Please find some suggestions for comments on Greater Wellington Regional Council on the proposed Annual Plan. Remember that submissions  close on 28 April 2011. Read summary and full plans on the GWRC website The Regional Council proposes to raise 84.571 million via general and targeted rates in 2011/12.  The average proposed rates increase for the [...]

Major decisions are being made – and your involvement at every level is crucial – in your communities,  also at local, regional and central Government level. The infrastructure of our transport, electricity, and food systems – as well as our building stock – have been designed and built to suit the unique characteristics of cheap [...]

A citizens’ initiative for a community wind farm in Long Gully is inviting wider public participation this month, at an open meeting  planned for Friday 19th November in Wellington at Crossways Community Centre, Mt Victoria. Community wind farms like this one have several major advantages over large commercial wind farms: they are smaller in size [...]

As a lead forecaster at MetService, I see nature in action. We look out the window over our Habour and marvel at the beauty of the changing skies. And some of these changes are now ominous for life on earth, with increasing frequency of unusual events and extremes. Today, I would like to talk briefly [...]

The Dominion Post reported; “Round-the-clock gridlock has been predicted if The Terrace and Mt Victoria tunnels are closed for five weeks to kickstart a $80 million project to remedy serious safety problems.” Could we use this sense of crisis to achieve immediate improvements in public transport services and safe cycle and walk ways between Wellington [...]

Following the deaths of a Transport Safety Officer last year,the need for a safe cycleway around the Wellington Harbour became more urgently apparent. This is also a great opportunity for a tourist attraction that allows visitors and locals to walk or cycle the entire length of the harbour coastline. What’s happening Fran Wilde, chair of [...]

A Community resilience Plan is urgently needed to address possible energy supply disruptions. Energy prices are rising because global oil demand continues to exceed global oil production and we have not planned an orderly transition to alternatives. The International Energy Agency is warning of oil supply problems in the coming year, and Goldman Sachs predicts [...]

The International Panel on Climate Change confirms that serious climate change impacts are already happening, and significant climate tipping points have already been passed. Greenhouse emissions must peak now, and then we must return them to their pre-industrial level of 280ppm. Fran Wilde, Chair of Greater Wellington, acknowledges in the foreword to our Regional Policy [...]

Water is the single most important substance we need. It is vital for our health and well being and the region’s natural ecosystems depend on water resources. Who manages water locally? Greater Wellington Regional Council is responsible for sustainably managing the region’s water resources. The Regional Freshwater Plan sets out the rules for water allocation [...]