The Ecan Commissioners

The seven Ecan Commissioners have now been put into place. Before we review who they are, it is worth remembering why the ECan Council was sacked

1. The only Region in the country to have failed to produce a water allocation plan, despite 19 years to do so
2. An out of control staff, who all but refused to accept the authority of Independent Planning Commissioners
3. A totally divided and dysfunctional Council
4. Rock bottom relations with the ten local territorial authorities, whose democratically elected Mayors had been lobbying the Government for years to do something

So they were sacked, just as Labour once sacked the Rodney District Council and Auckland Area Health Board. It is what happens when your incompetence continues on unchecked.

The major decisions before ECan are to do with water allocation. This is because ECan had failed to devise a plan, despite 19 years to do so. So who are the seven Commissioners? Are they ex National politicians (which ironically the sacked ECan Chair was). They are:

1. Dame Margaret Bazley, arguably NZ’s most respected public servant and problem solver
2. David Caygill, who was Helen Clark’s first Deputy Leader, and respected by all sides in politics. A former Christchurch Councillor who knows the region well.
3. David Bedford, Chair of Enterprise North Canterbury
4. Donald Couch, Lincoln Uni Pro-Chancellor with a long history in resource management and local govt, plus Ngai Tahu links
5. Tom Lambie,Chancellor of Lincoln University. Very experienced in water management issues. Former President of Fed Farmers. An organic farmer that produces organic milk
6. Peter Skelton, Environment Court Judge for 20 years, Associate Professor of Resource Management Law at Lincoln University
7. Rex Williams, Chancellor, Canterbury University, founder of environmental lobby group Water Rights Trust

So all up we have:

• four Commissioners with expert knowledge of water and resource management issues
• Two local university chancellors and a pro-chancellor
• A former labour party politician
• An environmentalist
• A organic farmer
• A business rep
• A Ngai Tahu link
• Dame Margaret as Chair

I look forward to them achieving in a couple of years what the Council failed to do in 19. And I doubt anyone can say that group is slanted politically.

Some will not want them to succeed. Certain urban fundamentalist environmentalists don’t want there to be a water allocation plan. They don’t want anyone taking any water. They don’t want farming or irrigation – to them it is all just pollution.