YOUR INDUSTRY
WATER CARE A COLLECTIVE EFFORT Words by Kristine Walsh
Joanna Noble, Gisborne District Council chief of strategy and science, says clean water sustains us. Without it we are all in trouble, let alone the intrinsic value of our waterways and dependent ecosystems
There is tremendous potential for growth in Te Tairawhiti and the use and protection of water is a big part of that, says a Gisborne District Council scientist. Just six months after taking on the role of the council's chief of strategy and science, Joanna Noble fronted a meeting with some of the biggest users of water on the fertile Poverty Bay Flats. There, she talked about a range of issues, from the council's work on water security and resilience to updated government directions on freshwater management, a review of the Waipaoa Catchment Plan (including the reallocation of consents) and, the question on many lips, the future of a proposed reinjection project for the crucial Makauri Aquifer. Also up for discussion was a planned groundwater model for the Flats – due for delivery in March 2022. The model pulls together information from existing bores to build a picture of what is under the ground, how it could be used, and what the impacts could be.
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“It was a way of outlining what a more fully-formed water security and resilience plan could look at, in terms of both current supply and future demand,” Jo says. “Our aim is to figure out if any actions are needed in that supply and demand space and what those actions might look like, and considering what role – if any – council would play.”
There really is tremendous potential here in Tairawhiti and being part of realising that potential is very exciting The meeting was, she says, an opportunity for great debate and the beginning of ongoing conversations around the issue of freshwater. “There really is tremendous potential here in Tairawhiti and being part of realising that potential is very exciting,” says Jo. “The region has such rich cultural history, an amazing climate and natural resources, and of course wonderful produce. But like any industry, the production of that produce has to be managed in an appropriate way.”
