Waikato Regional Council

WAIKATO — Waikato Civil Defence and Emergency Management is urging people living or working on the Waikato region’s coasts to be on high alert for tsunami warning information.

614 views

HAMILTON — Ruben the road safety bear has embarked on an exciting new adventure, with the launch of his new story book today at a function at Newstead School on the outskirts of Hamilton.

239 views

WAIKATO — As the soil starts warming up over the next few months fertiliser reps will be kept busy as farmers start preparing to fertilise their paddocks.

349 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is inviting South Waikato businesses to a free workshop introducing its new Carbon $ave programme.

136 views

HAMILTON — Environment Waikato’s regulatory committee has formally commended Hamilton City Council for the way it runs the city’s wastewater treatment plant in Pukete Rd.

344 views

WAIKATO — Prime Minister John Key has today launched Future Proof, a new strategy to manage growth in the Future Proof area, which includes Hamilton City, and Waikato and Waipa districts.

407 views

WAIKATO — Trapping, ground-based bait stations and aerially applied baits have all been used in a highly successful possum control operation over more than 17,000 hectares west of Otorohanga in the Waikato.

319 views

WAIKATO —  Environment Waikato says it is very pleased that its submissions on the Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill have been accepted by a parliamentary select committee.

239 views

WAIKATO — Waipa farmer Pieter van Dongen is encouraging other Waikato farmers to retire land around sensitive water bodies, saying it makes good economic sense.

201 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is being given nearly $100,000 of funding to enhance two peat lakes near Hamilton that are under threat from human land use activities.

612 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has appointed investment company Mercer to advise on the long-term strategy, strategic asset allocation and implementation of the council’s $54 million investment fund.

243 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato and Waipa District Council yesterday signed a formal agreement to help fund one of New Zealand’s flagship conservation projects aimed at protecting habitat for native plants and birds on Maungatautari.

359 views

WAIKATO — Significant fines handed out today to a Crafar farming company and members of the Crafar family are a clear sign of the intolerance the courts and the wider community have for environmental offending that further degrades water quality, says Environment Waikato.

281 views

Environment Waikato is encouraging Hamilton, Waipa, Waikato, Hauraki, Otorohanga, Thames-Coromandel and Waitomo residents to ring their local council about eDay collections happening in their area over the next two weeks.

769 views

WAIKATO — Vigorous lobbying by a strongly united Waikato Regional Transport Committee has been a major factor in the Government’s decision to speed up development of the Waikato Expressway, says committee chairman Norm Barker.

261 views

WAIKATO — Waipa District Council has made steady progress and spent more than $190,000 to protect Waipa’s threatened peat lakes over the past 12 months, under a financial arrangement with Environment Waikato.

277 views

WELLINGTON — The Waikato, New Zealand’s leading electricity generation region, is launching the country’s first regional energy strategy at the Beehive on Wednesday, as it seeks to help ensure the country continues to have access to reliable energy at an affordable price.

461 views

WAIKATO — By Gabriele Kaufler, Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator, Environment Waikato By now everyone is looking forward to spring, which is just around the corner.

445 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has carried out precautionary tests in the Firth of Thames to help rule out any risk to people and pets following reports of animal deaths on Hauraki Gulf beaches.

402 views

WAIKATO — New research has uncovered microorganisms in the Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ) that haven’t been found anywhere else in the world.

526 views

WAIKATO — By Bala Tikkisetty, Environment Waikato It’s a good time to plant trees for shelter purposes at the moment as the wet winter weather means they have a better chance of surviving well the transfer from nursery to farm, and of getting established.

524 views

TE KUITI — Now is a great time to start thinking about buying firewood for next winter, so it’s nice and dry by the time you use it, Environment Waikato says.

748 views

TAUPO — Now is a great time to start thinking about buying firewood for next winter, so its nice and dry by the time you use it, Environment Waikato says.

430 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has made a submission to MAF Biosecurity New Zealand signaling its support for the commercial harvesting of the invasive seaweed Undaria pinnatifida – but only in areas where it is already established.

506 views

MATAMATA — A Matamata dairy farmer and an earthworks contractor have collectively been fined nearly $59,000 in total for illegal, large-scale earthworks which led to tonnes of extra sediment getting into the Waihou River in 2007.

