Parts of Tasman and Marlborough are still digging out from the silt that swept through homes and farms in the double whammy of two flood events.
Areas were also swamped by mud and rivers barricaded with woody debris during Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023, leading the government to amend the slash management rules under the National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry.
Now submissions are just days away from closing on more proposed changes with the government saying the earlier amendments have proved costly and not fit for purpose.
The new proposal amends and repeals a number of provisions.
The New Zealand Forest Owners Association says proposed reforms will go some way in addressing the challenges forest owners face due to variable and unjustified local council rules.
But experts argue the proposed changes fail to address the core reasons for slash and sediment discharges.
Kathryn is joined by Mark Bloomberg is an Adjunct Fellow at the New Zealand School of Forestry at Canterbury University and Elizabeth Heeg the New Zealand Forest Owners Association chief executive
