Geopark proposal strongly endorsed
THE Waitaki district is the ‘‘focus’’ of the New Zealand National Commission for Unesco after it strongly endorsed the district’s application for global geopark status to the organisation’s head office in Paris, Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher says.
In early June, the Waitaki District Council’s proposed Waitaki Whitestone Geopark bid was named by the national commission as its preferred candidate for certification as a Unesco Global Geopark.
The bid includes 101 sites of geological interest throughout the Waitaki district — from Palmerston, north along the coast to the Waitaki River mouth, and up the Waitaki Valley.
With the bid confirmed as the national commission’s preferred candidate and more recently strongly endorsed by the organisation, a dossier is in the process of being prepared.
This needs to be with Unesco’s head office in Paris by November 30, and if signed off, would be followed by an inspection by geopark experts in 2019.
Mr Kircher said Waitaki’s bid being the sole one from New Zealand to be signed off at national level was advantageous.
‘‘The fact ours is the only one at this stage means the focus is definitely on us to represent New Zealand . . . that puts us in a pretty good place, both in terms of getting central government to help with the application and also for Unesco, in it opens up an opportunity to be in a part of the world where they don’t have a presence. It all bodes very well.’’
He said the council was in the process of putting together a business case, which would include how the geopark could be made financially sustainable ‘‘from an operational point of view’’, how costs would be covered, projected visitor numbers and potential economic benefits to the district.
At its meeting on June 26, the council confirmed its ongoing support for the project, which Mr Kircher said would involve ‘‘quite a lot of work in the background’’, in conjunction with other groups and organisations.
‘‘At the moment we are working closely with Vanished World and consulting with the likes of Ngai Tahu, the Department of Conservation and private landowners to make sure we have covered all the bases and have got the right people involved.
‘‘We’ve still got a fair bit to do, but with our initial application we put in more than what was required . . . so we feel pretty well placed.’’