Launch and Inaugural meeting (21 August 2009)

The inaugural meeting was held at 5.15pm at Macs Brewery Cable St Wellington.

At 6pm the Rivers Group was officially launched by the Hon Nick Smith, Minister for the Environment.

The Launch and inaugural meeting was preceded by a field trip leaving at 2pm from opposite the Regional Council Centre, Wellington.  The field trip was to the Waiwhetu Stream and the Hutt River.  This was provide the opportunity to view the start of works on an 18-month project at the Waiwhetu Stream to remove sediment from one of the most contaminated waterways in the country.  The bus then visited the Hutt River to see examples of river management works and hear about the challenges around managing a river on whose floodplain two cities have been built.

        
Photos showing the trial of contaminated sediment removal at the Waiwhetu Stream