We have a new date for the Bioblitz, a citizen-science effort to record as many species within the area within the day. Everyone is welcome to attend!
Events
Working together for good decision making
Last updated: 22 February 2023
Reporting frequency: Quarterly
Portfolio: Regional and strategic leadership
We are working effectively with Ngāi Tahu, territorial authorities, communities and organisations to shape a thriving and resilient region together.
We will broaden collaborative community engagement to enable and enrich participation in decision making and will influence central government decision making to achieve Canterbury community outcomes. We will increase investment in data, science and mātauranga Māori to support informed decision making.
This work includes:
- Policy advice
- Responding to Government direction
- Mayoral Forum support
- Community partnerships, including administering a contestable fund for community groups (the Waitaha Action to Impact Fund)
- Community and stakeholder engagement
- Youth engagement and education
- Reporting and publications
- Campaigns and special projects
- Using a mix of digital and traditional media to reach our communities
- News and current affairs
We are building the value of data as an asset and improving access to data, science and mātauranga Māori to support informed decision making, from mana whenua, individuals, businesses, policy and law makers.
We make data and information available through our website and make environmental monitoring data available through the Land, Air, Water Aotearoa (LAWA) website and add to the information available from Canterbury Maps.
Our governance services team ensures that Council meetings are supported and provide robust and transparent governance processes that allow community participation, and our customer services team provides customer advice and incident reporting channels.
How are we tracking on our Levels of Service?
Level of Service 32: Enrich community participation in regional decision making and action
To achieve this level of service we will:
- 32.1 Raise community awareness of Council’s role and work and actively promote and enable opportunities for participation
- 32.3 Support the Environment Canterbury Youth Rōpū to engage with young people through events and activities across the region
- 32.4 Enable community organisations to actively contribute to Council’s community outcomes
How are we doing: For measure 32.1, we are on track – see below for further information on Te Kōrari/People's Panel. For measure 32.3, we are on track, with our Youth Rōpū active across the region. For measure 32.4, the highlight for quarter two was allocating $600,000 to community groups through the Waitaha Action to Impact Fund, to support local communities to take action for the environment.
On track
Level of Service 32: Enrich community participation in regional decision making and action
To achieve this level of service we will:
- 32.2 Increase engagement with young people across Canterbury to lift awareness and understanding of the work of the regional council (target for 2022/23: Provide support for an additional 25 Enviroschools from the 2021 waiting list by the end of 2022/23)
How are we doing: The aim was to have 11 new Enviroschools by the end of quarter two. As at the end of December, nine new schools have been confirmed, so we are a little behind where we had hoped to be, although it’s great to welcome the new schools.
At risk
Level of Service 33: Work in partnership with territorial authorities to promote coordination and collaboration
To achieve this level of service we will:
- 33.1 Support the Canterbury Mayoral Forum to operate efficiently and effectively in the interests of Canterbury
How are we doing: On track. More information and updates can be found on the Mayoral Forum website.
On track
Level of Service 39: Collect, maintain and share quality-assured data for mana whenua, the community, businesses, and policy and law makers to use
To achieve this level of service we will:
- 39.1 Update and publish state of the environment information throughout the year on water and land, air quality, biodiversity/ecosystem health, and coastal environment
- 39.2 Implement data governance procedures to curate and share our data
- 39.3 Explore and develop innovative data services, including through partnership arrangements
- 39.4 Maintain and enhance access to our data, and facilitate sharing and use of data, publicly available mātauranga Māori, and citizen science
How are we doing: On track. Places we share data and information include our website, Canterbury Maps, and Land, Water, Air Aotearoa (LAWA).
On track
Level of Service 40: Provide robust and transparent governance processes that allow community participation
To achieve this level of service we will:
- 40.1 Ensure Council and Committee meeting dates, locations and agendas are publicly available at least two working days before the meeting.
- 40.2 Respond to official information requests within statutory timeframes.
How are we doing: On track. Information about Council and Committee meetings is provided on our website. For the period from 1 July – to 31 December, we received 107 formal requests for information and we provided a timely response in each case.
On track
How are we doing on our key initiatives?
Responding to Government direction
How are we doing: Submissions are an opportunity to help shape government proposals that impact on the Canterbury region. Read our submissions.
On track
Increase engagement with young people across Canterbury
How are we doing: Our work includes supporting the Youth Rōpū, which is currently recruiting new members, working in partnership to support Enviroschools across Waitaha, and providing educational support and resources to schools.
On track
Te Kōrari/People's Panel
How are we doing: The members of Te Kōrari/People's Panel are invited to provide feedback on specific topics each quarter. For quarter two (1 October – 31 December) panellists were surveyed on how easy they find it to provide feedback, why they do it, what we should consider as ‘official feedback’, and how we could make providing feedback easier.
On track
Election 2022, induction of new Council, and refresh of the committee structure
How are we doing: Following the local body elections in October 2022, the new Council, including two Councillors appointed by Ngāi Tahu, was sworn in on 24 October. At the Council meetings in November and December, the committee structure was agreed.
Completed
Recent highlights and updates
News
The coastline from Waiau-toa/Clarence River to Waimate has been captured in 3D by LiDAR (light detection and ranging) via Land Information New Zealand.
Events
We have some great events lined up for Seaweek 2023 that showcase the importance and diversity of our marine environments.
Events
A pop-up information day will be held on the waterfront at Te Puna-a-Taka/Lake Clearwater on Saturday 25 February 2023.
News
Enviroschool students across Waitaha recently celebrated their sustainability journeys at Burnside Primary School as part of the annual Enviro-leaders Hui.
News
Council agreed on a new committee structure for the next three years, setting in place the governance oversight and reporting for Environment Canterbury’s work.
News
Check the water quality for over 100 popular swim spots before you get in, to find the latest water quality information.
News
When there's a nor-wester, our alpine rivers can flood without warning, even on sunny days.
News
A collaborative planting project is seeing 7,000 plants being installed across eight different sites in the district.
News
A weedy stretch of the Ōpihi River will be transformed allowing people to enjoy nature and learn about the history of the area.
News
Newly elected chair Peter Scott outlines the challenges and opportunities for the next three years.
News
The Canterbury Mayoral Forum, which is a partnership between local and regional councils, has selected its chairperson.
News
At the Canterbury Regional Council meeting on Thursday 17 November, councillors made decisions about memberships of regionally significant committees.