Tasman District Council - Te Kaunihera o te tai o Aorere

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All on board with Age Concern! You are not alone. Many people feel unsure about using the bus, especially if it has been...
14/05/2026

All on board with Age Concern! You are not alone. Many people feel unsure about using the bus, especially if it has been a while since their last trip.

There are a couple of special opportunities coming up in the next few weeks for you to travel on our eBus together with Age Concern Nelson Tasman staff and volunteers.

These trips are a simple way to give it a go with support, so you can build confidence along the way, which means ultimately you can stay independent and continue to get out and about.

Just take your Bee Card, SuperGold Card, and some money for a cuppa and maybe a bite to eat.

The first outing is on Monday 18 May to McGlashen Pottery in Brightwater on the Route 6 express. It will leave at 10.21 am from the Richmond Interchange, arriving at 10.34 am in Brightwater.

You’ll visit the renowned pottery studio, meet the new owners, enjoy a factory tour, and admire the finished products, returning to Richmond afterwards.

The next day trip is on the Route 5 express to Motueka on Wednesday 3 June. It will leave the Richmond interchange at 8.57 am, arriving in Māpua at 9.25 am, and getting into Motueka at 9.54 am.

You can visit the Motueka District Museum to see the touring Colossal Squid exhibition, followed by an early lunch before returning to Richmond via Māpua.

You can join anywhere along the routes. For more information contact Jackie at Age Concern on 021 195 8108 or email [email protected].

Is it art? Is it wearable? Is it a transformation? If you have an inkling to create something out of repurposed material...
14/05/2026

Is it art? Is it wearable? Is it a transformation? If you have an inkling to create something out of repurposed materials, then Motueka’s Upcycled Fashion Show is right up your alley.

Presented by Motueka Arts Council and Crafty Tarts, and with help from one of our Creative Communities Grants, entries for this fashion show are now open.

You’re invited to create a costume from repurposed materials in this first-of-its-kind Motueka event.

There are three categories to enter. Fantastical, like you may see in the World of WearableArt Show, Street Wear which are those garments you can wear every day, or Accessories like hats, bags and shoes.

You can model your creation yourself or have it modelled by students from Motueka High School.

Entries for the show close Sunday 17 May. Register at motuekaartscouncil.com/creative-transformations.

The big event hits the stage at the Motueka Memorial Hall at 7.00 pm on Saturday 27 June. Tickets are on sale from 17 May and are available through the Motueka Arts Council.

More information can be found on their website, or you can contact the co-ordinator, Dani Louis, at [email protected].
..And if your group is working to increase participation in community arts initiatives, you may be eligible for a Creative Communities Grant.

Creative New Zealand fully funds the grants, and we here at Tasman District Council administer them locally. Head to our website tasman.govt.nz/creative-communities for more information – the next funding round closes 10 July.

As the Lower Queen Street bridge project moves towards the finish line, we need to close the road completely for one wee...
13/05/2026

As the Lower Queen Street bridge project moves towards the finish line, we need to close the road completely for one weekend.

The new bridge allows the Borck Creek channel under it to be widened to significantly increase the channel’s capacity to deal with floodwater during heavy rain.

It’s time to do the final work that is needed to open the new bridge for all traffic, which will then allow us to deconstruct the bypass road and temporary bridge.

No matter how we approach this work, all options result in some level of disruption. After reviewing the options, we’ve opted for a full weekend closure of the intersection of Lower Queen Street and McShane Road to get the work done.

By closing the road, crews can complete this work by working day and night shifts, when traffic volumes are reduced. This is compared with either three weeks of stop/go, or a full week-long closure working day shifts only.

This will happen from 7.00 pm Friday 15 May to 6.00 am on Monday 18 May. Lower Queen Street will be closed from the Arvida Waimea Plains Village entrance to Sandeman Lane. This means there will be no access to McShane Road from Lower Queen Street.

Vehicles wanting to access or exit the Artillery Place industrial area and Nelson Pine Industries will have to use Swamp or Lansdowne Roads.

If there is bad weather, the work will be done the following weekend instead.

Keep up with the project at shape.tasman.govt.nz/LQS-bridge.

It’s unfortunate to report the presence of a significant cyanobacteria bloom in Lake Whupa, the western of the two Kaiho...
13/05/2026

It’s unfortunate to report the presence of a significant cyanobacteria bloom in Lake Whupa, the western of the two Kaihoka Lakes, located north of Whanganui Inlet.

We are currently at an ‘Alert’ risk level, and as such, the bloom presents a possible health risk for people, stock, or dogs interacting with the lake water.

The risk is relatively low; however, the public is advised to take caution. We will continue to monitor the water in the hope of some improvement.

We are grateful to the landowners around the lake who have put in place measures to reduce this risk.

This situation may have been brought on by a wetter than normal period over summer, bringing in more nutrients.

