It’s pass time – the ins and outs of going orange

Do you have a vaccine pass?

Get ready to hear that question if you want to visit a cafe, work-out at the gym, or swim in local pools – but you won’t need a pass if you want to check a book out of the library.

At 11.59pm on Thursday, Nelson City and Tasman District, along with the rest of the South Island, moves to the orange light setting under the Government’s new Covid-19 Protection Framework.

The move comes as the region has three active cases of Covid in the community.

At the orange level venues and businesses that ‘‘opt in’’ and require vaccine passes can generally operate normally, with no capacity limits or seating requirements. Those that opt out will face more severe restrictions, such as cafes and restaurants only able to offer contactless pickup and delivery.

Nelson Hospitality Association president Ian Williams said many local businesses were still debating whether to opt in, but due to the restrictions on operations ‘‘ my impression is that most will be vaccine only’’.

His businesses – The Vic Public House and Burger Culture – would both require the vaccine pass, he said.

He asked the public to be ‘‘understanding’’ while the new system was embedded. ‘‘We need them also to be understanding and patient with the process and kind to our staff.’’ The aim was to make sure people felt welcomed, not interrogated, he said.

Club Waimea manager Wayne Williams said opting in was an easy decision.

‘‘If we don’t, with the extra regulations, it’s hardly worth opening the doors.’’

Nelson City Council Incident Management team leader Alec Louverdis said the guidelines for council facilities would be subject to change, and asked for patience.

‘‘Our role now is to ensure people can access our facilities while remaining protected from Covid-19. In some cases that will mean requiring a vaccine pass, but where a service is essential for all we will rely on measures we are all familiar with such as continued physical distancing and mask wearing,’’ he said.

Nelson Mayor Rachel Reese said the challenge was to function as normally as possible while keeping safe.

‘‘We want people to continue to enjoy our facilities, but to do so safely,’’ she said.

‘‘It’s important that we deal with these situations respectfully; this is about the whole of the community working together.’’

Tasman District Council chief executive Janine Dowding said the new system would mean a period of adjustment for people providing services and those accessing them.

‘‘Just like everyone else living, working and operating in the traffic light system, we will be doing our very best to navigate this new environment.’’

Dowding urged people to be mindful that ‘‘it’s not always going to be easy’’.

‘‘We expect our staff to be calm and respectful in all their interactions, and we ask the same in return from everyone accessing our services and facilities.’’

The list of council services was subject to change due to ‘‘any centrally driven changes in response to the management of the pandemic’’, she said.