Get involved in the Selwyn Waihora zone

Les Wanhalla

Les Wanhalla, co-chair, Selwyn Waihora water zone committee

This year, Selwyn Waihora zone committee members are getting their boots muddy, and going to community events all across the region to spread our message and hear from you. 

We’re looking for fresh faces who are keen to get involved, and we want you to help.

The Selwyn Waihora zone committee has representatives from papatipu rūnanga, local and regional government, as well as involved members of the community. That’s where you could be involved.

We have spaces for more community members, so if you are passionate about the future of water in our region, check out our Wai We Care campaign for more information on what our zone committee does, and how to apply. Feel free to pass this on to whoever you think could be interested.

A farewell to those leaving

At the end of last year, we farewelled two of our long-serving community members, Allen Lim and Ron Pellow.

Allen and Ron have been constructive members of our committee as we advised on the creation of the Selwyn Waihora Zone Implementation Programme (PDF 2.4MB) and Zone Implementation Programme Addendum (PDF 6.5MB).  

They have a lot of mana in the committee space and take with them a wealth of knowledge on land use and farming practice.

We thank them for all their good work and wish them all the best in future endeavours. While they will be missed, we look forward to welcoming new faces too.

Engaging with the community

South Island Field Days in Kirwee this March was a good opportunity to chat with farmers and lifestyle block owners about the need to protect private drinking water supplies.

Our main message is if you’re on a private supply, it’s your responsibility to test your drinking water. We want to help make this easier by giving advice on how and how often to test, and what your results mean.

May Drop-in sessions

We’re hosting two nitrate testing sessions during Environment Canterbury's May Drop-in days:

  • Darfield Library on 5 May
  • Leeston Library on 18 May

Bring 500ml of clean tap water in a bottle that’s been rinsed, not cleaned with detergent, and we’ll be able to give an indication of nitrate levels in your water.

Ngā mihi,

Les.