The question of whether to improve stopbanks to protect Whanganui from floods will be a big one for David Cotton's next six months on Horizons Regional Council.
His peers have voted him to the position of chairman of the council's catchment operations committee. It handles 35 schemes for river management/flood protection and also the Sustainable Land Use Initiative (SLUI) - which aims to keep soil on the hills and out of rivers.
Next month consultation will begin on whether Whanganui people are satisfied with the 30-year flood protection offered by the stopbanks in Whanganui East. If they are not, costing will be done on any improvements.
In June 2015 the 30-year stopbanks were overtopped, and houses and businesses on both sides of the river were flooded.
The question of stopbanks, and their costs, has been a vexed one for years. Mr Cotton wants the decision to be final this time, and he said it was crucial to get everyone's opinion. Lots of meetings and workshops are planned, to inform people.