Reports produced in the last few years (and available on our website) show that both Kaihoka Lakes were in slightly nutrient-enriched states.

“The thing with lakes is that once they have flipped to this degraded state, it is very hard and potentially expensive to try and return them to their former water quality”, says our Principal Scientist Trevor James.

“We also need to acknowledge the contribution of nutrients from wildfowl; however, we do not know the proportion of the nutrients that get supplied to this lake from this source.”

The cyanobacteria bloom will likely dissipate in the cooler winter months when the lake fully mixes, and the bloom will sink to the bottom of the lake. Then the potential health risk will subside.

Currently, Lake Whupa is a green-brown colour compared to the clearer water and blue reflection of the eastern Kaihoka Lake, where there is no bloom.

12/05/2026

“One thing we can’t escape is that speed is a contributing factor that greatly enhances the harm to anyone who is involved in a crash.”

Deputy Mayor and Deputy Chair of the Joint Regional Transport Committee Brent Maru talks about respecting ourselves and each other on the roads.

Our roads – our responsibility

When the earth shakes, are we ready?A 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes along the Waimea Fault in the Eighty Eight Valley...
11/05/2026

When the earth shakes, are we ready?

A 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes along the Waimea Fault in the Eighty Eight Valley. Strong shakes ripple across Nelson Tasman. Communities are faced with damaged buildings, disrupted lifelines, injuries and potentially casualties.

This was the scenario put to the Nelson Tasman Emergency Management staff in a recent training exercise.

A local state of emergency is declared. The Emergency Operations Centre, ordinarily sitting empty, fills with staff from both Councils, emergency services, and representatives from multiple agencies. Everyone is here for a 12-hour shift.

Before the laptops open, the first order of business: vests.

Each function wears a colour. The Controller, who leads the response, is in white. Red is the Response Manager, the Controller’s right hand, making sure teams understand the action plan.

Dark green is staff safety and iwi is light green, available for tikanga and manaakitanga practices. Blue represents intelligence, building a clear picture of the incident and how it might develop.

Planning wear pink, responsible for the shift’s action plan. Orange is operations, managing staff and volunteers to deliver in the field; their team includes Lifelines and Utilities, which covers roads, water and power.

Yellow is logistics, for resources, personnel and facilities. Public Information Management wear purple, handling external communications and media. Light blue is welfare, running Civil Defence centres and meeting community needs – food, water, shelter.

Finally, Recovery is in grey, because recovery starts the moment an emergency begins.

Partner agencies fill out the room: National Emergency Management Agency, Police, Fire and Emergency, NZTA, the Defence Force, MPI, Health NZ, and St John.

A Zoom call begins in a quietened room. It’s the multi-agency briefing, a look at where things stand and the day’s objectives. NZTA provides updates on state highways. Infrastructure teams report on water networks, buildings and local roads. Health NZ outlines the hospital’s capacity.

Then back to the controlled chaos. The media are calling, looking for the latest information. The Minister for Emergency Management and the Prime Minister are on their way. The power, water and telecommunications are all down.

After 12 hours on the go, a 7.00 pm handover sees a fresh team take on the next 12-hour shift. In a real event, many Civil Defence staff would be worried about their own homes and families too. And the public would be looking for help and answers.

This is how we prepare. How do you?

Visit nelsontasmancivildefence.co.nz to get prepared.

A not-for-profit organisation that aims to help women connect and find homes in Nelson Tasman has benefited to the tune ...
10/05/2026

A not-for-profit organisation that aims to help women connect and find homes in Nelson Tasman has benefited to the tune of $3,000 from our Community Grants scheme.

Home Share for Her is designed for women with the aim of enabling them to make connections with each other to address their housing needs.

A series of workshops and talks in 2022 aimed to tackle the housing crisis in Tasman and Nelson. During that series, it became evident that the greater proportion of those struggling to find suitable and affordable accommodation were women.

Half of those living alone were older women, some struggling to maintain a larger home, some needing help in the home, and some experiencing financial hardship and loneliness.

From this, with the support of Community Action Nelson and Nelson’s Women Centre, Home Share for Her Trust was born.

The website portal gives women the tools to talk to each other, make connections, and offer each other affordable home-sharing solutions.

The online process is simple. A home seeker creates a profile when they sign up, then they can browse the website for a homeowner’s listing, and the pair can then be matched.

Home Share for Her was nurtured into being by women who understand how important it is to have a safe, secure home and feel connected.

Visit homeshareforher.nz.

Our 2026 Community Grants are open now, find out more and apply at tasman.govt.nz/community-grants.

In the air, on the ground, and underground, Greg Pickford has been a driving force behind countless community and conser...
10/05/2026

In the air, on the ground, and underground, Greg Pickford has been a driving force behind countless community and conservation projects across Tasman District for more than 50 years. Greg is a recipient of one of our Outstanding Community Service Awards.

