Stories by Lois Williams

But conservation groups have long opposed the practice of allowing cattle in the braided river valleys.

Franz Josef ratepayers have grudgingly agreed to a government finance deal for flood protection which they need but can ill-afford.

A nationwide campaign to have horse riders officially recognised as vulnerable road users has been offered some support.

The West Coast regional transport committee has been forced to withdraw its draft regional speed management plan, after Transport Minister Simeon Brown signed a new rule that overrides it.

Allan Birchfield has been censured since last year but can still attend council meetings, LGNZ principle advisor says.

The former West Coast Regional Council chair has made a point of trying to attend meetings he is banned from, claiming a right to be there as an elected councillor.

Ratepayers who pay for flood protection in the Harihari district are nervously awaiting a consultants' report on revamping the stopbank system.

Buller District Mayor Jamie Cleine says ratepayers have paid out $20,000 for a defamation suit - but the true cost is much higher.

Winter and a wetter-than-usual spring have kept West Coast regional council staff on their toes this year.

The document, meant to cover the the planning rules for Buller, Grey and Westland, has cost has cost the West Coast Regional Council $5.6 million since 2019.

Council planners are being told to speak in plain English when they communicate with the public.

Grey District Mayor Tania Gibson says it is a disaster waiting to happen and should be closed.

The possibility of council amalgamation on the West Coast - otherwise known as local government reform - has surfaced publicly this week at council meeting.

Jamie Cleine says government 'rhetoric' regarding council spending is stirring up feeling against councils.

West Coast mayors are welcoming an apparent rethink on the way they deliver water services, but affordability is still the big issue.

Liz Whiteside doesn't believe she should pay for things she has no use for - such as a floodwall.

A mayor is calling for a rethink of who pays to keep the country's popular cycle trails open.

The council that pioneered Māori representation in local government says it sees no need to establish a Māori ward.

The Westland mayor says there won't be a cent to spare from funding for flood protection work on the Waiho River.

Hearings on the most controversial part of the West Coast's new district plan have been put back till November, as councils hope for confirmation that they no longer need to plan for significant…

Councils and iwi working on a new district plan for the West Coast have signed off on the first draft, which is to go public on 26 January.

Franz Josef township has about 20 years before the massive stopbanks protecting the community will no longer be up to the job of holding back the wild Waiho (Waiau) River, experts warn.

West Coast councils have engaged a specialist lawyer in the hope of gaining the government's ear as it launches the long-awaited review of stewardship land.

A West Coast farming family is happy to 'lock up' some land for posterity and the birds, but they sympathise with other farmers who are upset at the prospect of having parts of their land labelled…

West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O'Connor says landowners on the south side of the Waiho (Waiau) River at Franz Josef Glacier should have a clearer picture of the options for their future in the new year.