Over the next two years, ORC and Kāi Tahu need your help to develop a new Land and Water Regional Plan for Otago.

Our waterways support all life in Otago, including rare galaxiid fish, the mahika kai we collect, and the water we drink. They are also part of our way of life, from the swimming holes we love, to the way we earn our living,

The Land and Water Regional Plan will help preserve our waterways for future generations, ki uta ki tai (from the mountain to the sea).

Join us and have your say in our online discussion (via Zoom) regarding the Lower Clutha Rohe (Rohe means "area" in Te Reo Māori). The online meeting time is 7pm.

To learn more about the Lower Clutha Rohe, click here.

We want to hear from you

Between November 2021 and early 2023, we are seeking your knowledge and views on waterways throughout Otago. We’d love your input to help form the new plan, so please have your say in the survey about waterways in the various areas in Otago.

This is part of a three-round consultation process for each part of the region. In the first round, your goals and preferences for local lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands and aquifers, combined with the science we’ve collected, and input from iwi, will guide how ORC proposes to manage water and land in your area.

In late-2020, we spoke to Otago communities about their “freshwater visions” for our Regional Policy Statement, a separate policy document, under which the Land and Water Regional Plan will sit. In this consultation, we would like to check:

• first, that we have understood all the things you value about your local waterways that we heard during consultation for the Regional Policy Statement.
• and second, whether there are any other waterway values you would like to add.

We’re also gathering a bit more detail about the things that matter to you, including different aspects of each waterway value and where you would like to see these values preserved. For example, you may cherish fishing at your local waterway; we want to know why, what kinds of fish you catch, and where are the most important fishing spots to you.

To learn more about the Land and Water Regional Plan, click here.