The sight of native orchids starting to sprout on the site of an old wild ginger infestation has reinforced the value of consistently attacking pest plants, says biosecurity officer Benson Lockhart.
Two key Waikato Regional Council pump stations, which help protect more than 1000 hectares of farmland near Te Aroha from flooding, are getting a $500,000 upgrade.
Waikato Regional Council has approved its draft 10-year budget for consultation, which proposes increased services with a 0.2 per cent rates increase in the first year.
Members of the public are being urged to avoid contact with any reddish water in the Waikato hydro-lakes after tests showed recent discolouration is likely to be caused by a high concentration of the algae Ceratium.
Waikato Regional Council is checking out several reports that came in yesterday from the public of areas containing algal blooms in the Arapuni, Karapiro and Maraetai hydro lakes during the hot summer conditions.
Waikato Regional Council is this summer undertaking a special monitoring programme of 18 coastal sites on the Coromandel Peninsula that are popular swimming locations.