Saved

The Mokihinui River has been saved:

A decision by Meridian Energy to exit a controversial Mokihinui hydro project on the West Coast has been welcomed by environmental groups and the Department of Conservation.

Meridian Energy announced this morning that it will not proceed with the project that had been planned for the West Coast of the South Island, citing high costs and risks surrounding a project that encroached on environmentally sensitive land.

The project has been formally withdrawn from the Environment Court process, the state-owned energy firm said.

Good. I support hydro power, but not at the cost of flooding such an environmentally sensitive area. And its not as if we're so short of options to generate electricity that we have to make such choices. The proposed dam was the equivalent of a single medium-sized windfarm, which could be built elsewhere with far lower environmental impact.