WATER QUANTITY & QUALITY PLANNING UNDER THE RMA
Water resource management is a key issue for resource planning in New Zealand. Abundant and good quality water is a scarce resource and managing water effectively to meet competing expectations and values can be complex, confrontational and costly.

This workshop will help to break down the complexity of managing freshwater and giving effect to the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. We will provide participants with examples of simple frameworks for management that have been used successfully in many parts of the country, including examples from:

  • Manawatu
  • Hawke's Bay
  • Wairarapa
  • Canterbury
  • Nelson

The science and technical detail of freshwater will be clearly and simply explained giving you basic science behind water management in New Zealand, quality, quantity and habitat.

Participants will work through practical exercises to apply the skills they have learned, including identifying freshwater issues and setting freshwater objectives, and have the opportunity to learn from the experiences of the presenters and others in the group.

We will spend time helping you to understand the requirements of and potential benefits and pitfalls of the National Policy Statement for Water Management and the National Objectives Framework Strategies. Tools for partnership with iwi and collaborative engagement with stakeholders will also be discussed, with examples of successful approaches from around the country.

You will gain a knowledge of recent approaches taken by other councils and stakeholders to water management planning, including allocation mechanisms, recent case law and providing information to inform consensus decision making through collaborative processes.


PRESENTED BY HELEN MARR AND KATE MCARTHURHelen Marr is a resource management planner with experience and focus on resolving water policy issues. Helen has been involved in water management issues in Manawatu, Hawkes Bay, Wellington and Canterbury. Helen is a Director of Perception Planning, a specialist resource management planning consultancy.

Kate McArthur is a water scientist and resource manager with experience in limit setting with councils, iwi and stakeholders. Kate has been involved in developing water management frameworks in the Manawatu-Whanganui, Hawkes Bay, Northland and Nelson and has advised at a national level on the Freshwater National Policy Statement and National Objectives Framework. Kate regularly lectures in planning and environmental science at Massey University and is an RMA Hearings Commissioner. Kate is the Practice Leader – Water Quality for The Catalyst Group, an environmental consultancy based in Palmerston North.

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