Wanganui needs to take a progressive approach to sustainability to truly realise its potential both environmentally and economically, says John Martin. "Despite all the recent hubris about reclaiming the river and attracting tourists, Wanganui still doesn’t have a policy on either the environment or tourism," says John. "The two are intrinsically connected and the benefit of an integrated approach is enormous.
Sustainability means managing a resource responsibly now, so that the same resource will be thriving in the future. This is good common sense whether you are dealing with the environment, the economy or the community."
He says the first step is to have a council that leads by example in its own daily operations as well as its strategic approach. A Wanganui of the future with a clean river, attractive port, re-generated tourism industry, successful farming and protection against environmental risks are all achievable together.
“So to mark this stage in the election campaign I thought I’d compensate for some of the political hot air of the past few weeks by investing some of my funds in natural carbon credits and put something healthy back into the community by planting a few trees. With local politics reaching a new high in seriousness I intend to take this campaign to the last day and have fun doing it!”