3,575 views

The Waikato Regional Transport Committee (RTC) has rejected proposals that would allow trucks weighing up to 53 tonnes to be used on specified routes.

187 views

WAIKATO — Waharoa dairy factory operator Open Country Cheese has been fined more than $11,000 over the illegal dumping of up to 20,000 litres of sludge which contaminated local waterways.

728 views

TOKOROA — Poor relations between dairy farm owners and sharemilkers cannot be any sort of excuse for breaking effluent management rules, says an Environment judge.

748 views

HAMILTON — Results from Hamilton City Council's most recent Residents Survey show that 85% of city residents think a Hamilton to Auckland Passenger Rail Service would be a good idea with over 43% stating that they would use services if they were restarted.

486 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato staff members have saved ratepayers more than half a million dollars by repairing the councils barge, the Tamahere, instead of replacing it.

567 views

WAIKATO — A Tirau farmer and an earthworks contractor have been fined a total of more than $60,000 over the cutting of a large farm track which threatened to discharge large amounts of sediment into a recognised trout stream.

1,483 views

WAIKATO — Respected New Zealand scientist Alan Saunders has praised Environment Waikato’s strategic approach to regional pest control work, which helps support the local economy and protect native animal and bird life.

240 views

WAIKATO — Boaties and other water users are being reminded that Lake Whangape and the Te Onetea Stream in North Waikato have been declared as restricted places under the Biosecurity Act.

413 views

HAMILTON — Two road building companies have been fined a combined total of more than $13,000 for failing to prevent significant amounts of sediment flowing into waterways during the construction of a passing lane near Te Kuiti last year.

544 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has launched a new programme, Carbon $ave, to help Waikato businesses reduce their carbon footprints, operate more efficiently and save costs.

216 views

HAMILTON — Hamilton’s buses carried more than four million passenger trips last year, a new record figure roughly equivalent to the population of New Zealand.

296 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is backing a proposed change to its northern boundary saying it will help improve management of the Waikato River and Firth of Thames.

282 views

WAIKATO — Water quality in Kawhia Harbour is good and some aspects are excellent, a year-long study by Environment Waikato has shown.

258 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato’s regional pest management committee has voted for a more detailed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with rail network operator KiwiRail Network on how pest plants are managed on the rail corridor.

312 views

WAIKATO — A Tuakau meat rendering plant convicted of discharging objectionable odour from its premises has proposed major upgrades.

327 views

WAIKATO — Waikato residents are being warned to prepare for wild weather this weekend.

614 views

AUCKLAND — Environment Waikato is warning southern Franklin land owners that they risk fines of up to $1000 if they fail to control woolly nightshade on their properties and also face being charged the cost of destroying the pest plants.

432 views

WAIKATO — Taupo’s air quality has suffered this winter, due to smoke from home fires – but there are simple steps people can take to improve the situation, Environment Waikato says.

505 views

COROMANDEL — Work on new flood protection stopbanks to protect part of the CBD in Coromandel township is due to start early in the new year after Environment Waikato’s council agreed to the work.

523 views

HAMILTON — Brand new buses, new features and expanded routes to northern suburbs are all part of the latest Orbiter bus changes coming into effect in Hamilton from Saturday 18 July.

740 views

COROMANDEL — Environment Waikato and Thames-Coromandel District Council are to seek more information from ferry company Fullers over its intentions regarding 360 Discovery, the company which operates a ferry service between Coromandel and Auckland.

430 views

WAIKATO — Unlawfully clearing about 30 hectares of vegetation, including rare and threatened plants, near an internationally significant wetland has resulted in a $15,000 fine for a Hauraki Plains farm manager.

363 views

RAGLAN — Environment Waikato will work with private landowners, the Department of Conservation and a non-profit conservation group to protect native bush between Hamilton and Raglan that could be developed into a park for trampers and mountain bikers.

524 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has this week adopted its 10-year plan and budget, which includes striking the rates for the financial year starting 1 July.

