ORC freshwater plan questioned
Would the Otago Regional Council chairwoman Cr Gretchen Robertson please explain how the new governance group (ODT 3.7.23) appointed to oversee the implementation of Otago’s freshwater, will ensure community acceptance of this plan when no representative from the main water user area is appointed?
Even setting aside the appointment of unelected mana whenua to this new dominant group within council structure, it is hard to see how this new grouping will find any acceptance by commercial and community groups of Central Otago. This new structure will almost guarantee a legal challenge when the outcome is actually predetermined through the appointment structure.
It is noted that Ms Robertson was chair of the failed Lindis River hearing which took around 10 years and millions of dollars to find agreement.
Just how the appointment of mana whenua will assist in the current and future determinations around water is unclear when their main interest appears historical.
ORC chairwoman Gretchen Robertson replies: Thanks for your interest in the process to develop Otago's important new land and water plan. The ORC is committed to notifying a new plan by June 30, 2024. The recent decision to alter the makeup and role of the project governance group simply added one more councillor (Lloyd McCall) to an existing group and focused the role of the group to project oversight including management of key risks and ensuring the proposed plan delivers on the core principle of "Te Mana o te wai", the fundamental concept underpinning central government’s freshwater changes.
We agree that input from all stakeholders is crucial. This is harnessed at our consultation rounds, the next being August-October 2023. There will also be targeted stakeholder discussions occurring during that period, with sessions focused on subject matter experts, for example, farming groups for farming topics, and the territorial authorities for urban topics.
There is also a chance for formal submissions to be made once the plan is notified. It is then heard by an independent freshwater hearing panel. The governance group has no decision-making power; it plays an initial role monitoring project delivery dates and risks and elevates matters to council if decisions are needed. The council recognises that the appropriate place for assessment of recommended policy is at its environmental science and policy committee. Policy decisions (like notifying the plan) are made at the full council table.
Partnership and a close relationship with iwi is important to, and valued by, ORC. The way water is managed in New Zealand is based around the national policy statement for freshwater: this is based on the principle that without putting the health of our waterways first we can't sustain ourselves and future generations. This is the concept of Te mana o te wai. We can all agree that healthy water is a key ingredient to thriving life.
O’Connor carpeted
With his acquiescence to nylon carpet in schools, Damian O'Connor has written his political epitaph. He will be forever known as the Minister for Wool who actually prefers plastics. He obviously did not have the chops in Cabinet to get the government to support its own pro-wool policies.
We were faced with the same decision to use either (slightly cheaper) nylon or wool for the recently announced new Salvation Army community housing in Dunedin.
The decision to use wool was never in doubt.
Sovereignty and smoke and mirrors
John Bell states ODT (11.7.23) that Māori conceded sovereignty to the British Crown in signing the Treaty of Waitangi. He missed a bit of important detail in failing to disclose that of the 500 or so chiefs who signed the treaty only 39 signed the English version: Māori had no equivalent to "sovereignty", so Bell’s argument starts to wobble.None of his smoke and mirrors disguises that the Treaty is considered our founding document.
According to the New Zealand Government history website on the differences between the texts of the treaty "There can be little doubt that the chiefs who signed the Treaty expected to enter into some kind of partnership and power sharing in the new system". Sounds like a good definition of co-governance — and even the English version gives Māori "exclusive and undisturbed possession of their lands and estates, forests, fisheries and other properties".
If Bell were to do some research from reliable unbiased sources on treatment of Māori, particularly in confiscation of land, he would find that his "sovereignty" and the fair and reasonable application of the Treaty, until recent times, have been an abysmal failure.
Guns, letters and a lack of clarity
I suspect there is a lack of clarity about the division between editorial and advertising (Letters ODT 6.7.23), the latter being the economic engine room of the newspaper (although editorial quality of course provides its contribution).
The legality of the products in the display advertisements of Gun City is not questioned.
What is lacking from many news reports is the distinction to be made between the firearms featuring in these (usually in connection with crime, violence and illicit drugs) and the extremely high probability of their being possessed in contravention of the Arms Act (1983).
It is this latter aspect which is almost never mentioned.
Parts 4 and 5 of the Arms Act (1983) relate to the need for licensing of individual owners and users of firearms and conditions related to firearm licence-holding. Part 8 of the Act describes offences against the Act, and these include the supply of firearms or ammunition to an unlicensed person, the "carrying or possession of firearms, etc, except for lawful, proper, and sufficient purpose" (Section 45), "carrying prohibited firearm with criminal intent" (section 54A) and "carrying firearm, etc, with criminal intent" (Section 55).
The frequency with which firearms are mentioned in connection with gangs, drugs and criminal violence serves to connect firearms in the minds of the reader only with these factors, at least in 65% of the articles where firearms are mentioned.
It is this linkage which perhaps discourages the most licensed users from reporting the favourable outcome of their sports, such as competitive target shooting victories, the gathering of table fare and the achievement of reduced pest numbers.
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@odt.co.nz
