Wellington Regional Council, branded as Greater Wellington Regional Council, is the regional council overseeing the
Wellington Region
Greater Wellington, also known as the Wellington Region (Māori: ''Te Upoko o te Ika''), is a non-unitary region of New Zealand that occupies the southernmost part of the North Island. The region covers an area of , and has a population of
T ...
of New Zealand's lower
North Island
The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...
. It is responsible for
public transport
Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...
under the brand Metlink, environmental and flood protection, and the region's water supply.
The Wellington Regional Council was first formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the functions of the Wellington Regional
Planning Authority
A local planning authority (LPA) is the local government body that is empowered by law to exercise urban planning functions for a particular area. They exist in the United Kingdom and India.
United Kingdom
Mineral planning authorities
The role ...
with those of the Wellington Regional
Water Board
A water board is a regional or national organisation that has very different functions from one country to another. The functions range from flood control and water resources management at the regional or local level (the Netherlands, Germany), w ...
, before taking its current form with the
local government reforms of 1989.
A proposal made in 2013 that nine
territorial authorities
Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 67 territorial authorities: 13 city councils, 53 district councils and the Chatham Islands Council. District councils serve a ...
amalgamate to form a single supercity met substantial local opposition and was abandoned in June 2015.
Council members
The governing body of the regional council is made up of 13 councillors, representing six constituencies:
*
Pōneke/Wellington – 5 councillors
*
Kāpiti Coast Kapiti or Kāpiti may refer to:
*Kapiti Island, an island a short distance off the New Zealand coast north of Wellington
*Kapiti Coast District, the local government district which includes much of the Kapiti Coast
*Kapiti Coast Airport, an airport ...
– 1
*
Porirua-
Tawa – 2
*
Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai/Lower Hutt – 3
*
Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta/Upper Hutt – 1
*
Wairarapa
The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...
– 1
As of the
2022 local elections the regional councillors are:
Chairs
Regional parks
The council administers several regional parks.
*
Akatarawa Forest
Akatarawa Forest is a regional park in the Upper Hutt within the Wellington Region at the southern tip of the North Island of New Zealand. It encompasses 15,000 hectares of native and plantation forest. It includes the headwaters of the Maungako ...
*
Baring Head/Orua-pouanui
Baring Head ( mi, Ōrua-pouanui, officially gazetted as Baring Head / Ōrua-pouanui) is a headland, located between Wellington Harbour and Palliser Bay at the southern end of the North Island of New Zealand. It marks the southern end of Fitzr ...
*
Battle Hill Farm Forest Park
*
Belmont Regional Park
Belmont Regional Park is a regional park located between Lower Hutt and Porirua, in the Wellington Region at the southern end of New Zealand's North Island. It is administered by Wellington Regional Council.
The park is the largest regional p ...
*
East Harbour Regional Park
*
Hutt River Trail
Te Awa Kairangi / Hutt River ( Māori:''Te Awa Kairangi'', ''Te Wai o Orutu'' or ''Heretaunga'') flows through the southern North Island of New Zealand. It flows south-west from the southern Tararua Range for , forming a number of fertile floodp ...
*
Hutt Water Collection Area
Hutt Water Collection Area is a regional park located in Upper Hutt in the Wellington Region at the southern end of New Zealand's North Island. It is administered by Wellington Regional Council and is located alongside the larger Kaitoke Regional ...
*
Kaitoke Regional Park
Kaitoke Regional Park is regional park located at Kaitoke, northeast of Upper Hutt, in the Wellington Region of New Zealand's southern North Island. It is administered by Wellington Regional Council, alongside the adjacent regional park of Hutt Wa ...
*
Pakuratahi Forest
*
Queen Elizabeth Park
*
Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour
Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour, commonly known as Porirua Harbour, is a natural inlet in the south-western coast of the North Island of New Zealand.
The harbour is within the main urban area of the Wellington Region, and is surrounded by the city o ...
*
Wainuiomata Recreation Area
*
Wainuiomata Water Collection Area
Wainuiomata Water Collection Area is a regional park located near Wainuiomata, Lower Hutt in the Wellington Region at the southern end of New Zealand's North Island. It is administered by Wellington Regional Council, for exclusive use by Welli ...
*
Wairarapa Moana Wetlands
The Wairarapa Moana Wetlands are a major wetland, located in the South Wairarapa District in the Wellington Region at the southern end of New Zealand's North Island.
The wetland is the largest in the lower North Island, one of the largest in Ne ...
*
Wellington Harbour
*
Whitireia Park
Whitireia Park is a headland north of Titahi Bay and Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour in Porirua, in the Wellington Region at the southern end of New Zealand's North Island. It is a regional park administered by Wellington Regional Council.
The par ...
See also
*
Manawatū-Whanganui Regional council - neighbouring regional council
*Territorial authorities within the Greater Wellington region:
**
Wellington City Council
Wellington City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the country's capital city Wellington, and ''de facto'' second-largest city (if the commonly considered parts of Wellington, the Upper Hutt, Porirua, Lower Hutt and ...
**
Porirua City Council
Porirua, ( mi, Pari-ā-Rua) a city in the Wellington Region of the North Island of New Zealand, is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. The name 'Porirua' is a corruption of 'Pari-rua', meaning "the tide swe ...
**
Hutt City Council
The Hutt City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the city of Lower Hutt. Lower Hutt is the country's seventh largest city. The city borders Porirua to the north, Upper Hutt to the northeast, South Wairarapa Distric ...
**
Upper Hutt City Council
**
Kapiti Coast District Council
**
South Wairarapa District Council
The South Wairarapa District is a district at the south-east tip of the North Island of New Zealand, governed by the South Wairarapa District Council. The district comprises the southernmost part of the Wairarapa, and is part of the Wellington Re ...
**
Carterton District Council
Carterton ( mi, Taratahi) is a small town in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and the seat of the Carterton District (a territorial authority or local government district). It lies in a farming area of the Wairarapa in New Zealand's North Isl ...
**
Masterton District Council
Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...
References
{{Wellington Regional Council
Politics of the Wellington Region