Jewel of the East Cape's coastline under review
The jewel of the East Cape's coastline is under review for the first time in 25 years, with locals hoping the marine reserve will remain protected for many generations to come. Te Tapuwae o Rongokako Marine Reserve, about 20 minutes north of Gisborne city, was created in 1999, with an Iwi condition that it be reviewed in 2025. Hawke's Bay Tairawhiti reporter Alexa Cook went to visit.
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1News
2 days ago
- 1News
Dogs allowed on Canterbury buses – but is it workable?
A last-minute rule change to allow small dogs on buses has left Environment Canterbury staff scrambling to make workable. Councillors adopted the Canterbury Regional Transport Plan 2025/35 at a council meeting on Wednesday after a late amendment from councillor David East to allow passengers to take a small dog on the bus with a lead and a muzzle. East's motion passed by 8-7, and followed an earlier amendment proposed by councillor Joe Davies, which would have allowed small dogs to travel in their owner's lap, which lost 9-6. This was despite staff advice that dogs are not permitted in the Christchurch bus interchange, administered by the Christchurch City Council, unless they are in a secure carrier. It could mean passengers are able to board a bus with their dog but are unable to get off with their dog at the interchange. ADVERTISEMENT Davies has been lobbying for pets on buses for the last two years, following lobbying by resident JJ Smith. He said the plan is a good example of how policy takes time. "This is about dogs on buses. When people think about taking a pet on the bus, a dog is different because people take them to the park or to visit people. "Dogs are companions in ways that cats and guinea pigs aren't." Environment Canterbury has adopted the Canterbury Regional Transport Plan 2025/35. (Source: David Hill / North Canterbury News) But councillor Claire McKay said she felt allowing dogs was a risk to public safety, as "we can never be certain what a dog is going to do". Environment Canterbury (ECan) staff have been working on the regional transport plan since 2021 with the Canterbury Regional Transport Committee, which comprised the region's mayors and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, and the Greater Christchurch Partnership Committee. ADVERTISEMENT The proposed plan had a clause allowing pets to travel on buses, as long as they were in a secure carrier. Councillor Grant Edge, who chaired the Greater Christchurch Partnership Committee's hearing panel, said he was disappointed to see the amendment pass. "It is incredibly naive for us not to have simply adopted the plan. "As staff have told us, leashing and muzzling has issues with the Christchurch City Council's rules and we have no definition of a small dog." Chairperson Craig Pauling questioned how bus drivers would "determine what is a small dog?" There was still work to be one before dogs could ride on buses. ECan staff would now engage with the Christchurch City Council, bus drivers and other stakeholders to come up with a revised code of conduct for pets on buses to present to a future council meeting. The Greater Christchurch Partnership Committee comprised the Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri councils, ECan, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu and government agencies. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.


Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Tourism levy set to aid region
The South has won some money via the international visitor levy. Minister of Conservation Tama Potaka made some announcements yesterday about using levy funding to support conservation and tourism across the country. The levy was increased from $35 to $100 in October last year and Mr Potaka made announcements yesterday across various tourism sectors. Some of the money would come south to get on top of pest plants in Stewart Island/Rakiura, to expand Tohu Whenua experiences in Southland and improve facilities and the visitor experience at Milford Sound. The funding covers work over the next three years. Southland and Manawatū-Whanganui were the two areas targeted with a $4.5million investment to develop Tohu Whenua experience at places with unique cultural heritage will help create jobs and boost incomes in rural economies. Mr Potaka said sites which received Tohu Whenua status previously had had increases of up to 150% in visitation in their first year in the programme. Tohu Whenua is a partnership between Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga and the Department of Conservation (Doc), with support from Te Puni Kōkiri, Manatū Taonga — Ministry for Culture & Heritage and MBIE. Tohu Whenua includes 39 sites. Many of these are in public conservation areas. Launched in 2016, the programme is successfully operating in four regions. Mr Potaka said $10m over the next three years would ensure popular mountains, parks and islands would remain beautiful for years to come. "Locations include Abel Tasman, Mt Cook, Tongariro, Stewart Island, Mackenzie Basin, Molesworth and Te Paki and North Cape near Cape Reinga. An extra $3m would go to the national wilding conifer control programme, led by Biosecurity New Zealand, for important control work in the Molesworth and Mackenzie Basin areas. A further $7.45m will go towards managing other significant weeds. "When it comes to tackling invasive weeds, taking early action is essential. IVL funding will also go towards the development and rollout of an innovative, smart software tool to detect weeds when they first invade." There will be $13.6m over three years to improve visitor planning and management at the Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park, Milford Sound and Somes Island on Wellington's doorstep. "This investment ensures the conservation areas and facilities that attract tourists to our regions continues to deliver on its promise of stunning nature." There would also be $3.9m over two years to improve service and management of some of New Zealand's popular Great Walks and Doc campsites.

