BOPRC celebrates World Water Day

The Wairoa River is one of ten major rivers in the region where Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff are working to improve water quality. Photos: BOPRC

It's World Water Day and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council is inviting the community to come celebrate the occasion with them.

In 1993, the United Nations General Assembly officially designated March 22 as World Water Day which at its heart is all about taking action to tackle the global water crisis.

As part of World Water Day, the regional council's hosting a Waiora Healthy Water workshop for Bay teachers in Paengaroa, while BOPRC senior planner Nicki Green will be presenting at the Sustainable Backyards Beautiful Water Beautiful Life Speakers Forum event at Baycourt this evening.

BOPRC chairman Doug Leeder says the council invests more than $24 million each year into caring for the region's freshwater resources as part of its Long Term Plan commitments to the community.

'World Water Day is a great opportunity to highlight that and to remind people that everyone has a role to play in caring for the freshwater that's so essential to our environment, lifestyles and livelihoods.

'From restoring wetlands, managing water use consents, and maintaining stop banks, to fencing and planting waterways, regional council staff work on water every day.”

Doug explains council staff work on the ground with local landowners, businesses, iwi and the wider community, to reduce run-off and pollution into local waterways, manage aquatic pests and maintain good water levels.

'Our scientists run more than 25,000 water quality tests each year to see what's happening with the region's water. We've also got work underway to improve the rules for water quality and quantity management in the region through publicly notified changes to the Regional Water and Land Plan.”

To subscribe to email updates or find out more about Bay of Plenty Regional Council's freshwater work, visit www.boprc.govt.nz/freshwaterfutures

WORLD WATER DAY - FACTS AND STATS

Freshwater in the Bay of Plenty:

  • 10 major rivers - Wairoa, Kaituna, Tarawera, Rangitaiki, Whakatane, Waioeka, Motu, Raukokore, Otara and Whangaparaoa
  • 12 Rotorua lakes - Okareka, Okaro, Okataina, Rerewhakaaitu, Rotoehu, Rotoiti, Rotokakahi, Rotoma, Rotomahana, Rotorua, Tarawera, Tikitapu, plus many other regional lakes including Rotokawau, Matahina and Aniwaniwa
  • 3 major hydro dams
  • 267,744 people living in the Bay of Plenty (based on 2013 Census)
  • 37 iwi and over 200 hapu in the region
  • Nine Water Management Areas established

Bay of Plenty Regional Council's work on water:

  • 352.1km of stopbanks maintained to protect towns and rural land from river overflows.
  • 5 Bay of Plenty Regional Council integrated water management programmes currently underway: Te Awanui Tauranga Harbour, Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes, Ohiwa Harbour, Te Ara Whanui O Rangitaiki, and Kaituna/Maketu Pongakawa/Waitahanui water management programmes
  • We manage 1100+ consents to take and use water from ground and surface water sources. The total volume allocated to these consents is approximately 1.94 million m3 per day (equivalent to 22,500 litres per second - similar to typical summer flows in the Tarawera River!)
  • 700 river and stream flow measurements taken each year.
  • 25,000 water quality samples collected each year, to see what our water can tell us.
  • 5 major river and drainage schemes and 37 minor rivers and drainage schemes managed

Bay of Plenty Regional Council data services assistant Lisa Bevan measures stream flow as part of council's freshwater monitoring and research work.

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2 comments

Water Quality

Posted on 22-03-2017 11:56 | By Roadkill

I thought perhaps it was better that such an event was held would be more of a funeral than a celebration. If one took account of the actual water quality, there is little to celebrate.


Global Water Crisis

Posted on 22-03-2017 12:09 | By overit

and our stupid Govt. is letting it get exported for free. Its liquid gold-imagine the money NZ could make to help with running the country. Dont tax water used by Kiwi's but anything going abroad, yes. But they are afraid of the Treaty of Waitangi and Maori's so called association with it. A can of worms! I think not.


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