West Coast Regional Council

West Coast Regional Council West Coast Regional Council’s work guides and supports the sustainable development of our region. We welcome your participation on our social media page.

Our activities help look after water, soil, air and coasts so current and future generations can enjoy these precious resources. West Coast Regional Council helps West Coast communities, businesses, industries and other groups in our region to live and work with our natural resources. Our work guides and supports the sustainable development of the West Coast through the management of air, land, wa

ter and coastal resources. Please be respectful of the community by complying with the terms and policies of Facebook - facebook.com/terms. WCRC reserves the right to delete or ban users for comments, images or links that:
- attack or discriminate other users
- contain expletives
- have inflammatory content that target or disparage any ethnic, racial, or religious group. The WCRC page must not be used for electioneering purposes. Any post - positive or negative - made by any individual specifically relating to their own - or someone else's - nomination, intention to run for Council or involvement in a national election campaign, will be removed immediately.

Data transmission issuesWCRC is currently experiencing a combination of ongoing and new issues affecting data transmissi...
30/04/2026

Data transmission issues

WCRC is currently experiencing a combination of ongoing and new issues affecting data transmission from 17 rainfall monitoring sites across the West Coast region.

Four alpine rainfall sites, relying on radio telemetry have experienced persistent communication issues over the past six months. These sites have been scheduled for upgrades as part of the Council’s Telemetry Network Improvement Project. Repairs and associated radio link and repeater upgrades are expected to be completed in Buller in the next month.

Over the past two weeks, a further 13 sites have stopped transmitting data due to a firmware issue affecting newly installed loggers. Seven of these sites stopped working this morning, likely linked to the widespread One NZ outages which occurred last night. The issue is being experienced nationally and can cause modems to become unresponsive.

Staff will still be able to monitor rainfall internally via backup satellite communications, however this data is not yet available on the website.

Council will continue to actively monitor the performance and reliability of the network on a daily basis and address both the immediate issues and implement longer-term improvements to strengthen the resilience of the telemetry system.

Our Environmental Quality team snapped this scenic photo yesterday while out in South Westland doing routine surface wat...
23/04/2026

Our Environmental Quality team snapped this scenic photo yesterday while out in South Westland doing routine surface water quality monitoring, any guesses where we are here?

Want to know more about the latest on landslides? We now have updated landslide modelling developed by Earth Sciences Ne...
21/04/2026

Want to know more about the latest on landslides? We now have updated landslide modelling developed by Earth Sciences New Zealand.

This refined dataset was created using recently released regional LiDAR data, which gives a clearer and more detailed view of where landslides could start and where debris could travel.

The updated data improves the identification of at-risk areas and provides valuable insights to help inform regional planning and decision-making, supporting safer and more resilient communities.

Check out the data on the natural hazards portal on our website.

How should pest plants - such as pampas, willow, knotweed - be dealt with across the Coast?We're reviewing our Regional ...
17/04/2026

How should pest plants - such as pampas, willow, knotweed - be dealt with across the Coast?

We're reviewing our Regional Pest Management Plan and want to know what you think about how pests should be managed across our region over the next 10 years.

Our current plan covers 42 pest plant species but doesn't include pest animals. Should we include pest animals and if so which ones? Possums, ferrets, stoats, weasels, rats feral cats, red deer, feral goats, feral pigs?

We're asking for feedback at this stage to help shape the draft plan before formal consultation begins.

You can find out more through the discussion document on our website. There's an online feedback survey tool available on the website too:
https://www.wcrc.govt.nz/environment/biosecurity-2/rpmp-survey-2026

Drop-in sessions at the Resilient Westport office, 147 Palmerston St, Westport from 11am to 1pm 22 April 2026 and 10am to midday 30 April, Fox Glacier Community Centre, 51 Cook Flat Road.

Want to know more about natural hazards on the West Coast?Check out our new natural hazards portal. It's an interactive ...
07/04/2026

Want to know more about natural hazards on the West Coast?

Check out our new natural hazards portal. It's an interactive tool with maps to help you explore natural hazards in your area such as flooding, landslides and coastal erosion.

Whether you're a homeowner, planning a project, or just curious, the portal helps you better understand the risks around you.

West Coast Natural Hazards: https://www.wcrc.govt.nz/environment/land/natural-hazards

Photo:
WCRC Principal Natural Hazards Analyst Chris Cameron at Moeraki River.

It’s starting to get a bit chilly! ❄️ We're now a month into Autumn and with April comes the end of the Can I Swim Here?...
30/03/2026

It’s starting to get a bit chilly! ❄️ We're now a month into Autumn and with April comes the end of the Can I Swim Here? - A.K.A the Contact Recreation monitoring season.

This summer, we collected weekly water quality samples from 21 popular swimming spots across the region between November and March, with a total of 420 samples.

