well the kids are going with reading or maths. The council inspectors or observers could go in and check how well council meetings are being run; how much independent decision-making is going on around the council table; how they're going with their 10-year budgets - which has been the big sticking point for Wellington. And then, if they found that a council wasn't up to scratch, the government could decide whether to give councils a few tips or whether it needed to go full noise and send someone in to bang heads together. But, even if they did send someone in to get things under control, it would be at a point where the councils had already been called-out, been given the opportunity to fix things, and retained some sense of self-direction or self-management. Because, the way things are at the moment, it's no action, no action, no action and then - bang - the Government going all knee-jerk on it and sending the Crown observer in. There's got to be a better way. And I think doing regular council inspections or assessments would be that better way. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At last, Selwyn mayor Sam Broughton has come up with an idea that I actually agree with.  There was his push recently for the speed limit on the Southern Motorway to be bumped up to 120 kph, just because people are driving that fast anyway.  That wasn't his finest hour.  But this idea he's pushing today - that new road tolls need to be created and higher fuel taxes are needed because of a lack of government funding for roading projects in our neck of the woods - I think it's a winner.  In fact, as far as higher fuel taxes are concerned, I don't think it should be limited to Selwyn. I'd be all-for a Canterbury regional fuel tax to raise money for roads and transport here. Money that isn't coming from the Government.  Which is why Sam Broughton is speaking out today. He's saying if we want better roads, and the money isn't coming from Wellington, then we need to get some skin in the game.  So it's yes from me for a regional fuel tax. And it's a yes from me for new road tolls. And I'd start with the Southern Motorway - which is in Sam's area. I'd also be in favour of a toll on the Northern Motorway.  Both of them very good roads, and both worth paying extra to use.  This practical thinking we're seeing from Sam Broughton is a far better and more realistic response to the Government prioritising the North Island over the South Island in its roading and transport funding announcement last week, than what we're seeing and hearing from other Canterbury local body politicians.  They've been banging-on about how unfair it all is. Sam Broughton, though, is saying ‘yep, it probably is. But we can either decide to keep whining about it or we can come up with some solutions ourselves'.  They're not his actual words, but that's effectively what he's saying with this talk of higher fuel taxes and road tolls in his area: take control. And I like it.  Because if you just go on like Peter Scott, who is the chairman of Environment Canterbury —he's saying ‘ooh it's not fair and we just want our fair share'— if you keep banging on like that, that's all it is - banging on.  He's throwing all sorts of percentages around - Canterbury makes up 12 percent of the country's population, and our roads make up 16 percent of the total roading network, but we're only getting five to eight percent of the funding. Wah wah wah.  Wellington hears that kind of response and thinks ‘yeah and?'  Sam Broughton, though, he's telling it like it is.   He's telling people in Selwyn that, if they want the improvements and changes to the roads that they think are needed, then we need to find a way of doing it that doesn't rely on the Government and doesn't mean rates going up and up and up.  Which they already are in Selwyn. Over the next three years, on average, there's going to be a 48 percent increase. And, without as much government money coming as it had hoped, the Selwyn council reckons that could go over the 50 percent increase mark.  If you're not convinced that a regional fuel tax for Canterbury is a good idea. Maybe this might convince you. Back in 2018, ECAN did the numbers and estimated that a regional fuel tax here —at say 10 cents a litre— could bring-in an additional $100 million for regional roading projects.  This was just a couple of months after Auckland got its regional fuel tax. Which is history now, but I think it would be a winner here.  If you think of those numbers ECAN did back in 2018. A regional fuel tax —providing the money was spent here— would have brought-in $600 million by now. Do you still think Sam Broughton is dreaming? I don't think he is at all.   I don't think he's dreaming, either, with this call for more toll roads. And I'd be more than happy to pay a toll to use the Southern Motorway and the Northern Motorway in and out of Christchurch. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's First Up pod: it's moon viewing season in Japan, and that means a plethora of egg-centred fast food; we hear why Environment Canterbury rejected the government's call to scrap Ngai Tahu representation; finance minister Nicola Willis tells us how the government will be involved in Kiingi Tuheitia's tangi this week and Mahvash Ikram reports on the rising number of Kiwis facing burn-out at work First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

Environment Canterbury chair Peter Scott has resumed his role after an independent investigation in his farming practices. Also David talks to Kathryn about the scrapping of some school building projects and there are more culture wars against cycleways by the Christchurch Mayor. David Williams is Newsroom's Te Waipounamu South Island Correspondent

“Pines are one of the most flammable plants on the planet.”  That's a quote from a plant ecologist at Victoria University, Dr Nicola Day.  And it's why some Christchurch councils went to the Government wanting a change to the forestry rules, to try and stop pine forests being re-planted on the Port Hills after the big fire earlier this year.  The second big fire on the Port Hills in less than 10 years. And the Government has said no. Which I get. It's saying to the councils that it's not prepared to change the forestry rules just to suit Christchurch. So I get that.  But, at the same time, it's nuts that more can't be done to try and make sure we don't have another big fire in another seven years.  So, what happened is Christchurch and Selwyn mayors Phil Mauger and Sam Broughton, acting Environment Canterbury chair Craig Pauling and another ECAN councillor, wrote a letter to the Minister of Forestry Todd McClay.  And they pointed-out to him that, after the first fire in 2017, there was no way they could stop pines being re-planted. Which meant, of course, that when the second fire broke out on Valentine's Day this year the pines were back again and, bingo, we know where things went from there.  And within days there were Port Hills residents coming out and saying how crazy it was that the pines had been re-planted after the 2017 fire and asking, you know, when will we learn?  Since then, the councils have gone as far as they can go - and there are some changes proposed to what's known as the Canterbury Regional Policy Statement.   But the forestry rules, as they stand, get in the way of anything further. Because they allow anyone who has existing rights to have a forestry plantation on the Port Hills to replace it like-for-like if it's damaged or destroyed by fire.  The adventure park is a case in point. After 2017, the pines were re-planted there because the landowner had an existing right to plant them. There was nothing that could be done to stop that. This is what these local councils are trying to change. But the Government has said no.  When the fire was happening back in February, a director of McVicar Timber Group —which owns the land where the adventure park is— was quoted in media reports saying that planting native trees costs 10-times more than planting pine trees.   He also said that he didn't think native trees would survive in the Port Hills because the area is dry and rocky.  At the time, there weren't many —if any— Port Hills residents agreeing with him.  Such as Hannah Miller, who said: “Seven years ago was the perfect opportunity to re-plant in natives. I'm no expert on fires, but we've seen what burns in the Port Hills and what doesn't burn, and the native vegetation does a pretty damn good job of stopping it.”  She went on to say: “What on earth are we doing planting pines right up there? That's utterly ridiculous.”  And I'm not going to argue with that. Because it was utterly ridiculous that pines were allowed to be re-planted after the 2017 fire and it's utterly ridiculous that the forestry rules —as they stand at the moment— allow the same mistake to be made again.  But the Government has said “no”. So where do we go with this now?  If the councils here in Christchurch have had no joy with the Minister of Forestry, they need to be contacting his Cabinet colleague Simon Watts - who is the Climate Change Minister.  Because climate change —and more extreme weather— are part of the picture here.  Just over two weeks ago, Simon Watts released the Government's five-point climate strategy. And one of those five points - under the heading “Nature-based solutions to address climate change” says the Government wants homes and communities better protected against climate change through restored habitats and ecosystems. It also wants more native forests.  So that's where I think these councils should go next.  I can see why the Government doesn't want to tinker with the forestry rules just because of what we've been through here in Christchurch with two big fires on the Port Hills in seven years. But something has to be done to try and make sure we don't have to go through the same thing all over again. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Canterbury's regional council is putting in new procedures to manage a backlog of consent applications. In the last six months of last year, Environment Canterbury were penalised more than a million dollars due to processing delays. But since December, 75 percent of applications have been completed within the legal time frame of 20 working days. Chair Peter Scott says they're ensuring there's a clearer path to prevent a backlog. "There's also legislation change that has changed in the last 6 years, so every time the Government puts a new piece of legislation- that affects our consenting." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 A Mid Canterbury dry stock farmer who is none too pleased with Environment Canterbury and its communications failures over the fish strandings, and subsequent death, of thousands of fish in the Greenstreet Creek, a tributary of the Ashburton River. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deon Swiggs updates Nights on the fire and reflects on the last big fire almost exactly seven years ago.

