Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Local orchardist fears for his future over possible impact of WCO

By Alice Lock
Reporter·Hawkes Bay Today·
6 Oct, 2017 06:00 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

RJ Flowers Ltd manager John Evans is concerned about the Water Conservation Order. Photo/ Warren Buckland.

RJ Flowers Ltd manager John Evans is concerned about the Water Conservation Order. Photo/ Warren Buckland.

A local Twyford orchardist has expressed his concerns about the WCO, fearing that if it's passed as it stands he won't be able to continue functioning as a grower.

RJ Flowers Ltd manager John Evans said he acknowledged that everyone had to share the resource and the environment was important to look after but felt there needed to be a balance.

"My understanding of the order was that if it was put in place as it was applied for we wouldn't be able to water our crops during the summer. If we can't do that then I don't see how we can function as a grower."

His favoured option was to continue supporting the regional council's TANK initiative, so it could put forward recommendations based on listening to everyone's needs.

"The trouble is the river starts in the hills and once it comes down to the flat it's supplying the aquifer that supplies Napier, Hastings, industry, horticulture and agriculture, it's pretty huge."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

RJ Flowers is made up of 80ha of apples, pears and kiwifruit and is a family operation, which hires between 50 to 120 employees, depending on the time of year.

"The impact could be pretty big as essentially we wouldn't be able to commercially do what we are doing."

A concern for Mr Evans was also based around the technicality of consents.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He said he understood that the WCO wouldn't impact existing consents, however when one was renewed or reapplied for the restrictions would come into play.

"At the end of the day we won't know what is true or false til the hearing process but council is saying that when a consent expires and is reapplied for it becomes deemed as a new one."

He then read a story from Forest and Bird saying that wasn't the case.

"Council accesses the merits of consents but I guess time will tell who's right and who's wrong."

However, he understood there had been a lot of reported facts that people were debating whether they were true or not and from an orchardist point of view they wouldn't know the full effects until it goes through the hearing process.

"What I have been saying is only what I believe is going to happen and is my own personal view. Our understanding is growing day by day and I don't think anyone has a full understanding of it until it goes through the courts."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay TodayUpdated

Fire in Flaxmere garage sends plume of black smoke skyward

11 Jul 01:10 AM
Hawkes Bay Today

Mahia Hunt holds final fixture after marking 125th anniversary

10 Jul 09:05 PM
Premium
Opinion

The humour history of Don Martin: Wyn Drabble

10 Jul 07:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Fire in Flaxmere garage sends plume of black smoke skyward

Fire in Flaxmere garage sends plume of black smoke skyward

11 Jul 01:10 AM

The Henderson Rd blaze was visible around Flaxmere.

Mahia Hunt holds final fixture after marking 125th anniversary

Mahia Hunt holds final fixture after marking 125th anniversary

10 Jul 09:05 PM
Premium
The humour history of Don Martin: Wyn Drabble

The humour history of Don Martin: Wyn Drabble

10 Jul 07:00 PM
Hawke’s Bay’s $100m private hospital finished after five-year build

Hawke’s Bay’s $100m private hospital finished after five-year build

10 Jul 12:56 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP