This letter was published in the Timaru Herald:
One has to wonder whether Mayor Janie Annear actually read the Creech Report before supporting its findings. Apart from the controversial water allocation issues, the Report was largely dismissive of the Mayors claims that ECan is dysfunctional and has systemic failings. In contrast to the Mayors remarks, the report found ECan staff to be highly committed and professional and that due to internal restructuring, ECan had made huge gains in recent years. However it did identify the need for extra skilled staff in the area of planning.
The Report also noted that ECan is a passion driven organisation. An excellent example of this was the Timaru Herald's recent feature article on local ECan employee, Julia Crossman. The article portrayed Crossman as being passionate, educated, having a good local knowledge and the ability to build relationships between diverse sections of the community. This is the type of employee that any Regional Council would be proud to have on their staff. However, this example is at total odds with the Mayor's assertion that ECan has a lack of knowledge beyond Christchurch and a lack of rural understanding. The Mayor's comment that there is not one area that ECan are doing well in is totally unsubstantiated and was uncalled for.
In terms of the Timaru District Council, the most important part of the Creech Report was its findings on the dysfunctional relationships between ECan and the local Territorial Authorities. The report calls for "a deeper common understanding and a commitment to move forward in a constructive manner ... for the benefit of the region's communities". This is a finding that I wholeheartedly endorse. Our Mayor has been continually outspoken against ECan and now she has endorsed a report that calls for the Timaru District Council to work closely and constructively with ECan. If this is not something that the Mayor is prepared to do then I urge her fellow Councillors to call her to task.
Links:
Ministry for the Environment: The Creech Report
Scoop: Questions and Answers on ECan
Christchurch Press: Scathing ECan comments disclosed
Timaru Herald: ECan hung out to dry?
Timaru Herald: Mayors wanted ECan gone by lunch meeting minutes show
Christchurch Press: Division over ECan decision