Hayley Gourley joins us on the Black Heels and Tractor Wheels Podcast this week!Hayley hails from a dairy farm on the West Coast, and has had roles in Skellerup, Pāmu, Rabobank and Environment Canterbury to name a few.  Hayley has spent her career in the food and agribusiness sector, and is extremely passionate about all things Agri. Hayley talks to us about selling yourself, acknowledging your weaknesses, being calm under pressure, and the changing face of the sector. #blackheelsandtractorwheels #podcast #ruralwomennzThank you so much for joining us Hayley! 

David is in Kaikoura today where an old go-kart track south of the town is attracting petrolheads from around the South Island, causing trouble and upsetting residents. Environment Canterbury is in town as part of the "Pick a Path" summit, David explains the initiative. And he talks to Kathryn about some local tourism ventures. Local Democracy Reporter David Hill is with North Canterbury News, based in Rangiora

In a world, where increasingly the battle for renewables is being dented if not lost, how wise is it to find a solar farm idea near Lake Tekapo has been rejected because of the environment?  You want to 'save the environment' but you can't because of the environment?  As Rishi Sunak opens more oil fields because renewables can't cover the gaps, as EV manufacturers pull back investment because demand falls, as many countries don't know what to do about the increased power demand if more people do buy EVs, as the Australians increasingly worry about what they will actually do about power production, given they don't have hydro like we do and as we still haven't answered whether we want to spend $16 billion-plus on Onslow as a bucket for dry years, it seems increasingly pointless coming up with ideas that may work at scale and yet they are turned down to protect the very thing we are trying to protect.  The Tekapo idea was an 88-megawatt plan over 113 hectares. It would have serviced about 13,000 homes.  Now, it may be this project specifically was a bridge too far and in general, it could have worked, but so much of this is open to interpretation and dare we suggest an astonishingly large amount of nimbyism.  The problem, according to Environment Canterbury, was the risk of "permanent and irreversible loss of threatened land environments". What does that actually mean?  It would also "potentially impact indigenous flora and fauna". Potentially? Well, would it or would it not have?  Isn't there "potentially" indigenous flora and fauna everywhere you go in this country? Just what bit of New Zealand are we looking for?  The toxic waste dump where nothing has grown for 1,000 years?  The renewables game is fraught. On one hand, you have the Government looking at Onslow, a project so big it scares off investors in other ideas, and when investors do have other ideas the authorities look for reasons not to do it.  We don't like nuclear. Solar, at scale, needs to avoid mountain, daisies and snails apparently. Wind is a partial solution but is far from the sole answer. And we are a mile behind in offshore wave generation.  So shall we stick with Indonesian coal?  We either want to sort this or we want to find excuses.  How many times do the folks behind the Tekapo solar project and ideas like it, need to be rejected before they say "why would we bother?" See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A resource consent application for a large solar farm planned for the Mackenzie Basin has been rejected, on ecological grounds. Andrew and Karen Simpson, of Balmoral Station, near Lake Tekapo, want to build and operate an 88-megawatt solar farm on 113 hectares which would produce enough electricity to power up to 13,000 homes. An Environment Canterbury hearing was held in Christchurch in August, and the three Commissioners' decision has just been made public - refusing the consent. They say the development risked permanent and irreversible loss of threatened land environments, and would potentially impact indigenous flora and fauna species. The decision has been welcomed by the Environmental Defence Society, which opposed the application because it threatened indigenous biodiversity.But what does this mean for the country's pathway towards decarbonising the energy sector? Kathryn speaks with Gary Taylor, EDS Chair and Roger Sutton, CEO of Electricity Ashburton, which supported the application.

Environment Canterbury's worried swells may delay the rescue of a fishing boat beached off the coast of Canterbury's Shell Bay. The vessel, which ran aground on Sunday, had about 10,000 litres of diesel and 400 litres of hydraulic oil onboard. Images show the vessel on rocks, spilling oil near an endangered penguin colony. Environment Canterbury Commander Emma Parr says crews are battling two metre swells and king tides - which are forecast to worsen. "We are concerned for those wildlife, they are high risk and sensitive. We're preparing for an oiled wildlife response." LISTEN ABOVE LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environment Canterbury concedes an oil spill near a marine reserve is not able to be contained. The 25-metre long Austro Carina crashed into the rocks and ran aground at Canterbury's Shell Bay on the eastern side of the peninsula on Sunday night.The four crew made it to shore and had to be winched out by helicopter. It is estimated 10,000 litres of diesel and 400 litres of hydraulic fluid is on the grounded ship. Aerial observations are set to get underway to work out the extent of the situation, but weather is limiting a containment operation. The spill is close to the Akaroa Marine Reserve and the area is home to protected species like the korora/little blue penguin and the upokohue/Hector's dolphins among several others. Kathryn speaks with Andy Thompson, DoC's Mahaanui operations manager and Shireen Helps owner and founder of Pohatu Penguins, a wildlife tour company on Banks Peninsula.

Swimmers enjoying Canterbury's open water this summer should check before they dive, or they might risk getting sick. Environment Canterbury says the number of popular lakes, rivers and beaches graded unsuitable for swimming has risen from twenty-one last year to twenty-five this year. Water Quality Science team leader Shirley Hayward says human faecal bacteria making its way into the water is hard to control and poses a threat to public health. Hayward spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

An open letter to electoral candidates across the motu is urging prospective policy makers to think beyond the needs of the capital. The letter references the need to recognise the role of regional councils, prioritise climate resilience and biodiversity, and invest in public transport planning outside of major cities. Environment Canterbury chair Peter Scott spoke to Corin Dann.

Frustration is building in Canterbury over election policies that "fail" to address regional issues. Environment Canterbury's chair Peter Scott has sent an open letter urging election candidates to think beyond Auckland and Wellington. The letter outlines four areas his council wants prioritised; including flood resilience and adaptation to climate change. Scott told Mike Hosking that he's becoming increasingly annoyed trying to influence decision makers in Wellington, despite Canterbury being the largest region in the country. He says if election policies continue to ignore Canterbury, the region could go bankrupt. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lyttleton locals will have a chance to voice their frustrations tonight on how cruise ships are disrupting their community. Environment Canterbury says when the ships are in port bus services struggle to keep up with the added demand from tourists - especially routes in and out of Lyttelton. Tourism groups along with the port company and the Cruise Association will come together to hear out residents and pitch some solutions. Loren Heaphy from the city's council's economic development agency ChristchrchNZ will also be there. Heaphy spoke to Corin Dann.

David talks to Kathryn about the North Canterbury Mayors reaction to the Future of Local Government report, Rangiora High School's curriculum review and the Oxford Area School Observatory installing a meteor camera and progresses dark sky reserve plans. Also he has recently been to Kaikoura looking at Environment Canterbury's pest control and wetland restoration projects, housing developments and the town's own version of the popular Christchurch Brick Show.

You know how the number of sheep in New Zealand is down? That's according to stats which came out a month or so ago which, of course, prompted a fresh round of sheep jokes - especially across the Tasman. Well, they are - and even though we might still have a fair number of sheep, I reckon there's another breed that we're being outnumbered by - and that's local councillors. Maybe not as many as once had when we had all those borough councils around the place. But even without them, we just have so many councils. All of them with their mayors running around in the mayoral chains, all of them with top-earning chief executives, all of them struggling to pay the bills, and all of them pretty much charging as much as they possibly can get away with in rates to cover all the costs. Which is why I am delighted by this new government report which has come out saying the time has well-and-truly come for us to have a re-think about how many councils and councillors we have running things. I've long been an advocate for having less councils in the immediate Christchurch area. This hasn't been me saying I think the city council is absolutely brilliant and the other Greater Christchurch councils aren't. In fact, going by what people tell me, it's probably the complete opposite. Christchurch council has shown itself to be a bit of a basket case on a number of occasions - and I know people in the likes of Selwyn and Waimakariri have looked sideways a bit and come to the conclusion that the last thing they'd want would to be lumped in with the crowd on Hereford Street. And that has actually tested my resolve when it comes to my support for amalgamation to create a Greater Christchurch super city structure. But I've always come back to the fact that the greater Christchurch area has more mayors and councillors than the whole of Auckland. Nutbar. And that's not even counting the ECAN regional council. Amalgamation of councils isn't the only thing recommended in this report by the Panel for the Review into the Future of Local Government. Which, as an aside, is a refreshingly boring title for something like this. Often these sorts of things have names with a little bit more pizazz but, at the same time, are totally meaningless. They could've called this thing something like Democracy 2050 - A Pathway for All of Us. Thankfully, they didn't. And it's not just amalgamation of councils that's covered in it. The panel's report also recommends four-year terms for councils (I like that idea too). It thinks the voting age for local body elections should be 16 (that gets the tick from me). It also says there should be more of what it calls “Treaty-based appointments” to local councils. That's the sort of thing we've seen with Environment Canterbury, where it's introduced unelected iwi representatives with full voting rights. That'd really get the anti co-governance crew all excited. Bit I think, if we could pull it off, it would be if the current councils in the Canterbury region were amalgamated into one. But you'd keep some of the service structures in place in the different areas - things like building consents, all the day-to-day council stuff. But you'd have one mayor and one set of councillors. That would get my vote.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environment Canterbury says ratepayers are bearing the brunt of having to put on extra public transport, to get cruise passengers from Lyttelton to Christchurch. Chairman Peter Scott says it could cost the council $500,000 to accommodate passengers next season. He says that could balloon to $1 million and they can't impose that on ratepayers. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A local developer is looking to reshape Ashburton's triangle, the historic retail centre of the town. Robert Grice owns a number of buildings on Victoria Street that require earthquake strengthening and he wants to redevelop the existing shops into a new mixed use hospitality precinct named The Ash. Jonathan also discusses an attempt to add quarter of a million dollars to ECan's annual plan budget which has been labelled a "slap in the face" by Environment Canterbury councillor Ian Mackenzie. And a hold-up of plumbing parts and red tape at the border means the Staveley Ice Rink won't be open to skaters and curlers until at least mid-June. Local Democracy Reporter - Mid Canterbury c from the Ashburton Guardian

Wallabies are hopping closer to one of our most precious national parks. Have we got the tools to stop them in their tracks?

With the help of a cultural land advisor, North Canterbury farmer John Faulkner is creating a diverse mahinga kai - Māori food gathering site - on his riverside property.

There are major efforts underway to keep a bunch of Australian invaders from stepping foot - or paw - in one of our national parks. Wallabies were introduced to New Zealand in the late 1800 for hunting and private zoos that adapted well and took off in great numbers. They're considered a pest because they can destroy productive farmland and native forests...and although mostly found in South Canterbury, they've been creeping closer to Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park. Joining Kathryn to talk about the ongoing work to contain them under the National Wallaby Eradication Programme, is Sophia White, Biosecurity NZ's team manager of pest management programmes. And to talk about what's happening in that crucial South Canterbury area, Brent Glentworth - biosecurity team leader Environment Canterbury. If you want to report a wallaby sighting, you can do so here.

Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger has come out firing today. He's accusing his council's staff of “running amok” and says they need to be “reined in”. They're his actual words. “They're running amok and they need to be reined in”. But wait, there's more. He's also describing his transport staff as "the anti-car brigade". He's not alone either. Some of the other usual suspects have weighed-in. Councillor Aaron Keown and Councillor James Gough also condemning their transport staff for making changes to the road near Hagley Park. Specifically, Rolleston Ave and Park Terrace from the Antigua Boat Sheds to Salisbury Street. The bit that runs alongside Hagley Park, past Christ's College and the George Hotel. The changes to the road they're brassed-off about is the creation of a new cycleway. What the council transport people have done, is they've blocked off one of the lanes heading north and turned it into a two-way cycle lane. It's marked-off with bollard-type things and means that stretch of road is now one-lane, instead of two. And Phil Mauger claims he didn't know a thing about it. And he and Aaron Keown and James Gough are demanding that the road be reinstated to how it's always been - with two lanes. And they're accusing council staff of being sneaky. What seems to have happened, is the council transport people got a bit concerned about cyclists and pedestrians being put at risk by the development work going on at Canterbury Museum. And they thought closing a lane of traffic and turning it into a cycleway was the answer. And so they went to councillors with this idea for a temporary traffic management plan. And, according to James Gough, councillors were led to believe that they would have a say on this. But that didn't happen. And a traffic lane on Park Terrace has disappeared and it's now a cycleway. Councillor Aaron Keown says in all the time he's been a councillor, he's never seen this sort of “temporary” work happen and he says it's just unacceptable that council staff have gone and done this. Which reeks of that idea that council staff tried to push last year, which would allow them to make a major change to a piece of road without any consultation or discussion first -  because it would be a trial. And then, two years down the track, they'd ask us what we thought about it. It's also very similar to that daft idea they came up with earlier this year of spending more than $1 million upgrading a stretch of Gloucester Street, in central Christchurch; trialling it for 10 weeks; and then undoing all the work after 10 weeks if they thought it wasn't working. At least with this pop-up cycleway on Park Terrace, it doesn't look like a million-dollar project. But I do think it's completely unnecessary. And what we now have, is city councillors fighting publicly with their own transport staff. Phil Mauger's calling them “the anti-car brigade” and he and other councillors are making public demands that the changes be reversed. Which raises the age-old question about local government. Which is just as pertinent today, as it ever was. And that is: who's running the place - the councillors elected by us? Or the staff who, apparently, work for them? I know for a fact that staff at Environment Canterbury loved it when there were commissioners running the place instead of elected councillors. Much easier for them. And I also know that city council staff often see councillors as a real pain in the backside. Because, if they're any good, they ask questions. But often - from my observations over the years - councillors aren't any good and they don't ask the challenging questions and the council staff get away with what they want to get away with. That's because they spend hours trying to anticipate the sorts of questions they might get from the elected members of the council which means, by the time they're sitting in the council chamber, they can trot out the well-rehearsed lines to bat away any unhelpful questions from councillors. Which is why, for a long time now, I've been of the belief that while mayors and councillors might like to think they're running the place - they're not. And it's the council staff who really run the place.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David looks at a legal case being brought against Environment Canterbury over the way it's handled water take limits on the Rakaia River, following the leaking of a draft report from within the regional council itself which suggested a water conservation order was being breached. He'll also look at staffing issues within the Christchurch City Council - including the continued absence of two senior managers.

