Ashburton District Council

11/06/2026

💬 HOW AN EMA IS SENT 💬

In advance of the EMA test this Sunday between 6-7pm, here is a little bit of info about how the system works.

🛜 Instead of sending messages to individual phones, like a text message – EMAs are broadcast by cell towers to any device that connects to them.

📍 This means a specific area can be targeted (by selecting individual cell towers), and an alert is received by people whenever they enter that area.

🚨 This is why some people can receive multiple alerts. If someone is traveling and moves from one cell tower to another, or they lose mobile signal and reconnect to a tower or bounce between two towers - an alert will be sent every time a new connection to a tower is made.

📱 This method of sending alerts is also why people can't opt out of EMAs. Nobody's personal information is required to send an EMA, so there is no database to be removed from.

Find out more about Emergency Mobile Alerts at getready.govt.nz/ema

11/06/2026

The sky over Ashburton was putting on a show tonight. 😍

11/06/2026

Ashburton District Councillors have held off refining a list of preferred local government merger options for the district, until after a meeting of Canterbury’s mayors tomorrow.

Councillors yesterday considered eight potential options for amalgamating with councils to the north and south, but parked a decision on favoured scenarios. They will discuss the options again next Wednesday.

Learn more about the options they discussed 👇

Ashburton District Councillors have held off refining a list of preferred local government merger options for the district, until after a meeting of Canterbury’s mayors tomorrow.

11/06/2026

In a trial beginning Monday 15 June, the reuse drop-off service at the Methven recycling depot will only operate from 9.30am until 1.30pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays, and from 9.30am until 11.30am on Sundays. Staff will be checking the condition of household items being dropped off to ensure they can actually be reused, and are not just being dumped.

The depot will remain open 24/7 for recycling other items, like glass, cardboard, cans, tins and plastics 1, 2 and 5.

Residents wanting to drop off reusable household items and whiteware at Methven’s recycling depot can only do so when depot staff are present.

10/06/2026

The new two-cubicle public toilet facility at Lake Heron was installed earlier this week. There's still a bit of landscaping and exterior work to do, but we'll let you know when it's good to go!

09/06/2026

☎️⚙️ We've having some technical issues with our telephone system this morning folks, so sorry if your calls are not getting through.

Our IT team is fixing the problem 🙏, but we can still see and respond to emails - [email protected]

Send a message to learn more

08/06/2026

🌉 👷 One new bridge beam down, 83 to go!

Ashburton District Councillors paid a visit to Busck Prestressed Concrete in the Ashburton Business Estate last week, where the first of the Super T beams for the second Ashburton bridge was precast.

Each beam is 30 metres long and weighs about 51 tonnes - 84 will be needed for the new bridge.

All the beams are being built at the Busck yard and will start moving to the bridge site from late 2026, after other parts of the bridge structure are constructed.

Before any concrete can be poured, steel fitters build an internal steel cage that gives each beam its strength. Ducts and lifting points are also installed so the beam can be moved and connected to the rest of the bridge.

08/06/2026

Update from NZ Civil Defence at 12.39pm

There’s is no tsunami threat to New Zealand following the M7.8 Philippines earthquake. Based on current information the initial assessment is that the earthquake is unlikely to have caused a tsunami that will pose a threat to New Zealand.

**

⚠️ NZ Civil Defence is assessing whether the M8.2 Philippines earthquake poses any tsunami threat to New Zealand.
🌊 If a tsunami has been generated it is not likely to arrive in New Zealand for at least 10 hours.
Keep an eye on NZ Civil Defence for updates.

The Government has introduced an Emergency Management Bill to replace the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002. Learn more about the Bill.

07/06/2026

🚨 New Zealand's annual test of the Emergency Mobile Alert (EMA) system will be sent this Sunday (14 June) between 6pm-7pm to all capable phones.

⚠️ This test makes sure the system works as it should and helps keep you safe during future emergencies.

❗ If you have a hidden phone for your personal safety, or the sound of the alert affects your physical or mental health in any way, we recommend turning off any devices with a SIM connection between 6-7pm on Sunday 14 June, or putting them into flight mode.

👉📱 You can mute the sound of the alert by pressing the volume button on the side of your phone – this will still leave the message on screen for you to read.

Find out more about Emergency Mobile Alerts at getready.govt.nz/ema