Waihemo Wastebusters outlined its plans to the Waitaki District Council's assets committee and met council staff.
Wastebusters' spokesman Pat Shannon said the group wanted to get the community involved in a "sustainable Waihemo" and waste minimisation.
As a first step, it planned to consult the community to develop a local planning and management group.
Consultation would include outlying and rural areas, business sector, community organisations, leisure clubs, activity groups, Maori and schools.
Results from vision and planning meetings would be reported back to the community.
A final report would be prepared and presented to the community, along with developing an organisation to implement it.
The aim is to develop a programme for the community to take more control of waste minimisation, retaining and developing its own resources, and creating jobs.
• Water theft:
The Hampden-Moeraki water scheme is the next to be inspected for illegal water connections.
The council has been worried about illegal connections, and consumers taking more water than they are entitled to and putting pressure on water schemes, including some where new connections have had to be restricted.
It carries out inspections when requested by a rural water supply committee.
The council has recently completed an inspection of the Enfield scheme, at the request of its consumer committee.
It audited water restrictors, which restrict the flow into tanks, to ensure people were getting the water they were entitled to.
About 15% of restrictors had been interfered with.
The costs of the investigation and rectifying the restrictors will be recovered from offending consumers.
• Harbour dredging:
Other ways of dredging the Oamaru Harbour entrance are being investigated by the council's consulting engineers.
The council has set aside $300,000 for the work and let a contract to have an earthmoving company use a specially imported long arm for a digger.
However, Cr Rod Bidois suggested to the corporate services committee that that had failed.
Corporate services group manager Stephen Halliwell said "clearly nothing was happening" at present at the entrance.
The weather had not helped. A trench was being dug at Holmes Wharf.
However, the digger had been unable to get far enough out into the harbour entrance to be effective.
Proposals to complete the work, including dredging using a suction pump, were being investigated.
• First aid:
Automated defibrillators will be provided at four council sites by St John Ambulance, with funding obtained from the Oamaru Licensing Trust charitable foundation.
They will be placed at the Waitaki Aquatic Centre, Opera House in Oamaru, Oamaru Library and Kakanui Fire Station.
St John will train council staff to use them.
• Gallery upgrade:
Final design concept plans for a major upgrade of the Forrester Gallery should be available soon.
Gallery director Warwick Smith and architect John McCoy have been "tweaking" the plans and making changes recommended by a peer review.