146 views

WAIKATO — Farmers Ken and Pauline McIntyre have been granted resource consents to continue running their Morrinsville piggery for two years – subject to strict conditions relating to odour discharges – to give them time to relocate the business to a new site.

270 views

COROMANDEL — Independent commissioners acting for Environment Waikato (EW) and Thames-Coromandel District Council (TCDC) have granted consents allowing the building of a 95-berth marina at Paku Bay, Tairua on the Coromandel coast.

1,368 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato’s navigation safety team is concerned about an increasing number of boats using the region’s waterways without lights at night.

262 views

WAIKATO — Lifejackets will have to be worn in boats under six metres from this July in the Waikato region, unless the skipper decides they do not need to be worn at that time.

340 views

WAIKATO — The Waikato Expressway’s standing as the region’s number one transport priority has been reaffirmed today as the 2009-19 Regional Land Transport Programme (RLTP) was recommended for approval by the Regional Transport Committee.

230 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato’s Whitianga harbour master Gary Vincent says a growing number of boaties are using unlit vessels at night, which could result in someone being seriously injured or killed.

278 views

WAIKATO — A project driven by community desire to protect the ‘specialness’ of the Kawhia and Aotea harbours has reached a significant milestone.

218 views

RAGLAN — A property development company has been fined nearly $60,000 after almost 10 tonnes of extra sediment is estimated to have flowed into Te Kowhai stream and the harbour at Raglan due to a failure to comply with resource consents.

406 views

WAIKATO — Testing the nutrient content of farm effluent and applying the data gained is a key way to help the dairy industry hit productivity targets, says regional council Environment Waikato.

256 views

WAIKATO — Regional council Environment Waikato has been working closely with farmers to help them be more profitable while protecting the environment better by reducing nutrient leaching and run-off to waterways.

218 views

WAIKATO — Sustainable farming is the primary focus of multi-million dollar research and development efforts by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, regional council Environment Waikato and Crown Research Institute AgResearch.

175 views

WAIKATO — New technology is helping Environment Waikato and Thames-Coromandel District Council with ongoing work to protect Whitianga and the wider Coromandel community from tsunami risk.

603 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato’s environment committee has asked for more information on a proposal to buy a native bush block between Hamilton and Raglan.

319 views

WAIKATO — The Waikato Regional Energy Forum Trust was commended at the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (ECCA)’s 2009 awards in Auckland recently.

475 views

HAMILTON — What is the connection between dentures and animal health? That’s one question being posed by the joint sponsors of this year’s Premier Feature on their stand at the National Fieldays.

344 views

TAUPO — Environment Waikato is currently taking action to prevent self-seeded pines from blocking up geothermal springs on the Otumuheke Stream near Taupo’s Owen Delaney Park.

380 views

WAIKATO — Using dry wood in your woodburner or open fireplace will keep you warmer this winter, and it’s better for the air, says Environment Waikato air quality scientist Dr Nick Kim.

903 views

COROMANDEL — Coromandel residents will have a chance to swap their garden weeds for native plants at two “Weeds 4 Natives” events in June.

405 views

WAIKATO — Waikato farmers have bought a record number of native trees and shrubs for environmental restoration projects through an annual Environment Waikato offer this year.

277 views

WAIKATO — In what is believed to be a New Zealand first, Environment Waikato scientists may have found a clever way to overcome resource consent barriers for farmers  and possibly help to save some of New Zealands threatened native fish species.

3,121 views

WAIKATO — EMA Waikato has urged Hamilton City Council to restore its investment in the region's tourism activities.

255 views

COROMANDEL — An Environment Waikato hearing committee has recommended that the Minister of Conservation grant resource consent to Thames-Coromandel District Council so the council can continue discharging treated wastewater into the Waihou River from its existing sewage treatment facility in Thames.

426 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato transport staff have been directed by the Waikato Regional Transport Committee to continue their investigation of a Hamilton to Auckland commuter rail service.

304 views

WAIKATO — The Waikato Civil Defence and Emergency Management Group has approved the resiting of the Group’s Emergency Operating Centre (GEOC) to Environment Waikato in Hamilton East.

160 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is seeking help from the public to locate rooks, which pose a serious threat to the region’s agricultural industry.

