Hon Trevor Mallard -
Minister for the Environment - 28 February,
2008 - Environment Minister Trevor Mallard
is pleased to announce
the appointment of Richard Woods as the
new chair of the Environmental Risk Management
Authority (ERMA).
Mr Woods will start
his three year term on 11 April and replaces
Neil Walter who has served for five years.
The authority’s primary
purpose is to protect people and the environment
from the risks of hazardous substances and
new organisms by making decisions on applications
to import or use new organisms and hazardous
substances.
Richard Woods has held
a number of senior posts, most recently
as chief executive of the NZ Security Intelligence
Service. Prior to this he has been an ambassador
in several countries and a senior director
for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Trade.
"The complexity
of the issues the ERMA board deals with
requires a chair with significant diplomatic
and decision making skills along with a
good grasp of governance issues.
"We need a good
mix of people on the board and currently
have many who excel in the science and health
areas. I feel that Richard Woods will complement
that with his considerable leadership experience."
"I would also like
to thank outgoing Chair Neil Walter for
his dedication and service to ERMA New Zealand
over the past five years. His wisdom and
professional approach have been invaluable
to the organisation, particularly in successfully
leading the challenging reassessment of
1080. Likewise, thanks to outgoing deputy
chair Professor George Clark for his work
over six years on the authority," Trevor
Mallard said.
Trevor Mallard appointed
current member Dr Max Suckling as the new
deputy chair and congratulated Dr Val Orchard
on her reappointment for a further three
year term as a member.
ERMA includes people
with knowledge of Maori and community issues
in addition to knowledge of environmental
law, new organisms and 'on the ground' expertise
in dealing with hazardous substances.
Measuring water takes
required for improved management
Trevor Mallard Environment
- 26 February, 2008 - A new requirement
aimed at boosting the sustainable management
of New Zealand's freshwater resource through
the use of measurement devices has been
approved by the government, Environment
Minister Trevor Mallard and Agriculture
Minister Jim Anderton announced today.
"The National Environmental
Standard for Measuring Water Takes was approved
by Cabinet yesterday and will now be drafted
into regulation," Trevor Mallard told
the National Water NZ conference in Auckland
today.
"The standard is
one of a staged package of actions to improve
the sustainable management of New Zealand’s
freshwater resources under the Sustainable
Water Programme of Action. This standard
will help better water management by ensuring
accurate measuring of the amount of water
taken from rivers, lakes and aquifers,"
Trevor Mallard said.
"Measuring actual
amounts of water taken is of course critical
to understanding and improving the efficiency
of water use. Currently, only 31 percent
of the volume of water granted to consent
holders is measured and we want to see the
water taken from rivers, lakes or aquifers
consistently measured at source," said
Trevor Mallard.
The standard will set
minimum requirements for the installation
and operation of water measuring and recording
devices. It will require consent holders
to install and operate water measuring devices
and to inform regional authorities about
their water use. The standard does not apply
to individual households or businesses using
water from reticulated supplies, nor to
small abstractions for an individual’s drinking
or stock-drinking needs.
Jim Anderton said water
was a vital resource for agriculture, horticulture,
and silviculture.
"We can’t afford
to take it for granted anymore. These steps
as taken by the government today will help
us to manage this precious resource more
carefully, so that there is enough for everyone."
The Cabinet paper relating
to this standard is at www.mfe.govt.nz
