Regional overseers are set to meet later this month to discuss the proposed Wairarapa irrigation project.
The Wairarapa Regional Irrigation Leadership Group will meet in Greytown on August 31 to build on investigative work carried out since 2001 by regional economic development agencies and more recently by the Wairarapa Regional Irrigation
Trust.
The group is community-based and so far comprises the three Wairarapa district mayors, Greater Wellington Regional Council chairwoman Fran Wilde, Greater Wellington Regional Council Wairarapa councillor Ian Buchanan, Wairarapa Regional Irrigation Trust chairman Bob Tosswill and trustee Bob Francis, iwi representatives Nelson Rangi, of Ngati Kahungunu ki Wairarapa, and Yvette Grace, of Rangitaane o Wairarapa, and Nigel Kirkpatrick, chief executive of economic development agency Grow Wellington.
"The trust welcomes the move to involve representatives of multiple parties in the leadership group,'' chairman and Greytown farmer Bob Tosswill said.
"Their involvement indicates that this project has moved to a new level and needs strong input from all sections of the community.''
A public liaison group to ensure co-ordinated involvement of the wider community and to allow for delivery of information and input will be established in the near future, Mr Tosswill said.
The project will be a major component of the Greater Wellington Regional Water Strategy and has the potential to transform the local economy and provide a range of recreational and other community benefits and generate export revenue, he said.
Mr Tosswill said the purpose of any proposed irrigation project would be to maximise the productive capacity of the Wairarapa valley land, and the subsequent economic return through water storage and irrigation opportunities that also provide for environmental, social and cultural needs of the community. "Initial stakeholder support in Wairarapa has been positive to date and the new structure to develop this initiative is a significant step forward.''
Ms Wilde said the membership of the leadership group recognised the importance of water and the right to its use by wide sections of the community. "The membership reflects the magnitude of the opportunity that faces the region in terms of economic development and potential community benefits and issues.''