If you can, put yourself in the hooves of a cattle beast. In fact, put yourself in the hooves of two types of cattle beast. The first type is the kind we're all generally familiar with. The one we see in paddocks up and down the country. The one that gets to eat as much grass as it wants day-in, day out. The one that certainly gets rained on and snowed on, in certain parts of the country anyway. But the one who also gets to bask in the sun, the one who gets fresh air through those big nostrils and is only held back by a fence or two. It's not always a long gig. Because, as we know, cattle beasts on farms are generally on a one-way trip to the supermarket, the butcher's shop or your barbeque. But I think we can all agree - meatlover, vegetarian or whatever - that if you had to be a cattle beast, this is how you'd want to spend your days. It's also how we, as a country, have liked or wanted the rest of the world to think of us when it comes to agriculture. Grass, lucerne, sunshine, fresh air. 100 percent New Zealand Pure. All the cliches. So that's the first type of cattle beast that I want you to imagine being. Not a bad life. The second type that I want you to put yourself in the hooves of is the cattle beast destined to live out its days (and nights) in a massive shed with hundreds of other animals. All-year round, you eat and drink and sleep - you do all the things that cattle beasts do - except you're not out in a paddock in the sunshine and the rain and fresh air. You're stuck under a roof, never really seeing the light of day. A type of set-up that you'll never see on an Air New Zealand advert for our 100 percent pure country. But it is the type of set-up that one farm company wants to build on Banks Peninsula. The company's called Wongan Hills and it's got big plans for a site near Lake Ellesmere, which has a lot of the locals in the area upset because they can't imagine how something like this couldn't be anything but bad for the environment. Incredibly, last year the Christchurch City Council gave consent for these massive sheds to be built. But the outfit wanting to build them and house a couple of thousand cattle inside 24/7 also needs resource consent from Environment Canterbury. And ECAN has decided that, in light of the public interest, it's going to notify the application and let people have their say. Which has delighted the group set-up to oppose it. Its spokesperson is saying in the news today that it's a good thing that it's being publicly notified because ECAN needs to consider more than just its own intel and modelling to determine whether the thing should get resource consent. The community group, known as the Little River Eco Collective, says it's vital that ECAN hears what the locals have to say and hear what other scientists and experts have to say. Which is the technical end of things. The “hows” and “why” of what impact such a massive development could have on the local environment - with Lake Ellesmere being a particular concern. Just as an aside, ECAN has put in a truckload of work over the years working with iwi to try and restore Lake Ellesmere because it's been in an appalling condition. And that's what the locals opposed to the development are saying. That sticking these sheds or “feedlots” as they're known just over three kilometres from Lake Ellesmere won't do the lake any favours. Which is the technical side of things that all sides will get their experts fighting over when ECAN does public notify the farm's consent application. For me, I think it would be appalling having hundreds and hundreds of cattle beasts stuck in massive sheds day and night, all year ‘round. As you'll know full well, if you go to the supermarket today, chances are you might struggle to find any eggs. That's because battery farms aren't allowed anymore. So what's the difference between hens cooped up in a battery farm and these cattle cooped up in a complex nearly the size of the Convention Centre, in Christchurch? That's how big this thing will be if it gets the go-ahead. Without doubt, it would be a monstrosity to look at. And I have no doubt that it would have, at least some, negative impacts on the local environment. And it would definitely, definitely fly completely in the face of what farming in New Zealand is all about. And what farmers in New Zealand have told us they're all about.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you've struggled to catch your bus on time in recent weeks, you are not alone. A shortage of 800 bus drivers across the country has led to a national public transport crisis, and prompted the chairs of Auckland Transport, Environment Canterbury, and Greater Wellington Regional Council to write to Transport and Immigration Minister Michael Wood urging a review. This week, Georgina is joined by Greater Wellington Regional Council Chairman Daran Ponter to discuss what has led to the crisis, how public transport operates between central and local government, and what effects changes recently announced by Wood will have.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are hundreds of drawings on limestone rock, some of which could be up to 1000 years old, in South Canterbury. Peter Evans believes it was his grandfather who discovered the ancient drawings on cliffs that overlook his Pareora Gorge sheep and beef farm.

Finally from 2024, we will have a nationwide public transport card, replacing regional varieties. An agreement's been struck with Auckland Transport, Greater Wellington Regional Council, Environment Canterbury, and ten smaller councils. The card will be called NTS. Which is not the snappiest of names, but who cares? But here's the even bigger news. If you don't have a card you can just jump on a bus and swipe your credit or debit card. The big question is: why on earth has it taken so long for such a simple idea to happen?   It's because we're bloody-minded parochial people who sometimes would rather cut our own noses off than work together. HOP in Auckland was supposed to be a nationwide card but other regions were too attached to their own systems. So council after council wasted ratepayers' dollars reinventing the same systems that other councils had either already built or investigated. But that's old news. Time for another Andrew Dickens I love public transport rave, because there aren't enough of these on this station. I love public transport. I love my HOP card. I don't have to think, I don't have to have change.  I just hop on something and go. You should try it. I, obviously, only do it when it's practicable. After all, I also own 2 cars. It's a thing called choice. National and ACT are big on choice. I'm big on it too. And it's cheap and never more so than right now. The other day my oldest son went to a party. It was 27 kilometres away over the bridge. He thought about taking a car but that would mean no drinking. He thought about an Uber but that would cost 50 bucks. He caught a ferry and a train. Got there in half an hour. Cost him 90 cents. How about that? Stuff you Uber. When I'm in Sydney with an Opal card I play a game of "first bus or train to come". Don't look at the destination just go and then find your way back. I've been fabulously lost. Cheapest holiday activity ever. When I was a kid I went to school and every sports practice either on a bus or a bike.  My parents never drove me because they were too busy working. So stop trying to make out after-school activity is an argument against PT. The two aren't even linked. There are some people who just won't touch public transport or for whom public transport doesn't suit. That's a pity. They won't consider all their choices. But it doesn't bother me. Don't use it. I really don't care.   One of the common complaints is that ideologues are trying to force you out of your car. "AT's trying to force me out of my car and I won't fall for their ideology. Bloody socialists". No, they're not. Actually, they're trying to help you drive your car. Because if there was no public transport then everyone who uses it would have to drive. So next time when you're in congestion and a bus, or a train, or a bike, or a scooter passes you, take a good hard look at those losers not in a car and say thank you. Because if they hadn't made that choice you'd be stuck in that traffic jam even longer. You're welcome.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ashburton's Mayor says the town's unlikely to chip in for Christchurch's new stadium. Just days into the job, the Garden City's new mayor, Phil Mauger is asking neighbouring councils to help with the 150 million dollar budget blow-out on the sports facility. He wants Environment Canterbury - the regional council - to bring in a levy. Ashburton's Neil Brown says rate payers won't be keen. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A cute detection dog called Toby is helping an Otago pest control team track down wily wallabies crossing the Waitaki River.  The  Aussie imports are escaping South Canterbury's Wallaby Containment Area in search of greener pastures.