RNZ News
2 days ago
- RNZ News
Gisborne Air NZ flights cancelled due to plane repairs
Air New Zealand cancelled flights at Gisborne Airport for the majority of Thursday as two planes needed repairs. Photo: LDR/Gisborne Herald Two grounded planes in need of repairs at Gisborne Airport caused all flights in and out of the airport to be cancelled for most of Thursday. Air New Zealand - the sole airline operating flights from Gisborne to Auckland and Wellington - began cancelling flights in and out of the city's airport on Wednesday after the day's only arrival was grounded. An Air New Zealand spokesperson said all flights today were cancelled as of 3pm. Flights later in the evening remained scheduled in the hope the gates would be clear. Gisborne Airport has two gates, both of which were occupied by aircraft undergoing maintenance work. At the airport lobby at midday on Thursday, people sat with their luggage waiting in hope their flights would stay on schedule and they would arrive at their destinations. Speaking with Local Democracy Reporting in the morning, Mayor Rehette Stoltz described Air New Zealand's service as "a lifeline" and said that when it contacted her on Wednesday, she had urged the airline to have clear communications with passengers. "Don't let people sit there from 5.30 this morning who missed their flights and think it might go at 9 or 10." According to one passenger who was supposed to fly at 6am, the airline contacted him at 3pm on Wednesday, cancelling the flight. However, he was not impressed with the airline's communications. He said they then put him on a flight to Auckland two days later at 5pm; however, his return flight from Auckland to Gisborne was at 3pm that same day. "So I [would have] arrived after I was already supposed to have left." He managed to get a ticket for a flight scheduled at 5pm today but was waiting on standby in case any planes left earlier. He had missed one full day of meetings and would have to fly back to Auckland next week. "I fly often, and every time in the last six months, it has either been delayed or moved," he said. In another instance, two women were supposed to fly to Auckland at 1.55pm to travel to Singapore on Friday. However, they did not find out about the flight delays until they arrived at the airport. They wished the airline had let them know so they could have spent more time with family before their travels. Air New Zealand chief operating officer Alex Marren said they pre-emptively cancelled flights on Thursday to allow time for engineers to work on the planes. They anticipated services would be restored by the afternoon. Both aircraft were de Havilland Q300s. One had sustained propeller blade damage while in flight, the cause of which is unknown. The other aircraft issue involved a cockpit control check. "Parts have been transported overnight to Gisborne, and our team are working as quickly as possible to get these aircraft back in the air." She said the airline was accommodating customers whose flights had been impacted on the next available service. As there is limited availability over the next couple of days, Air New Zealand has also offered road transportation to Napier, she said. The airline was also looking at "alternate parking options to accommodate flights". "We are very grateful to all affected customers for their patience and understanding while we work to get them to their destinations." Stoltz said she had met with the airline on Monday and Tuesday to meet the new chief executive, Nikhil Ravishankar, who will start his position on 20 October. They talked about how the airline service was a lifeline to the region. "There might be people now missing their international flight, and there is no option for them just to drive because it is seven hours, it's not like Rotorua or Tauranga." She said they were sympathetic and wanted to work closely. "It is a lifeline to us, but they also need to take into account that it is a service to a very isolated region, which is 51 percent government-owned." She said Air New Zealand does try to support the region, noting the flights put on from Gisborne to Napier during Cyclone Gabrielle. "Fingers crossed that's a great sign of what's to come, that there would be very clear comms of what our community can expect, so that they can change their flights and accommodation and be ready, because it costs a lot of money." LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.