Member update from Wendy Embling - Co-Chair Waikato Branch
Submissions have been made to the Environment Committee on the Planning and Natural Environment Bills. The Committee now begins deliberations, with its report due 26 June 2026.
The transition to new water service providers under the Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025 is accelerating while recent storm events again highlight climate risks.
This week’s News Brief covers two amended national direction instruments, a report on the Lake Pūkaki Hydro Storage and Dam Resilience Works, and upcoming regional events on Fast-track processes (Auckland, Christchurch) and Regional Spatial Plans (Tauranga).
Kia ora koutou,
Congratulations to all of the organisations and individuals who recently appeared before the Environment Committee to present their submissions on the Planning and Natural Environment Bills. Your experience, commitment and passion for sound resource management practice were evident. The Committee will now be immersed in the complex task of deliberating on the submissions and preparing their report which is due on 26 June 2026.
Meanwhile, the transition to new water service providers under the Local Government (Water Services) Act 2025 continues at pace, and in many cases will result in a transfer of water and wastewater assets on 1 July 2026. New entities, including IAWAI – Flowing Waters here in the Waikato, have published their draft water services strategies for public input.
Recent storm events continue to remind us of the reality of climate change and prompt us to consider, again, whether our new legislative changes go far enough to ensure resilience and adaptation to a changing climate.
In this week’s news brief, we provide two new amended national direction instruments and a report from the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment on the Lake Pūkaki Hydro Storage and Dam Resilience Works. We also highlight a range of events coming up across the regions relating to both the current Fast-track process (Auckland and Christchurch) and expectations for the new Regional Spatial Plans (Tauranga).
Ngā mihi,
Wendy Embling
Co-Chair of the Waikato branch of RMLA