Canterbury Regional Council (Environment Canterbury) Chair, Peter Scott, has stepped down from the Council’s top job following comments made in a media interview last week.
In a statement, the Council said Mr Scott (pictured) was stepping aside while an independent investigation was undertaken into his comments on NewstalkZB regarding his farming activities.
In the recent radio interview, Cr Scott disclosed that he was illegally irrigating part of his South Canterbury farm.
He went on to say two consent applications had been delayed “for six years” and that he was “carrying on, and I’m ignoring the fact that I haven’t got one, so I’m actually operating illegally and I’m the chairman of Environment Canterbury.”
The Council took action today, saying an investigation into Cr Scott’s comments would be carried out by an appropriate independent external reviewer.
“During this time, Cr Craig Pauling (Deputy Chair) will be Acting Chair.”
“No further comments will be made until the investigation is complete. It is anticipated that this will take a number of weeks,” the Council said.
