Community voice is an “all in or out” requirement for the Ashburton District in the shifting tides of water management in Canterbury.

A major shake-up is underway in how Canterbury councils manage the region's water resources.

The Canterbury Mayoral Forum - representing local mayors - has backed a Working Group recommendation on a replacement for 10 water zone committees, which were axed this year.

Under the proposal, eight local leadership groups would be set up based on the major rivers in the region.

Ashburton was the lone dissenting voice with Mayor Neil Brown wanting community representation to be added to the model from the outset.

The previous zone committee had local representatives, along with council and rūngana voices.

When Brown updated the Ashburton councillors on the mayoral forum last week, he told them he delivered the message that community representation in the new model was an “all in or out” proposition for the district's local leadership group.

If Ashburton didn't get its way, “they’d have to drop one L [Local] and just be a leadership group”, he said.

Canterbury Mayoral Forum chairperson Nigel Bowen said discussions on the next steps for local leadership groups will continue over the next few months.

Bowen, who is Timaru's mayor, said this included any fine-tuning of local leadership areas”.

“Ashburton District Council’s concerns regarding community membership of the new groups were acknowledged [at the Mayoral Forum], and it was agreed to prioritise discussions in the Hakatere/Ashburton local leadership area to work through these concerns.”

The new local leadership groups would be made up of Environment Canterbury, mana whenua, and district councils. It is based on Fresh Water Management Units (FMU), which are the geographic catchment areas for waterbodies.

They are Clarence/Waiau Toa – Kaikōura, Hurunui Waiau, Rakahuri Waimakariri Ihutai, Whakaraupō – Te Pātaka, Waihora – Rakaia, Hakatere, Rangitata – Ōrāri Temuka Ōpihi Pareora, and Waitaki – Waihao.

Ashburton would sit on the Hakatere/Ashburton as well as the Rangitata – Ōrāri Temuka Ōpihi Pareora with Timaru District Council, and with Selwyn District Council on the Waihora – Rakaia group.

Bowen said the eight-group structure is an initial starting point and there are still many discussions to have with councils and rūnanga.

“The endorsed model is a response to the challenges zone committees have dealt with over recent years, which were highlighted through the review.

“While we understand that the new model isn’t perfect, it is an opportunity to reinvigorate the collaborative spirit of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy and shape how territorial authorities, regional council and mana whenua work together with our communities and partner to improve freshwater outcomes, building on the earlier achievements of zone committees.”

By Jonathan Leask