Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority

Ngā Meneti

Open Minutes

Commencing:             Friday 25 February 2022, 9.30 am

Venue:                         Via Zoom (Audio Visual Meeting)

Heamana

Chairperson:               Cr Matemoana McDonald (Bay of Plenty Regional Council)

Heamana Tuarua

Deputy Chairperson: 

Ngā Kopounga

Members:                    Bay of Plenty Regional Council

                                    Cr Jane Nees (Alternate)

Tapuika Iwi Authority

Dean Flavell

Te Tahuhu o Tawakeheimoa Trust

Erin Thompson (Alternate)

Te Pumautanga o Te Arawa

Rawiri Kingi (Alternate)

Rotorua Lakes Council

Cr Tania Tapsell (Rotorua Lakes Council)

Western Bay of Plenty District Council

Cr Grant Dally

Tauranga City Council

Commissioner Shadrach Rolleston

Commissioner Bill Wasley (Alternate)

Informal Members:     Te Komiti Nui o Ngāti Whakaue

                                    Maru Tapsell

                                                      Manu Pene (Alternate)

                                                      Bay of Plenty Regional Council

                                                      Cr Te Taru White

Te Hunga i Tae Ake

In Attendance:            Bay of Plenty Regional Council: Pim De Monchy – Coastal Catchments Manager, Jo Watts – Senior Planner (Water Policy), Reuben Gardner – Senior Planner (Water Policy), Fiona Wood – Programme Coordinator Integrated Catchments, Rawiri Bhana – Māori Policy Advisor, Gina Mohi – Pūtaiao Mātauranga, Anaru Vercoe – Pou Whainga Principal Advisor, Clarke Koopu – Senior Advisor (Treaty), Sam Whittle – Communications Partner, Jenny Teeuwen – Committee Advisor

Western Bay of Plenty District Council: Matthew Leighton – Senior Policy Analyst

External: Mokoera Te Amo – Tapuika Iwi Authority and Te Kapu o Waitaha

Ngā Hōnea

Apologies:                  Nick Chater, Geoff Rice, Piki Thomas and John Scrimgeour (for absence), Erin Thompson and Nicki Douglas (for lateness)

 

 

1.            Chair’s Opening Statement

In order for a quorum to be present at the beginning of the meeting, Cr Matemoana McDonald, Deputy Chair, assumed the Chair to enable Dean Flavell, Chair, to act as the Tapuika Iwi Authority representative.

Cr McDonald formally opened the Zoom hui and advised that the hui was being recorded and that the recording would be uploaded to the Bay of Plenty Regional Council website and could be accessed via this link: Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority Meeting Zoom Recording 25 February 2022 - YouTube

 

 

2.     Karakia Whakatuwhera
Opening Karakia

A karakia was provided by Dean Flavell.

 

3.     Ngā Hōnea
Apologies

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

1           Accepts the apologies from Nick Chater, Geoff Rice, Piki Thomas and John Scrimgeour for absence, and from Erin Thompson and Nicki Douglas for lateness, tendered at the meeting.

Flavell/Dally

CARRIED

 

 

 

1.     Whakapuakanga o Ngā Take Whai Taha-Rua
Declaration of Conflicts of Interest

None declared.

 

2.     Ngā Meneti
Minutes

Kia Whakaūngia Ngā Meneti
Minutes to be Confirmed

2.1

Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority Minutes - 19 November 2021

 

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

Confirms the Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority Minutes - 19 November 2021 as a true and correct record.

Nees/Flavell

CARRIED

 

 

3.     Whakahoutanga Kōrero
Verbal Updates

3.1

Chairperson's Verbal Update

Presented by:   Dean Flavell - Tapuika Iwi Authority, and Cr Grant Dally – Western Bay of Plenty District Council

 

Mr Dean Flavell provided updates on the following:

Secretariat Update

Key Points

·         An appointment to the Secretariat position for the Rangitāiki River Forum and Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority (TMoK) had been made.

·         The Chairs of both Forums would work together to identify the key items to be addressed by the Secretariat position in the first year.

AFFCO consent pre-hearing meeting

Key Points

·         TMoK had submitted to the AFFCO consent.  A pre-hearing meeting had been held last week that was well attended by iwi.

 

 

·         A site visit of the Rangiuru AFFCO site was undertaken immediately following the pre-hearing meeting.

·         Ongoing discussions were required to ensure alignment and agreement between all interested parties.

Freshwater Vision letter

Key Points

·         As Chairperson of Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority Mr Flavell confirmed that he had received a letter from Sue Simpson, Planning Coordinator (Freshwater) on behalf of Reuben Gardiner, Senior Planner (Water Policy),  but had not yet responded as he would like to hear comments from the Forum first.  This would be discussed further as part of the Essential Freshwater Policy Programme 2022 item scheduled for later in the meeting.

Navigation Safety Bylaw Review

Key Points

·         Consultation on the Navigation Safety Bylaw review had not yet occurred.