315 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has received about 1900 public submissions on its draft 2009-19 Long-Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP), almost half of them specifically concerned with the management of mangroves at Whangamata.

194 views

COROMANDEL — An Environment Waikato grant to Surf Life Saving Bay of Plenty (SLSBOP) has helped professional lifesavers meet higher demand for their services at Coromandel beaches over summer.

1,438 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato contractors have successfully completed a major possum kill across almost 25,000 hectares in two priority pest control areas in north-west Waikato.

681 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is offering advice and support to anyone thinking of starting or joining an environmental care group, EW care group coordinator Therese Balvert says.

334 views

Farmers have a vital role to play in protecting the Waikato region’s biodiversity, Environment Waikato biodiversity projects manager Judy van Rossem told a meeting of Waikato landcare groups recently.

476 views

  Waikato residents have only four days left to give feedback on Environment Waikato’s draft 2009-19 Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP).

201 views

  Environment Waikato and Waipa District Council proposals to make a significant financial contribution to maintaining the predator-proof fence at Maungatautari are about ensuring the continued operation of a unique native bird-breeding site, says EW deputy chairman John Fisher.

181 views

Environment Waikato has clarified that the new Pavlovich bus used on one of its services drastically cuts emission of fine particles (PM) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx), rather than carbon dioxide (CO2).

236 views

  Coastguard Raglan, with support from Environment Waikato, is helping to educate boaties on how to cross the notorious Raglan bar and to be generally safer at sea.

155 views

WHANGAMATA — Whangamata ratepayers are being asked for their views on a proposed new local rate to pay for removal of mangroves from their local harbour and coastal area.

366 views

  Environment Waikato is inviting anyone who belongs to an environmental care group – or anyone interesting in joining one – to a networking field day on Wednesday, April 15.

293 views

HAMILTON — A building currently used by Environment Waikato at 505 Grey St, Hamilton East, is now being offered for lease as the council restructures its accommodation.

553 views

HAMILTON —   A Government ministry’s Quality of Life survey showing widespread satisfaction with public transport in Hamilton is reinforced by latest figures which show a 25 per cent jump in city bus use so far this financial year.

231 views

WAIKATO —   A new Coromandel bus service run over summer appears to have helped save people from possible drowning or serious injury, says Environment Waikato.

237 views

WAIKATO —   New figures show there were nearly 10,000 passenger trips on free Environment Waikato-supplied buses to and from the Night Glow during the Balloons Over Waikato festival.

275 views

WAIKATO —   Environment Waikato is helping a Waitomo farmer to become the first Waikato applicant to successfully gain a Government grant for planting trees under a regional share of the Afforestation Grant Scheme.

375 views

WAIKATO —   In the spirit of these cash constrained times, Environment Waikato has adopted a more sustainable approach to ensuring its river barge, the Tamahere, is fit for purpose.

212 views

WAIKATO — Tight financial times have led to Environment Waikato deferring a decision on grants for community and school environmental initiatives for at least another three months.

189 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is reviewing its financial policies as part of the 2009-19 Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP) process.

163 views

HAMILTON — A Kerepehi-based fertiliser company has been fined a total of $8,000 in the Hamilton District Court for discharges of objectionable odour and breach of an abatement notice.

307 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato is seeking community feedback on plans to cut next year’s budget for supporting community environmental initiatives and for protecting the region’s native animals, plants and special outdoor places.

179 views

WAIKATO — A proposal for Environment Waikato to collect funding on behalf of the Animal Health Board (AHB) has been outlined in the council’s draft 2009-19 Long-Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP).

181 views

COROMANDEL — Coromandel town central business district and Hauraki Road ratepayers are being asked for their views on a new flood protection proposal.

756 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has chosen the four high school students who will represent our region at this year’s Sir Peter Blake Youth Environment Forum in Wellington from April 19-23.

309 views

WAIKATO — Waikato Regional Transport Committee chairman Norm Barker has welcomed the Government’s announcement of an extra $1 billion for state highways, which will help progress key roading projects like the Waikato Expressway.

158 views

WAIKATO — Environment Waikato has adopted its Draft 2009-19 Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP) and is hoping for a flood of submissions on its proposed activities and budgets.

170 views