Matt Lawrey, Green Party

Rivers: Nelsonians love their rivers but they’re worried about them and they need a government and an MP that they can trust to look after them. What has happened to our rivers nationally is a tragedy. Sixty per cent of New Zealand’s rivers are not safe for swimming. That tragedy is being felt here too; parts of the Maitai are not safe for swimming and along the banks of the river today you will find signs warning people that toxic algae could kill their dog. It should alarm all of us that those signs are now permanent features. Project Maitai has shown local government can make a modest difference but, if we’re serious about saving our rivers, it’s going to take more of an effort and more money from central government. To read the Green Party’s plan for our rivers (and a whole lot of other plans as well), visit greens.org.nz

The waterfront: It’s time to turn our waterfront into a safer and more welcoming place for people. Nick Smith’s obsession with the Southern Link has meant that for the past 20 years, virtually nothing has been done to improve our waterfront.Three years ago, Nelson City Council was forced to stop work on what would have been a wonderful boulevard around the waterfront when Nick announced the third investigation into the link in 13 years. NZTA was going to pay for at least 75 per cent of the boulevard but Nick stopped it dead. The outcome of the investigation was supposed to be announced by Christmas last year. Eight months later and we’re still in the dark. It’s not good enough. The time has come to make the changes we know will improve the capacity of our existing network and get on with making our waterfront something we can all be proud of.