Protecting Waitaha River: FMC co-signs open letter
FMC is calling for the permanent protection of the Waitaha River in a joint open letter sent on 14 April 2026.
FMC has co-signed an open letter with Forest & Bird, Greenpeace, NZ Canyoning Association, Buller Tramping Club, and former Whitewater NZ President Kev England, urging the Fast-Track Panel to protect the Waitaha River in the Morgan Gorge – one of New Zealand’s last pristine wild river gorges.
The letter follows draft approval of Westpower’s fast-track application to build a 23-megawatt hydro scheme in the largely untouched river, calling on the Fast Track Panel to reconsider the decision given the severe threats to the area’s ecological and recreational values.
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We’re excited to share the new FMC Executive Committee, taking office on June 1 2026.
For over ten years, FMC has been involved in efforts to protect the Waitaha River. FMC made its first submission opposing the scheme in 2016, celebrated it being declined in 2019, and has spent the past 12 months fighting for a voice through the Fast-Track process. Throughout it all, FMC has been advocating for the Waitaha, publicly and behind the scenes.
FMC has submitted on a proposed land exchange that would see 29.7 hectares of conservation land in the eastern Ruahine Forest Park swapped for 170 hectares of private land, to enable the construction of a dam and reservoir on the Makaroro River.