Back in the 1950s, a group of wallabies turned up at Wainui Station... and never left. Before farmer Walter Cameron was allowed to use poison on the pesky marsupials, a hired gun was killing up to 3,500 a year.

More people have been forced to evacuate in Canterbury overnight because of flooding and slips. Civil Defence says a few residents in the Waimakiriri district left their homes because of surface water damage. and in Christchurch, four households were evacuated in Lyttelton and Redcliffs because of slips. In Selwyn, high waters in the Selwyn River forced a number of precautionary evacuations overnight. It's the second evacuation near Selwyn River this month. Environment Canterbury rivers manager Leigh Griffiths spoke to Corin Dann.

A state of emergency has been declared in part of Timaru, where people were evacuated from homes at risk of flooding last night. The declaration covers the Pleasant Point-Temuka ward, where damage to flood banks on the south side of the Opihi River put homes and lives in danger. About 15 people at Pleasant Point were evacuated. Environment Canterbury rivers manager Leigh Griffiths told Morning Report they need to assess the stopbank this morning and make repairs.

Consents granted to two companies allowing them to extract up to 8.8 billion litres of water each year from Christchurch aquifers have been quashed in the Court of Appeal. Environment Canterbury granted the consents in 2017, to companies Cloud Ocean Water, and Rapaki Natural Resources. After a long, drawn out court fight, Aotearoa Water Action won their appeal, with the court saying the consents were not lawfully granted. The consents were originally granted for a wool scour and freezing works, but the regional council allowed them to be rolled over to a water bottling plant. AWA spokesperson Peter Richardson has been celebrating the win. He spoke to Susie Ferguson.

A win for anti-water bottling campaigners after a long-running battle to overturn consents letting two companies extract billions of litres of water from Christchurch aquifers.The Court of Appeal has quashed an Environment Canterbury decision to let Cloud Ocean Water Ltd and Rapaki Natural Resources Ltd extract water for bottling.Aotearoa Water Action's Peter Richardson told Heather du Plessis-Allan companies worldwide are scrambling to reliably source water.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The raging Ashburton River has again spilled into farmland swamping paddocks and frustrating farmers. Last year's major flooding saw the same river leave debris, shingle and sediment all over local farms, which caused significant financial damage. Farmers want the council to step up the management of the region's rivers including removing gravel from the river. Environment Canterbury's rivers manager Leigh Griffiths spoke with Kim Hill.

Council staff are out near Ashburton this morning as river levels continue to rise with warnings vulnerable areas could flood. Environment Canterbury says rivers and streams will peak this afternoon but overflow is possible before then. Reporter Tessa Guest spoke to Corin Dann from Ashburton.

Heavy rain and strong winds are lashing most of the South Island, with at least one road closed because of the avalanche risk. Overnight, 113 millilitres of rain fell at Milford Sound Airport. MetService has issued an orange warning for heavy rain and severe gales for most of the South Island as an active Northwesterly front moves its way up the South Island. Heavy rain is falling on the West Coast, and in the Canterbury High Country. Environment Canterbury is warning that could "test the still vulnerable flood protection works in the upper reaches" of the Ashburton River which burst its banks last year. A Civil Defence emergency operations centre was set up by the Ashburton District Council yesterday as a precaution. Waka Kotahi's Tresca Forrester spoke to Corin Dann.

Labour's Sarah Pallett and National's Matt Doocey joined John MacDonald for Politics Friday.They discussed the situation with Te Kaha, the new Christchurch Stadium, and John asked them both how they felt about the budget blow out and where the money should come from to get the project underway finally. A Bill has been voted on in the house around Ngāi Tahu representation with Environment Canterbury, Sarah Pallett spoke to the Bill and voted on it, as did Matt Doocey with National against the move. And truancy at schools has been in the spotlight this week, MacDonald asked what can actually be done to encourage more kids to attend school. LISTEN ABOVE

I had a bit of an epiphany last night when I was driving across town listening to Te Tai Tonga MP Rino Tirikatene on Newstalk ZB talking about the Canterbury Regional Council Ngāi Tahu Representation Bill.Which is the official name of the legislation that's going through Parliament at the moment to allow Ngāi Tahu to appoint two representatives to Environment Canterbury regional council.Rino is the MP responsible for the Bill. And the plan is for these appointments to happen after this year's local body elections.So the Ngāi Tahu representatives won't be elected, they'll be appointed - over and above the 14 elected council members. And they won't be appointed by ECan, they'll be appointed by Ngāi Tahu.But just like the ECan councillors who are elected, the non-elected Ngāi Tahu representatives will have full decision-making and voting rights - just like any other elected councillor.Now the fact this Bill is going through Parliament wasn't news to me. I've known about it for a while, as you probably have. And I've seen and heard some of the anti-sentiment that's been coming through about it being undemocratic etc, etc.I suspect some people have been opposed to it just because it's Ngāi Tahu or because it's Māori and they think it's all part of “Jacinda Ardern's communist regime”.Tongue firmly in cheek there, by the way.As for me, I'm all for iwi being part of some of the big decisions facing our country. An example, iwi representation on the new water authorities the Government wants to set-up as part of the 3 Waters reforms.I think the reforms are flawed, but I've had no issue with iwi representation on the water authorities. And I still don't have an issue with it.But the epiphany I had last night came when I realised that this legislation to allow Ngāi Tahu to appoint non-elected members to the Canterbury Regional Council - and give them full voting rights - is completely unnecessary.It's unnecessary because, already, ECan pretty much doesn't do anything without talking to Ngāi Tahu about it first. And if Ngāi Tahu puts the kibosh on something, it generally doesn't happen.This is largely due to the local government legislation that ECan operates under but also due to a formal partnership ECan has had with Ngāi Tahu since 2016, which is known as Tuia.As ECan says on its website, Tuia is about the regional council recognising that its work is “inextricably linked” with Ngāi Tahu and its ancestral land.And I've got no qualms with that because, of course, ECan exists to oversee management and protection of Canterbury's natural air and water resources which are sacred to Ngāi Tahu .They should be sacred to all of us but I think it's fair to say that air and water are well and truly in Ngāi Tahu's DNA.But I think that this legislation is completely unnecessary and, in fact - I'll go further than that - and say that I think it's wrong.I think it's unnecessary because ECan already has this deep relationship with Ngāi Tahu. I think it's wrong because legislation will reinstate an arrangement that was in place when the previous National government kicked out all of the ECan councillors and brought in commissioners.Remember that?As part of that arrangement, there were a couple of Ngāi Tahu reps on board, which made perfect sense when everyone else around that council table was appointed. The place back then was being run by appointed commissioners, not elected councillors.But things are different now - and ECan is being run by elected councillors.So bringing in a little bit of the old set-up makes no sense. And it makes even less sense to be appointing people from Ngāi Tahu to sit on the regional council with full voting rights (without being elected) when, already, ECan doesn't do anything without Ngāi Tahu saying “yes” first.And it's wrong, simply because it's cherry picking from a time when regional council democracy in Canterbury was walked all over by the government. And, in my mind, you can't have de...