With a passion for caving, he has been a member of the Nelson Speleological Group since 1975, holding numerous leadership roles. Over the years, Greg has built ladders, led trips, explored and mapped caves, and helped build the club hut on Tākaka Hill. He’s also been involved in LandSAR (search and rescue), serving as cave rescue advisor for 40 years.

When not underground, Greg is soaring in the air as a gliding enthusiast and leader in the Nelson Lakes Gliding Club, having helped design and build their special glider winch launching system.

Back on the ground, he is an active member of the Keep Richmond Beautiful group, leading working bees and maintaining tracks in Kingsland Forest; and as a member of Native Bird Recovery Richmond, Greg’s built hundreds of predator trap boxes while also assisting with weeding and planting.

But Greg Pickford’s outdoor pursuits don’t end there; he’s a member of the Friends of Flora and Friends of Snowden’s Bush groups, has helped upgrade several backcountry tramping huts, and even organised construction of the first mountain bike track in Kingsland Forest.

With more than five decades of tireless service, Greg’s passion and commitment have left an incredible mark on our environment and community.

Don't miss Second Hand Sunday, next Sunday, 17 May! It’s a fun way to declutter and re-home unwanted household goods for...
10/05/2026

Don't miss Second Hand Sunday, next Sunday, 17 May! It’s a fun way to declutter and re-home unwanted household goods for free – anything from chairs, books, clothing or leftover bits and pieces from building projects – and a good chance to scour the region’s streets looking for pre-loved treasures.

After some treasures? Simply visit addresses on the day between 9am and 2pm. A list of participating addresses and a map of their locations will be available on our website from midday Friday 15 May.

Want to offer items? Register online by 10am Friday 15 May. Print one of the posters from our website so people can see you’re involved, and at 9am on the day, put your items out on your driveway or front lawn.

Visit tasman.govt.nz/shs for more information and to sign up.

Kia ora Tasman | te tai o Aorere. Our Hydrology team have an afternoon weather update for you all:MetService has maintai...
08/05/2026

Kia ora Tasman | te tai o Aorere. Our Hydrology team have an afternoon weather update for you all:

MetService has maintained Heavy Rain Warnings for northwest Tasman (north of Motueka) and the Nelson–Nelson Lakes National Park ranges through this evening. A Strong Wind Watch also remains in place for all of Nelson and Tasman from noon to 9 pm, with northerly winds approaching severe gale in exposed areas.

Notable rainfall totals to date:
• Collingwood: 100 mm
• Tākaka township: 94 mm
• Tākaka Hill: 100 mm
• Lower Motueka: ~40 mm
• Motupiko: 34 mm
• Golden Bay ranges: up to 360 mm (highest in the Anatoki catchment)
• Richmond & Bryant Ranges: 80–230 mm (highest near Slaty Peak)

Summary of expected flood flows:
• Moderate flooding (annual to 5 year): Tākaka, Riuwaka, Wai iti, Wairoa/Waimea, Maitai
• Low to moderate (up to annual): Aorere, Anatoki, Brooklyn, Motupiko
• Below annual: Motueka River

Heaviest rainfall is expected to peak around 6-8 pm this evening, with river flows anticipated to peak between approximately 7 pm and 11 pm.

In the Golden Bay ranges, a further 120–160 mm is forecast, with peak intensities of 20–30 mm/h possible. The Tākaka and Aorere rivers stabilised this morning but are beginning to rise again as rainfall increases. The Cobb Dam has remaining storage capacity. Moderate flooding is expected in the Tākaka River and tributaries (annual to 5-year flood flows), with potential overbank flows into adjacent paddocks.

Rainfall is also expected to increase this afternoon and evening in the Riuwaka catchment. Flows are expected around annual levels, potentially up to 5-year floods, generally contained within the channel and berms. Localised roading impacts are possible in the Riwaka Valley and on SH60 at the base of Tākaka Hill.

The main Motueka River is not expected to reach flood levels, with flows likely to remain below annual.

Across the eastern ranges and hills behind Nelson and Richmond, a further 80–120 mm is forecast, with up to 140 mm possible in the Richmond Range. Peak intensities of 15–25 mm/h are expected this afternoon. Rivers may rise again, with moderate flooding possible in the Wai iti, Wairoa, and Maitai rivers (annual to 5-year flood flows).

Although antecedent conditions are relatively dry, intense rainfall may still trigger slips. Small streams may respond rapidly and unpredictably where debris is present.

Links for more information:
• MetService warnings: https://www.metservice.com/warnings/home -south.
• Road closures across the region: https://rebrand.ly/httfpkm
• River flow reports: https://www.tasman.govt.nz/flow-report/
• Rainfall reports: https://www.tasman.govt.nz/report/

Address

189 Queen Street, Richmond
Tasman
7050

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