What do healthy rivers, thriving wildlife, productive farms, tourism, recreation, and strong communities all have in common? In Otago, they’re all connected.

That's the thinking behind Otago Regional Council's Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) Programme — a region-wide approach to bringing communities, mana whenua, agencies and organisations together to care for the places we all depend on.

Using a ki uta ki tai (mountains to sea) approach, ICM recognises that freshwater, estuaries, coastlines, biodiversity, land, air, climate resilience and people are all part of one connected system. What happens upstream affects everything downstream, so protecting and enhancing our environment works best when we plan and act together.

Through the ICM programme, ORC co-develops Catchment Action Plans (CAPs). These long-term, non-regulatory plans build on the many great projects already happening across Otago, helping connect people, share knowledge, identify opportunities and coordinate practical action where it will have the greatest impact.

Rather than starting from scratch, each Catchment Action Plan draws together science, local knowledge and mātauraka Māori (when gifted) to identify shared environmental values, understand the pressures affecting them, and agree on actions that will improve catchment health over time.

Following endorsement through ORC's 2021–31 Long-Term Plan, Catchment Action Plans have been completed for The Catlins and Upper Lakes, with plans underway or soon to begin across the rest of the region.

In March 2026, ORC accelerated the programme so every part of Otago will have a Catchment Action Plan by December 2027 — almost two years earlier than originally planned.

Success is measured not by the production of a plan, but by actual environmental improvements that reflect community aspirations, stronger partnerships, and practical outcomes across the catchment.

The goal is simple: support community-led action that delivers healthier environments and stronger communities for generations to come.

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Integrated Catchment Management is community focused, action-oriented and integrated across landscapes to improve our environment.

By the end of 2027, all of Otago will have Catchment Action Plans (CAPs), providing a coordinated framework that integrates our work across freshwater, biodiversity, and land at a whole-of-catchment scale. All Catchment Action Plans will be developed with and owned by local communities with ORC’s support.

The ICM programme works by:

• Taking a landscape-scale approach rather than addressing issues in isolation

• Supporting the alignment of the priorities of communities, mana whenua, agencies, and ORC

• Supporting ongoing CAP refinement and planning and can support delivery of actions that the plan identifies.

• Using structured collaborative planning processes to codevelop Catchment Action Plans

• Informing future work programmes and investment decisions

• Monitoring actions and environmental changes to make sure Catchment Action Plans and actions are effective.

The goal is to produce plans that support on-the-ground action, coordinated investment, and measurable environmental improvements over time. The plans are adaptable documents, designed to be reviewed and updated as circumstances change and lessons are learned.

A Catchment Action Plan (CAP) is a long-term, non-regulatory framework for environmental action.

Each CAP looks at catchment systems — including freshwater, biodiversity, land, air, coastal environments, and community wellbeing — to identify shared goals and prioritise practical actions.

CAPs:

• Build on existing work already happening in the catchment

• Draw on our technical teams, community insight and matauraka to ensure decisions are based on a broad knowledge base.

• Identify environmental values, pressures, and root causes

• Use a framework called Conservation Standards to ensure actions target key pressures and are achievable.

• Prioritise practical actions and opportunities

• Align effort and investment across organisations

• Inform ORC’s wider work programmes

CAPs are spatially informed, evidence-based, and designed to guide coordinated delivery over approximately 10 years.

No. Catchment Action Plans are non-regulatory and do not create new rules.

CAPs work beyond existing regulations by supporting practical action, partnerships, and coordinated investment. While they align with relevant legislation and planning frameworks, such as regional plans, they are not compliance tools.

Instead, CAPS help us work together to achieve better environmental outcomes through shared, voluntary, collective action, supported by ORC work programmes and wider investment opportunities.

People are invited to express their interest in forming an Integrated Catchment Group. This group co-develops the CAP through a series of collaborative workshops.

Membership is designed to reflect the diversity of the catchment and may include:

• Farmers and representatives from the wider agricultural sector

• Tourism operators

• Local businesses

• Infrastructure providers

• Community and catchment groups

• Environmental practitioners and ecosystem specialists

• People with strong local knowledge, lived experience, or interest in supporting catchment outcomes.

Each CAP is developed through a structured series of six collaborative workshops using the Conservation Standards framework that:

• Establish shared values and a long-term vision

• Identify catchment health and current conditions

• Look at key pressures on catchment values, the drivers, and root causes of those pressures

• Identify points where actions can intervene to protect and enhance the value

• Prioritise strategic actions and opportunities to protect and enhance the environment

• Build governance and plan foundational actions.

Throughout the process, the wider community can contribute through public surveys, engagement opportunities, and site visits, ensuring that people who cannot participate directly in workshops can still have their views heard.

Each CAP is supported by a suite of accessible resources, including:

• A detailed Catchment Action Plan

• Community-friendly summary brochures

• StoryMaps and online engagement tools

• A website with maps, and dashboards

• Access to ORC technical expertise

• Plan review and adaptive management cycles

Together, these resources enable everyone to see the agreed actions, who is responsible for delivering them, and how progress is being tracked. They also support regular reviews, so plans remain relevant and responsive to changing circumstances.

You can access and download our completed CAPs here:

Once a CAP has been completed, implementation can begin.

Governance groups, or equivalent partnership structures, help oversee delivery by:

• Guiding prioritisation of actions

• Supporting coordinated investment

• Assisting to track progress on actions

• Maintaining community and mana whenua partnership

• Supporting adaptive management over time

Email the ICM team icm@orc.govt.nz or phone 0800 474 082