Waimakariri council puts focus on climate change
From local democracy reporter David Hill:
The Waimakariri District Council has appointed a lead adviser as it looks to develop a plan to adapt to climate change.
Former Federated Farmers North Canterbury president Lynda Murchison, who has a PhD in environmental planning, has been appointed to work alongside Cr Niki Mealings, the council’s climate change portfolio holder.
‘‘The council is committed to being transformational leaders in this space and working with mana whenua and the wider community to mitigate and adapt to climate change challenges,’’ mayor Dan Gordon said.
Murchison farms in partnership with her husband, Jock Murchison, in the Weka Pass in North Canterbury and has worked in resource management for about 25 years.
She completed her PhD thesis - Conflict Between Intergenerational Family Farmers and Environmental Planning Processes: An ‘Economic versus Environment’ Proposition of Different Ways of Knowing? - at the University of Canterbury in 2020.
The Waimakariri District Council adopted a climate change policy in 2019 to get ‘‘its own house in order’’, Gordon said.
It has now set its sights on developing a climate change adaptation strategy for the wider district.
Councillors adopted a climate change scenario technical report, prepared by Niwa, at a council meeting on July 5.
The report identified that weather patterns are expected to become more volatile.
Annual average temperatures are expected to increase with more extreme warm temperatures, less frost days and less snow.
A warmer atmosphere is expected to hold more moisture and more average annual rainfall, but this is expected to lead to more frequent heavy rainfall events.
More flood events are expected to be punctuated by more frequent and prolonged droughts due to increased temperatures and wind speeds, the report says.
Sea level rise is also expected to lead to some changes in coastal areas.
Gordon said the council had begun ‘‘refreshing’’ its climate change forward work programme.
This included conducting risk assessments to identify land and infrastructure most at risk.
The council would also look to calculate an emissions profile for the district as it developed its own emissions reduction plan in response to Government regulations, he said.
Other initiatives include transitioning the council’s vehicle fleet to electric vehicles, planting 25,000 plants this year in council reserves and investing in other opportunities for carbon sequestration on council land.
‘‘We will be encouraging residents, businesses and communities within the district to come on this journey with us.’’
Poll: 🪰 Should the city invest money into researching the new Bypass Plan, or should we prioritise fixing the existing infrastructure?
As reported in the Press, the debate over the Bromley odour continues. Recently, a Bypass Plan has been proposed as a potential solution - this involves pumping sewage into the sea. However, official technical, scientific, and environmental reports on this plan and how it may impact the Canterbury region aren't finished yet.
Before we get the final word from the consultants, we want to know what the community thinks about the allocation of rates and resources.
We want to know: Should the city invest money into researching the new Bypass Plan, or should we prioritise fixing and upgrading the existing infrastructure?
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7.9% Research the Bypass
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84.2% Fix Existing Infrastructure
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7.9% Undecided/Need more info
Poll: Should we ditch daylight saving? 🕰️
First introduced in New Zealand in 1927 with the passing of the Summer Time Act, it's what we know as 'Daylight Saving' and this year it ends on the first Sunday in April.
While we do get to sleep in this time around, some people would like to scrap the clock tinkering for good.
And why? Some evidence suggests the time changes are bad for our health as they mess with sleep patterns leading to short-term fatigue and affecting mood. Meanwhile the hour change is frustrating for farmers and a nightmare for getting the littlies to sleep. But what's your take?
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40.7% Yes - get rid of the clock changes
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57.5% No, I enjoy it
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1.7% Other - I'll share below
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