Thanks to everyone who checked the results at Land, Air, Water Aotearoa (LAWA) - Can I Swim Here? www.lawa.org.nz/explore-data/swimming and got out there to enjoy our rivers and lakes over the warmer months.

We’ll be back again in November for another season. In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you! Where was your favourite swimming spot this summer? Let us know below 👇

Yesterday was gauging regatta day at the Hokitika Gorge as part of the NZ Hydrological Society's 2026 Technical Workshop...
26/03/2026

Yesterday was gauging regatta day at the Hokitika Gorge as part of the NZ Hydrological Society's 2026 Technical Workshop.

The Gorge provided a range of environments for different gauging methodologies measuring water flow, water level and flow speed. The regatta gave participants an opportunity to test equipment, check data consistency and learn from each other.

West Coast Regional Council is hosting the three-day event which has drawn over 170 technicians and industry representatives from around NZ as well as Argentina, South Korea, Australia and Austria.

It's the 14th time the NZHS has held the workshop which brings together regional councils and unitary authorities, scientific researchers, and private consultants to share specialized knowledge.

Hydrology is a small discipline in New Zealand (only about 400-500 people) so connecting with international partners is essential to gaining broader expertise.

Auckland Council Marlborough District Council

Taranaki Regional Council Otago Regional Council

West Coast Regional Council is delighted to have been part of this wonderful learning opportunity for our tamariki.
24/03/2026

West Coast Regional Council is delighted to have been part of this wonderful learning opportunity for our tamariki.

Over 150 environmental monitoring practitioners from around the country and overseas are on the Coast this week for the ...
24/03/2026

Over 150 environmental monitoring practitioners from around the country and overseas are on the Coast this week for the NZ Hydrological Society's 2026 Technical Workshop.

Our hydrology team is playing a key role in organising the event, the largest technical hydrology conference ever held in this country.

Two of our hydrology staff members gave a very significant technical presentation yesterday on measuring flows in the Coast's big rivers. This could change the way such work is done in future.

Today participants have a choice of taking part in a gauging regatta at the Hokitika Gorge or the NZHS annual data workshop.

Photo:
WCRC hydrology team staff with their Surfbee water monitor at the Grey River. The Surfbee will be used in the gauging regatta.

Members of our compliance team have worked through the weekend coordinating the cleanup of debris from the wrecked fishi...
22/03/2026

Members of our compliance team have worked through the weekend coordinating the cleanup of debris from the wrecked fishing vessel Mako.

The boat hit rocks just south of Barn Bay, about 70km south of Haast, last Wednesday. The wreckage is on a very isolated rocky narrow beach only accessible by helicopter.

Contractors organised by the boat's insurance company, the helicopter pilot, the boat's agent and the boat's owner and some of his team worked with our staff over the weekend.

First priority was to remove anything plastic or floatable (including a huge amount of small pieces of sponge and fibreglass) and wood.

Regional councils are responsible for handling Tier 2 marine oil spills within 12 nautical miles of the coastline acting as lead agency for incidents exceeding local industry capacity but not requiring national intervention.

Photos:
Sunday morning briefing
Scouring the beach for debris
Debris bagged up for helicopter sling
Looking down at the Mako
South Westland coast

The technical issues on LAWA's website have now been resolved and it is up and running again for all nationwide contact ...
19/03/2026

The technical issues on LAWA's website have now been resolved and it is up and running again for all nationwide contact recreation results, so make sure you check in on your favourite swim spots on the Coast ahead of this weekend.

For more information go to: https://www.lawa.org.nz/explore-data/swimming

19/03/2026

Heads up to friends in Canterbury, Marlborough, Southland, Nelson and the West Coast 👋

Our partner NV5 is busy flying around the South Island coast doing some important mahi as part of our 3D Coastal Mapping programme.

You may see or hear the plane flying back and forth along the coast over the next few months. It will be flying about 500 metres above the ground.

Once processed, the data will be publicly available on the LINZ Data Service.

This data supports:
• Hazard and risk modelling (flooding, tsunami, erosion) 🌊⚠️
• Sea level rise research 🌡️📈
• Infrastructure planning and resilience 🏗️🛠️
• Environmental management and marine habitat protection 🐟🌿
• Safer navigation through improved charts and coastal info 🧭
• Local decision-making for councils, iwi, and communities 🏘️🤝

Ultimately, this work helps protect people, places, and taonga along our coast. 🧡🌊

Keen to learn more? 🔎
Visit the LINZ 3D Coastal Mapping webpage to read more and track progress using the interactive map: https://www.linz.govt.nz/products-services/data/3d-coastal-mapping 📍🗺️

Address

388 Main South Road
Greymouth
7805

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Monday 8am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 8am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 8am - 4:30pm
Thursday 8am - 4:30pm
Friday 8am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+6437680466

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