Georgia Hodges
Horizons Regional Council
Georgia is the Team Leader Consents Monitoring – Rural and Primary Industries at Horizons Regional Council, a position she has held since 2023. Since joining Horizons in 2017, Georgia has built extensive experience in rural and primary industry compliance, including a strong focus on commercial forestry monitoring and enforcement under the National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES-CF).
At a national level, Georgia was involved in establishing the National Forestry Audit Group in 2023 and remains an active member, contributing to greater consistency in the implementation of the NES-CF across New Zealand. She also helped establish the Horizons Region Environmental Wood Council meetings in 2025, supporting collaboration between regulators and the forestry sector.
From Regional Interpretation to National Consistency: A Collaborative Approach to monitoring under the NES-CF
Regional variation in the interpretation and application of the National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry (NES-CF) quickly became an area of frustration for both regulators and industry. Reflecting on other work programme progression at a national level (Dairy Audits), a group of forestry compliance officers initiated a collaborative, practitioner-led approach to address inconsistency and build national alignment.
This presentation discusses the evolution of that initiative, from informal discussions to an established annual forum bringing together forestry officers from across the country. Through structured engagement, the group navigates interpretation challenges, audits each other's compliance approaches, and works collectively to respond to regulatory updates. The result has been improved consistency, increased confidence in decision-making, and a stronger, more unified regulatory voice.
Attendees will gain insight into how national collaboration can be practically implemented. Key learning outcomes include:
Understanding the impacts of inconsistent regulatory interpretation.
Learning how peer review and file auditing can strengthen decision-making and quality.
Identifying practical mechanisms to improve national consistency in compliance practice.
Recognising the value of regular, structured officer engagement in responding to regulatory change.
This session provides a replicable model for other regulatory programmes seeking to move toward consistent, transparent, and industry-trusted compliance delivery.