Ellesmere report criticised at council

Press, 14 March 1983, Page 10

Ellesmere report criticised at council

The Wairewa County Council will make submissions on the management of Lake Ellesmere to the Lands and Survey Department.

Councillors had been asked to read the Ellesmere Report produced by the department as part of a national survey of coastal reserves. Cr T. D. Barwick described the report as "repetitive" and said it was a “public scandal” that taxpayers' money had been spent on producing it.

Other councillors felt they had not had enough time to read the report but agreed that the council should make submissions on it. Discussion on submissions was deferred until the council's April meeting.

The report outlines eight proposals for the areas between the Rakaia River mouth and Taumutu' around the Ellesmere lake shore and on the Kaitorete Spit. Proposals include managing the Ellesmere wetlands to protect them and promote them as an area of “international importance”, doing biological studies of the wetlands and determining appropriate public access and use. The report also recommends recognition of the relationship between the Maori people now and ancestral lands and' recognition of the role of commercial activities in the wetland areas.

Lake Forsyth

Channel and pipe clearing at Lake Forsyth has been completed.

A total of 54000 was set aside for the task of clearing shingle which clogged the seepage channels. "We were lucky to get the job finished before any flooding occurred." said the county chairman. Mr W. J. Thompson. Cr D. N. Cadman said the work had “created two good eeling lakes”, but he could not see benefits for the entire $4OOO expenditure. He said he had inspected the lakes, but could “not see the relevance of what has been done.”

CT T. D. Barwick queried the hours worked bv the contractor who had done the work.

Awa-iti Domain

A public meeting will be held to determine the composition of the committee to administer the Awa-iti Domain at Little River.

The County Council will take control of the domain from the beginning of next month. Responsibility was accepted by the council for the domain, and also the Ataahua reserve at Kaituna, 12 months ago. .Previously the domains were administered by the Lands and Sur-

vey Department

Mr Thompson suggested the committee could be made up of representatives of sports and other groups which used the domain. The meeting will be held within the next two weeks. No decision has yet been made on when the council will take over the Kaituna Domain.

United Council “I would rather pav SSOC for Civil Defence than $l5OO to the United Council." said Cr Cadman, during a discussion of the United Council’s budget and Wairewa’s contribution.

He could not - see what Wairewa was getting for its contribution, he said.

The only function it performed for the county was the organisation of Civil Defence. “I have been to some United Council meetings and it rings with bureaucratic nonsense,” he said.

Mr Thompson, who is Wairewa’s representative on the United Council, said regional planning was needed. Wairewa’s annual contribution to the council was assessed on population numbers. If this was changed to an equal share basis for all member councils, Wairewa should object, he said.