Taupō Lakes and Waterways are sad to farewell Laurie who has been part of the water quality and environmental advocacy community for many decades. Laurie has written and presented numerous submissions and, of course, represented Taupō as a Regional Councillor. Most recently she assisted with the review of the group’s strategic directions. Thanks to Chris Mashall at the Taupō & Tongariro News for writing this tribute to Laurie and giving us all the opportunity to hear about her mahi and her commitment to our environment in her own words.

Taupō Lakes and Waterways are beginning our ‘2025 Summer Series’ at 5.15pm Thursday January 30th with WRC’s Regional Plan Update specifically relating to Stormwater and Ephemeral Gully planning and management.

Invasive Clams Forum - Taupo Turangi Herald information including; essential actions: ‘Vigilance from the community in following ‘check, clean, dry’ requirements and in reporting any potential sightings’… and more.

Taupō Lakes & Waterways are co-hosting an Aquatic Biodiversity Forum with REAP Central Plateau outlining the critical threat to our waterways from the Freshwater Golden Clam.

On 11 October, the Government released the Fast-Track Advisory Group’s recommendation report to Ministers. Resource Management (Freshwater and Other Matters) Amendment Bill, Freshwater farm plan rollout to be paused… and more

The Minister of Local Government and Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs announced details of Cabinet policy decisions on Local Water Done Well.

Congratulations to Didymo Dave, aka Dave Cade, now “officially” recognised and rewarded for his immense personal contribution to conservation and biosecurity awareness.

Lake Taupō Aqua Park has been closed for more than a month after gold clams were found in its lagoon. More than a month after the Lake Taupō Aqua Park was temporarily closed due to the discovery of invasive gold clams, officials are still figuring out how to deal with them.

Forest & Bird is warning of long-term consequences for nature and the economy following today’s announcement of 131 proposed jobs losses at DOC.

This comes on top of proposed redundancies in other government organisations that have roles to play in protecting New Zealand’s natural environment, including the Ministry for the Environment, Biosecurity New Zealand and NIWA. (Full article here)

Mafalda Baptista WRC Senior Scientist water Quality & Ecology, Science, Policy & Information will give an overview of WRC’s monitoring programme, 5.15 pm Thursday 21st March at the Quality Inn Acapulco, 19 Rifle Range Rd, Taupo. For more on Lake Taupo science see below:

LWAG look forward to hearing an update from Jackie Egan (Environmental Planner) at NZ Forest Managers Ltd (NZFM) at our February meeting. Jackie is a regular attendee at our monthly meetings and has given past presentations on NZFM's operations and environmental advocacy. 

Development of fast-track consenting legislation and changes to the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management

Forest and Bird condemns government proposals removing environmental protections (See their response below the Minister’s letter)

See also EDS response here: https://eds.org.nz/resources/documents/media-releases/2024/government-ramps-up-assault-on-our-natural-world/

Topic “GROUNDWATER FLOW PROCESSES & NITROGEN LAG TIME IN THE TAUPŌ CATCHMENT” - Uwe Morgenstern 

All welcome - 5.15 pm Thursday November 16 at the Quality Inn Acapulco Conference Room, 19 Rifle Range Rd

Groundwater science has been instrumental in enabling the Lake Taupo Protection Project which has the aim to reduce nitrogen in the Taupo Catchment. Refining the science and monitoring continues. Uwe is a world expert in dating water and has been involved with the Taupo catchment for many years. We look forward to hosting him. Bio here:

The Waikato River is at the centre of a new multi-million-dollar programme aiming to reveal how increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) levels are affecting rivers and lakes – and what that means environmentally, economically, and socially.

All welcome 5.15 pm Thursday October 19, Quality Inn Acapulco Conference Room.

RNZ In Depth Special Projects - Kirsty Johnson: https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/in-depth-special-projects/story/2018902262/crown-vs-cow-the-inside-story-of-how-we-failed-to-regulate-our-worst-climate-polluter

Including: Water Quality of Lake Taupo & surface inflows to Taupo, & groundwater in the Taupo catchment.

Taupō District Council is taking the reins of a trust which has played a crucial role in a groundbreaking project to safeguard the water quality of Lake Taupō.

Forestry has been in the media recently with crashing log prices, contractor layoffs and claims of neighbourhoods and infrastructure being damaged due to poor practices. This is your chance to hear forestry’s side of the story.