The Government wants to give Ngai Tahu the power to appoint two members to Environment Canterbury that have the same powers as elected councillors. Is this undemocratic? Police and the Crown have now launched their own reviews, after the Supreme Court quashed Alan Hall's murder conviction. Are you concerned people might lose trust in Police after such a blatant case of a miscarriage of justice? We've now got targets to improve our kids' school attendance rates, how can we get kids back in the classroom? Nanaia Mahuta's family members have been given government contracts on multiple occasions. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing – but does she need to explain her conflicts of interest better to the public? The Three Waters reform is officially underway with the first reading of the bill in the House this afternoon... With so much opposition to the changes – is this going to work out for the Government? David Farrar, Pollster and Kiwiblog editor, and Matthew Tukaki, Māori Authority, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan on the Huddle. LISTEN ABOVE 

Ngai Tahu is set to get two guaranteed seats on a major South Island Regional Council. Ngai Tahu currently appoints two Mana Whenua Advisors to Environment Canterbury – but a bill upgrading those advisors to full councillors has passed its second reading in parliament. Rino Tirikatene is the MP sponsoring the bill. He joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.  LISTEN ABOVE 

Something quite extraordinary happened yesterday.With 10 Christchurch City councillors writing to the head of Environment Canterbury regional council, asking her to get the mayors of Christchurch, Selwyn, Waimakariri, Ashburton and Hurunui into a room to talk about putting money on the table for the new Christchurch stadium, Te Kaha.By the way: are we still calling it the ‘new' stadium - or is it time we started calling it the ‘beleaguered' stadium. We can't be far off calling it that, can we?We've been talking about it for 11 years but there's nothing to show for all the talk - other than a big piece of empty land in the centre of town.And today there's more talking, with city councillors meeting to decide the next steps in this whole torturous process - which is consulting the public on whether it should put another $150 million of ratepayer money into the stadium after last week's budget blowout announcement; or scale back the design to keep it in budget; or put the whole thing on hold for a bit.But what was extraordinary about yesterday, was that - even before today's meeting - we had ten councillors taking it on themselves to get negotiations underway with the other local councils about having some skin in the game.This is something the mayor and deputy mayor should have done months, if not years, ago. But obviously these ten councillors are so frustrated that they've gone to ECan themselves and asked it to get all the councils in a room together.And they've done it without involving the mayor and the deputy mayor.If you want to know who these councillors are: they are Sam MacDonald (who we'll be talking to shortly), Jake McLellan, James Gough, Phil Mauger, Aaron Keown, Pauline Cotter, Yani Johanson, Tim Scandrett, Jimmy Chen and Catherine Chu.And let's not kid ourselves that these councillors are doing this solely for the benefit of the community. All but two of them are seeking re-election later this year, so we could easily make gags about them “grandstanding” and playing “political football” with the stadium issue.And I see that some of the councillors who didn't put their name to the letter are saying that their colleagues are jumping the gun because Lianne Dalziel has a meeting lined up with ECan next week. But these ten want all the councils brought into the tent.As they absolutely should be. There is no way Selwyn, Waimakariri, Hurunui and Ashburton should get away with putting nothing into the stadium.The other thing these ten councillors want ECan to do - as well as bringing the councils together to talk turkey - is to introduce a regional rate or regional tax to cover some of the costs of building the stadium.So that would mean any property owner living within ECan's area of jurisdiction - which is north of the Waitaki River up to the Clarence River, just up from Kaikoura and inland to the boundary with the West Coast.Anyone who owns a property within that ECan boundary would pay a compulsory regional tax to help pay for the stadium.This sort of thing was done to help pay for Forsyth Barr stadium in Dunedin and the Caketin in Wellington - so it's not unheard of, and I think it's a brilliant idea.Because, let's face it, Waimakariri, Selwyn, Hurunui and Ashburton aren't going to commit money overnight, are they? We've already had one of the mayors in the news this week saying “ooh, we'd have to talk to our ratepayers before we made any sort of commitment”.Which has election year written all over it, doesn't it?If ECan just went ahead and introduced a regional tax for the stadium, we'd be on much firmer ground financially, and the Christchurch City Council could box on and get things underway.You may have seen in the news too that even if it decided to scale-back the design to keep it within budget, the extra design work that would have to be done would cost an extra $30 million anyway. This is in a report that's been done by council staff for councillors.So it's looking more and more,...

How would you feel about everything in your green organics bin and all your garden waste going into landfill for the next five years, instead of it being used to make compost like it is now?So all your food scraps, all your grass clippings, all your hedge clippings - all of it - just being chucked in landfill for the next five years.This is the conundrum Christchurch has on its hands after yesterday's city council meeting where councillors tried to suss out where-to-next with the smell situation in Bromley.Although, as we know, it's not just Bromley - it's affecting the whole city. But it's Bromley residents who are bearing the brunt on a couple of fronts.First of all, there's the wastewater plant which went up in smoke back in November last year - 178 days ago - and the smell that's been coming from that ever since because of the rotting stuff stuck in the filter system. Which is the smell that seems to be wafting right across the city at different times of the day and night.The city council's handling of that, I think we can all agree, has been a shambles.But there's also this issue that's been around for years with the smell coming from the separate composting plant - which is also in Bromley. It's separate, but it's got people living in Bromley feeling like they've been hit with a double-whammy on the smell front.So yesterday, people living there had their chance to front up to City Hall and tell city councillors about the impact these smells are having on their lives, and tell councillors exactly what they think of the council.They didn't hold back. It was emotional and you could see the people who turned up yesterday have just had a complete gutsful. Of course they have.They talked about feeling trapped in their own homes and being let down by the council which has been told time and time again by Environment Canterbury that the smell coming from the composting plant is unacceptable.One of our local Labour MPs was even there. Banks Peninsula MP Tracey McLellan told councillors yesterday people in Bromley will have them “on the clock” - and she handed over a petition from residents calling for the composting plant to be moved somewhere else.There was also a councillor from Environment Canterbury there - Nicole Marshall - who demanded that the city council close the composting plant immediately.How about this for fighting talk. She said: “You are spending millions of dollars a year on a facility that is poisoning a community. The council is a bad neighbour and the community wants you gone.”That's a regional councillor talking to city councillors. Quite something.So it was a big day in the Council chamber yesterday and, at the end of it all, city councillors decided on a couple of things in relation to the composting plant.First, they agreed to move it somewhere else - instead of trying to make improvements to the one operating in Bromley.They also asked for a report ASAP on what it would mean if the plant was closed immediately without an alternative site operatingAnd this is where we get to the conundrum. If the composting plant is closed pretty much immediately, it could be another five years before a new plant is up-and-running somewhere else.And, during that five years, the only place our organics could go to is the landfill at Kate Valley, up Waipara way.So all of those things you do at the moment with your green waste - keeping it separate from your other rubbish, putting it in your green bin, taking it to the greenwaste section at the dump - all of that would be a complete waste of time.Because it would just end up at the same place as all the other stuff that goes in your red bin. For five years, until a new composting plant was built somewhere else.Which would fly in the face of Christchurch City Council's climate change and waste minimisation policies.But should policy come before people? Yes, the city council has declared a climate emergency. Yes, sending all our green waste to land...

Farmers, growers and regional authorities in the South Island are reporting large numbers of rabbits this year. Responsiblity for pest control falls to property owners under bylaws, and if a regional authority deems a property is non-compliant, it can do the work and bill the property owner. In close to 80 recent inspections, the Otago Regional Council found 41-percent of sites non-compliant.The rabbit calicivirus was introduced to the country illegally in 1997, and for a time was successful in keeping rabbit numbers down, but never erradicated them. So what methods of control are currently being used? What is the latest research, and where is the line between public and private responsibility for control of the pests? Kathryn speaks with Dr Janine Duckworth, Wildlife Ecology and Management researcher with Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research and James Spence, Biosecurity Team Leader, for Environment Canterbury.

