Governor-General Amends Kawarau River Water Conservation Order
The Governor-General made the Order in Council amending the Kawarau River Water Conservation Order on 11 November 2013. The Order which will amend the WCO will commence on 13 December 2013 and can be found here.
The Order gives effect to the Minister for the Environment’s earlier announcement on 1 November that she accepted all of the Environment Court’s majority recommendations in respect of the Application to amend the Water Conservation (Kawarau) Order 1997 (WCO) relating to the Nevis River. Details of the Minister’s final decision can be found here.
The Minister in making her decision decided that the benefits of protecting the angling and kayaking values, Nevis galaxiid and the wild and scenic characteristics of the river outweighed the benefits of preserving the option of a dam on the river. Accordingly the Minister made a recommendation to the Governor-General to make the Water Conservation (Kawarau) Amendment Order 2013 to recognise and protect these nationally outstanding values by prohibiting damming.
For assistance in understanding the implications of this Order, please contact our specialist environmental lawyer Maree Baker-Galloway.
PDF version : Governor-General amends the Kawarau River Water Conservation Order