We have great pleasure in announcing Ben Tait and Jaide Derbyshire as new shareholders to the company effective 1 April 2026. Ben is a Principal Planner based in our Auckland office and has just re-joined WWLA after previously working in our Whangarei office from 2020 to 2022. Ben is a highly respected planning professional with over 18 years’ experience in natural resource planning and policy development. He has built a reputation for navigating the complexities of resource

WWLA is pleased to welcome Ben Tait to the Kumeu office. Ben re-joined WWLA in April 2026 as a Principal Planner, having previously worked for the company from 2020 to 2022. With over 18 years’ experience in natural resource planning and policy development, Ben is a highly respected practitioner, known for his depth of expertise and pragmatic approach. Ben specialises in water quality and freshwater management and has a strong track record in securing complex resource consent

Brooke James, a graduate hydrologist at WWLA, recently attended the Underwater Hockey Interzone Championships (Regionals) located in Wellington. The Interzone Championships is New Zealand’s most prestigious underwater hockey tournament, where elite players across New Zealand compete representing their home regions. This year, fifteen teams representing different regions competed. Brooke played for the Mid-Northern Women’s team who were up against seven other women’s teams.

WWLA would like to welcome Kevin Burdette to the Kumeu office. Kevin joined in March 2026 as an Intermediate Hydrogeologist and holds a PhD in Geology from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada. Originally from the United States, Kevin recently made New Zealand his permanent home, moving out here with his wife, 2 dogs and cat. New Zealand’s dramatic and thoughtfully preserved landscapes have long inspired Kevin and the opportunity to not only explore this environment but al

Recently, WWLA has undertaken Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) surveys using our ABEM Terrameter LS system for Bay of Plenty Regional Council (BOPRC), across 4 km of survey lines in the Kaituna area. The ERT sections successfully delineated a distinct fresh-saline groundwater transition, a salt water wedge, and mapped key lithological units such as unsaturated sands in coastal dunes and saturated gravels inland from the coast. This work will assist BOPRC in determining