Farmers, growers and regional authorities in the South Island are reporting large numbers of rabbits this year. Responsiblity for pest control falls to property owners under bylaws, and if a regional authority deems a property is non-compliant, it can do the work and bill the property owner. In close to 80 recent inspections, the Otago Regional Council found 41-percent of sites non-compliant.The rabbit calicivirus was introduced to the country illegally in 1997, and for a time was successful in keeping rabbit numbers down, but never erradicated them. So what methods of control are currently being used? What is the latest research, and where is the line between public and private responsibility for control of the pests? Kathryn speaks with Dr Janine Duckworth, Wildlife Ecology and Management researcher with Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research and James Spence, Biosecurity Team Leader, for Environment Canterbury.

Implementing farm environment plans has been at times confusing for Lees Valley farmers Craig and Marilyn Dalzell, so they've called on their son Alex to help out.

Many songwriters turn inward for inspiration. Anthonie Tonnon turns to the newspapers, writing about toxic waste in the Mataura Paper Mill, the housing crisis, the decline of regional rail and even an ancient Australian air crash. He was shortlisted for a Silver Scroll for a song about irrigation on the Canterbury Plains. Can current affairs be done in song?

Many songwriters turn inward for inspiration. Anthonie Tonnon turns to the newspapers, writing about toxic waste in the Mataura Paper Mill, the housing crisis, the decline of regional rail and even an ancient Australian air crash. He was shortlisted for a Silver Scroll for a song about irrigation on the Canterbury Plains. Can current affairs be done in song?

Ashburton's flood-weary farmers are crying out for more financial support to fix what they say is Environment Canterbury's mismanagement of the region's rivers. Three weeks on since the Canterbury floods ripped through the region, major damage continues to be assessed. While they work to save their land, they say the government's grant, offering farmers $3,500, does not begin to make a dent with the clean-up bills. Our reporter Eleisha Foon and camera man Nathan McKinnon, went to Ashburton to visit one of the worst affected farms.

Flood waters are receding after the massive rains in Canterbury, since the weekend. Some flooding was predicted, and residents warned to prepare. Environment Canterbury natural hazards team leader Nick Griffiths spoke to Susie Ferguson.

Cantabrians dumping old furniture in parks are about to be named and shamed online.Environment Canterbury rangers collected 62 tonnes of rubbish from regional parks last year - and forked out more than $150,000 to dispose of it.But litterbugs will now be slapped with a $750 fine - and their face splashed online.Parks and forests team leader James Page told Heather du Plessis-Allan people dump everything - including the kitchen sink - in parks."We're getting garden waste and all sorts of household waste, furniture and things like that, being dumped down in the parks as well."He says the community has called for a crack-down."We're sort of coming at it both guns loaded in the theory that this is something the public has been quite vocal about us doing something about."LISTEN ABOVE

As part of this week’s “Opinion Maker” show of Sarah’s Country, Environment Canterbury councillor Ian Mackenzie discusses the issues and implications around the Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill. The Bill clearly aims to put an end to farming in the high-country, and farmers are facing one of the biggest battles of their lifetime as the reform Bill is proving the best chance of casting aside pastoral farming rights over the environment. To read more, visit the article on Farmers Weekly: https://farmersweekly.co.nz/section/agribusiness/view/pastoral-farming-rights-at-risk To watch the interview, visit www.sarahscountry.com Subscribe to Sarah’s Country on the podcast and if you love us, please leave a review! Sarah’s Country is produced in a strategic alliance with Farmers Weekly - New Zealand’s most trusted source of agri-journalism - www.farmersweekly.co.nz Contact the show: sarah@sarahscountry.com Follow Sarah’s Country on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahperriam Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahscountry

In this week’s “Opinion Maker” show of Sarah’s Country: One government policy amendment making headlines is the future of the Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill, which has submissions before Parliament at the moment. Joining Sarah to discuss the issues and implications around the Bill are featured guests Environment Canterbury councillor Ian Mackenzie and ACT Party rural spokesperson Mark Cameron. On the panel, we have Kate Cocks of Mt Nicholas Station and Glenmore Station’s Emily Murray. To watch to the full-length show and to contact the show, visit www.sarahscountry.com Subscribe to Sarah’s Country on the podcast and if you love us, please leave a review! Sarah’s Country is produced in a strategic alliance with Farmers Weekly - New Zealand’s most trusted source of agri-journalism - www.farmersweekly.co.nz Contact the show: sarah@sarahscountry.com Follow Sarah’s Country on: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahperriam Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahscountry

A proposed 25 percent rate increase by the Canterbury regional council's has many locals up in arms. The increase is one of two options being released to Cantabrians in the region's draft long term plan. Using the environment as a reason to raise Canterbury's regional rates take by more than 24 percent is being questioned by several Christchurch councillors. Environment Canterbury says it needs to fund central government programmes which demand that waterways be cleaned up from farming and industrial waste. Changes to transport are also cited as a growing cost to the region.

The enormous fire at an Amberley tyre stockpile in North Canterbury could take weeks to burn out. A 63-year-old man has been arrested and charged with starting the fire on Friday, which is emitting thick black smoke. Critics say the mountain of about 150,000 end-of-life tyres should have been dealt with years ago. Andrew Arps is a delivery manager for Environment Canterbury.

Lan Pham deeply cares about our water and in this interview we learn about why.  From a childhood in Wellington we discuss growing up with multiple cultures, the power of cooking, how she started studying freshwater, the ecosystem for Native Fish of New Zealand, living on a remote island and her motivation for become a Councillor on Environment Canterbury.  I really enjoyed this interview and the varying topics we discussed and am sure you will as well.   At the start we talk about Impact Lunches - the next one is coming up on Friday 6 November - https://theseeds.nz/impact-lunches/ ECAN site: https://ecan.govt.nz/about-us/your-council/councillors/

There's hope people travelling on public transport will catch on quickly to the requirement to wear a face covering.It'll be mandatory around the country from Monday.Environment Canterbury public transport manager, Stewart Gibbon, told Chris Lynch he's noticed a growing number of people are already using masks on buses.He says Kiwis have been very good at following Government directions.Gibbon says at the end of the day, it's for our own health and that of others.

Recent research has shown why and how to manage soil variability under irrigation, while tech advances, such as smartphone apps, have made it a lot easier to do. Carolyn Hedley, from Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research talks with Alison Stewart about the outcomes of the government funded Maximising the Value of Irrigation project, which had a major focus on arable soils. Co-funders of the project included FAR, Vegetable Research & Innovation Board, Hawke's Bay Regional Council, Environment Canterbury, Irrigation NZ, Ministry for Primary Industries and DairyNZ. www.cutthecrop.co.nz

Jessie owns and runs a dairy business in Mid Canterbury with over 1000 cows. For the last 20 years she's also worked in a range of roles in agricultural policy, research and sustainable farming for the likes of Meat and Wool NZ, Federated Farmers, AgResearch and Environment Canterbury. She was the recipient of the 2017 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year award. In recent years, she's also grown her career into Governance, and currently sits on a number of Boards including Ngai Tahu Farming and Alpine Energy. She is also the Chair of RuralCo, and is the first ever woman to take on that Chair role. In this episode, Jessie shares her career story, including: How moving between jobs early in her career has been hugely helpful now in her Governance roles How she's learnt something from every career twist and turn Why farming is a great career for women

Auckland is under mandatory water use restrictions for the first time in a quarter-century and the over-allocated Waikato River doesn't have more to provide. We will discuss Environment Minister David Parker's Resource Management Act reforms to put the environment above all social requirements with ECan councillor Megan Hands. To watch to the full-length interviews and to contact the show visit www.sarahperriam.com

Ewe scanning is underway in the north, which has seen more welcome rain this week and dairy farmers are catching their breath before calving in six weeks' time. Jenna O'Sullivan was born in the 90s and is working in her dream job at for livestock genetics company CRV Ambreed. Leftfield Innovation is looking for ways farmers can use their land to make high value food products that consumers want, It's investigating six crops we currently import but could grow and use to develop products. David Young makes and sells 100 types of wine on his small orchard 24kms south of Auckland. His family has been on the same piece of land since 1896. Award winning wagyu beef farmers Evan and Clare Chapman were going to cut down a row of willows at their Kakahu property until they discovered a colony of long-tailed bats/pekapeka had made the old trees their home. Now the couple is working with Environment Canterbury to protect them.

