While New Zealand is at Red on the Covid Protection Framework, otherwise known as the traffic light system, we’re having to change the way we do many things as a Council.

We need to protect people in Tasman from the potential spread of COVID-19 by avoiding the creation of events where many people gather in one place. Additionally, we have obligations to keep our team safe by reducing their potential exposure to the virus. Keeping our staff well also means we can continue delivering essential services and progressing our work for our communities.

In a nutshell, while we’re at traffic light setting RED, we will not be able to hold face to face community meetings, including our popular Tasman Environment Plan information drop-in sessions.

As a council, we’ve decided the best way forward is to go online with our consultations and push back some topics that we had hoped to have conversations about with you until we’re able to do so in person.

For the foreseeable future we will use Zoom webinars, videos, and other digital tools to interact with our communities and stakeholders. Virtual engagement has been used successfully throughout 2021. Webinars allow people to ask questions of panellists live or in advance, and people can watch the recording later on demand. Being able to watch any time online and give feedback 24/7 means digital engagement can be more accessible for people who work shifts or have family commitments.

Those without digital connections can still engage in any processes. All relevant documents will be available from our service centres and libraries. You can also call us on the phone with any questions.

This is a challenging time for us all. By taking the right precautions now to protect one another, we’ll be able to meet again in person when it is safe to do so.