Award winning wagyu beef farmers Evan and Clare Chapman were going to cut down a row of willows at their Kakahu property until they discovered a colony of long-tailed bats/pekapeka had made the old trees their home. Now the couple is working with Environment Canterbury to protect them.

Environment Canterbury Councillor, Megan Hands, chats to Sarah about her thoughts on New Zealand's latest budget announcement. To watch to the full-length interviews and to contact the show visit www.sarahperriam.com

Christchurch could have its very own bog of eternal stench.​​An odour over parts of Linwood and neighbouring areas has been described as smelling like fish, rubbish bins and excrement​.​City councillor Yani Johanson is among hundreds who have made complaints to Environment Canterbury over the pong. ​​He told Chris Lynch on a scale of one to five the smell might be a two or three, but it's everyday and especially bad in summer. ​The smell has been around for a decade and most likely coming from the organics plant.​

Christchurch City Council could follow Environment Canterbury and Nelson City Council in declaring a climate emergency.The council's sustainability committee is discussing the idea today.Committee chair Vicki Buck told Chris Lynch it could then be put to a full council meeting on Thursday.She says nobody can put their hand on their heart and say the world isn't on the brink of an ecological and climate catastrophe.Buck says the cost of not taking action is profound.

Climate change activist group Extinction Rebellion staged a protest outside the central city offices of Environment Canterbury on Tuesday and are pleased with the result.ECan chief executive Bill Bayfield has agreed to put the question of possibly declaring a climate emergency on the agenda for the next meeting. Extinction Rebellion spokesperson Grace Stainthorpe told Chris Lynch ECan declaring a climate emergency will show to all levels of government that this is being taken seriously and will allow them to really do their jobs of stewards of the environment they are supposed to be protecting.  

Chris Lynch and Mike Yardley discuss the week that was.This week covering Environment Canterbury rates rises, Regenerate - should it stay or should it go and the recent political poll.

Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel spoke to Chris Lynch about the City Council's concerns over the recent consent application to Environment Canterbury by Belfast water bottling plant Cloud Ocean.Mayor Lianne Dalziel says the main concern raised by staff is the consent asks to take water from the aquifer that we take water from for our drinking water.She says they have made an application for a variation to an existing consent which they have to take from a shallow bore but our concern is they could take all of it from the deeper bore, which certainly seems to be the intention as they have already put that on their bottles. 

Environment Canterbury insists it isn't going easy on the developer of a mega dairy farm in the Mackenzie Country.The regional council is allowing a portion of the land at Simon's Pass near Twizel to be irrigated - despite the farm not yet meeting all of its conditions under its consent.The move has infuriated Greenpeace which has accused ECAN of bending the rules so that dairy corporates can make money at the cost of fragile landscapes.But ECAN Chairman Steve Lowndes told Chris Lynch the council is satisfied the farm has done enough for now - meeting all but one of 99 onerous conditions set down by the Environment Court two years agoIt says the outstanding condition - which relates to a survey to protect the Dryland Recovery Area - should be met by the end of summer.

Water bottling operation Cloud Ocean has illegally pumped more than 10 million litres of water from its Belfast bore, breaching its consent conditions.Last month Environment Canterbury issued Cloud Ocean with a cease operations and abatement notice. However this notice was lifted on Friday after Cloud Ocean provided them with the necessary documentation to reactivate the consent. Aotearoa Water Action spokesman Peter Richardson told Chris Lynch they are pushing forward with the court action challenging the consents issued by Environment Canterbury.   

Winter is most certainly here and as it sets in we turn up the heat in our homes, which can mean smoky wood burners contributing to air pollution in the city.Environment Canterbury is on a mission to reduce air pollution levels around Canterbury. Chris Lynch was joined by Director of Air Quality at Environment Canterbury, Katherine Trought, to discuss how and why they are going about this.

Chris Lynch spoke to Environment Canterbury Chair, Steve Lowndes, about the 2018 - 28 Long Term Plan for Environment Canterbury and held a question and answer session for listeners with concerns.

Cantabrians have voted for their regional council for the first time in nine years, Conan Young reports.

Conan Young explores democracy, water rights and the future of Environment Canterbury

How come little Nuclear Free NZ, safely situated in the South West Pacific has become the focal point of Government agendas that were in most cases, not signalled at the last general election?  Is this the way to ACT?From out of right field NZers find themselves on the back foot as the Government maneuvers to place restrictions on the electorate and their freedoms, or on the other hand loosens them for exploitation.Some see these actions as a blitzkrieg when most people are struggling to hold jobs, pay bills and give their children a good loving quality of life. We are being asked to make submissions if we disagree with the agenda however, most find they are too tired at the end of the day to attend meetings, research their submissions and attend rallies to show solidarity. Thus, the perception is that the Government is deliberately wearing the constituents down, but worse are only allowing 'we the people' a very short time span to respond back to the government.Is this not strange? NZ has in most cases carried the moral high ground in local and world affairs, we have been seen as a fair country, an honest player, but where and who are the politicians who will stand in integrity and carry the flame of honest virtue working for the betterment of the community and the whole? There are 120 elected servants in Parliament, who will stand up to be countered?   Watch this space!And where are the Civic Elders, the Pillars of Society?"Full Spectrum Dominance!" These below are some concerns that NZ is under pressure from:  DEMOCRACY: With the disbanding of 7 local Councils in Auckland by central Government as well as Environment Canterbury ... where is this heading?Inclusive of this are 'we' going to experience:1) More Genetic experimentation and possibly food grown throughout Aotearoa?2) The Australian TGA and CODEX Alimentarius being enacted to stop natural health practitioners producing products and selling them here. Note: originally many National MPs supported health freedom, but the NZ bureaucracy is still forcing this agenda, compromising some genuine National MPs word.3) Caving in and allowing whales to be killed globally because we are fearful of the Japanese yen?4) The Security and Intelligence Bill being foisted upon a basically peaceful country which already has very secure borders?5) Having overseas mining corporations extract minerals from conservation land, with minute royalties going to the NZ people?6) Foreign Investment and countries overseas buying land into NZ, when NZers are not allowed to buy land in certain countries that are allowed to buy here.7) Community owned assets like the airport and Auckland water being readied for sale to overseas ownership or 'contracted' to them for up to 35 years at a stretch.8) Privatization of Prisons.And more...The list is growing, why is the National government steam rolling us with this agenda, when it has always been their stated aim to have as little government interference as possible?These issues have to openly debated 'point for point' via local town meetings as well as TV but with a neutral host over the next 1 to 2 years, why the hurry and why give the electorate so little time to respond. Are MP's not "our elected servants?"