·         A panel would be appointed to hear submissions.  The panel would be made up of four Regional Council representatives and four iwi representatives, one of each for the four areas - Eastern Bay of Plenty, Rotorua, Western Bay of Plenty, and Tauranga.

·         Nominations for the four iwi representatives would be sought from the co-governance entities of each of the four areas.

·         There was still a lot of bylaw development work to be done before the bylaw would be ready to go out for submissions.

In Response to Questions

·         The proposed four Regional Council representatives were Cr von Dadelszen (Tauranga), Cr Nees (Western Bay of Plenty), Cr Winters (Rotorua) and Cr Iti (Eastern Bay of Plenty).

Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority – Tapuika/Waitaha vacancy

Key Points

·         Mokoera Te Amo had been suggested as a possible iwi representative to fill the Tapuika/Waitaha vacancy for this forum.

·         The appointment had yet to be confirmed.

Cr Grant Dally provided the following update:

Western Bay of Plenty District Council (WBOPDC)

Key Points

·         WBOPDC continued to work with marae in the district regarding wastewater reticulation and on site treatment options, with On-Site Effluent Testing (OSET) upgrades scheduled to occur over the next few months.

·         Design and modelling work continued for the Te Puke Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade.

 

 

·         WBOPDC would meet with the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) next Monday for a one-on-one discussion on the future for local government.

 

 

4.     Ngā Pūrongo
Reports

Hei Pānui Anake
Information Only

4.1

Kaituna Catchment Operations Update

Presented by:   Pim de Monchy, Coastal Catchments Manager

Key Points

·        The report provided updates on maritime safety around the Kaituna and the Kaituna Mole upgrade.

In Response to Questions

·         A poutama design had been incorporated into the resurfacing of the mole.

 

 

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

1           Receives the report, Kaituna Catchment Operations Update.

Flavell/White

CARRIED

 

 

4.2

Te Maru o Kaituna Action Plan Status Report December 2021-February 2022

Presented by:   Pim de Monchy, Coastal Catchments Manager

Key Points

·         The Te Maru o Kaituna Action Plan Status Report was presented in a new format following feedback received at the 19 November 2021 meeting.

·         Further feedback on the new format and content was welcomed.

·         Updates were provided for each project.

In Response to Questions

·         Whilst the Kaituna Road drain plantings were growing nicely, water quality results could not be correlated with the work because only parts of the drain had been changed.  An example of best practice drain implementation where water quality could be monitored was the Te Arawa Management Ltd dairy farm at Maketū.

 

 

 

·         It was important that the most appropriate plants were planted and conversations between staff and tangata whenua were ongoing to ensure this happened.

·         Cultural impact assessments (CIA) for the Ford Road Pump Station had not yet been commissioned.  Tapuika Iwi Authority had expressed a wish to provide a CIATe Rūnanga o Ngāti Whakaue ki Maketū had yet to confirm whether they wished to provide a CIA. 

·         Trials on floating wetlands using drains as water filters were still ongoing but current results had indicated that whilst the process worked, it was not cost effective, with costs exceeding the benefits.

·         Regional Council recognised that the status quo did not meet some ecological and cultural values in the receiving environment of the Kaituna River.  The River Document and Action Plan went a long way to identifying what actions were required for the receiving environment to be restored to moderate health.

·         Compliance monitoring for OSET ranged from domestic to large pack houses, and also included the Papamoa Hills Regional Park.

·         Low risk compliance signalled a technical non-compliance, whereas moderate or significant non-compliance signalled an adverse environmental effect or a significant adverse environmental effect.

·         13 of the 14 significant non-compliances for consented takes and discharges were technical in nature.  One was related to the discharge from a Waste Water Treatment Plant at Maketū which had caused ponding issues in the disposal area.  This was currently under investigation.

10.38 am - Erin Thompson entered the meeting.

·         Takes and discharges consents across the catchment were tracked and checked for compliance.

·         Significant non-compliance issues for consented takes and discharges would be reported in more detail in the status report going forward.

·         How projects were prioritised was dependent on the entity identified as the lead for each project.

·         The Coastal Park Network project was identified in the status report but had not yet started.

Key Points - Members

·        General support for the report’s new format was indicated.

·        Keeping in touch with iwi across this space would continue to be important.

·        With the recent Secretariat appointment, Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority now had a dedicated resource to help progress the projects that they were the lead for.

·        Timeframes for the Pataka Kai project had been amended to better align with Matariki and the lunar calendar.

·        There was commonality between projects nine, thirteen and sixteen and how these might be merged was under consideration.

 

 

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

1           Receives the report, Te Maru o Kaituna Action Plan Status Report December 2021-February 2022.

White/Pene

CARRIED

 

4.3

Te Puke/Maketu Reserve Management Plan Review

Presented by:   Matt Leighton, Senior Policy Analyst, Western Bay of Plenty District Council.

 

Key Points

·         Submissions to the Te Puke/Maketū Reserve Management Plan Review were encouraged.  Submissions closed on 24 April 2022.

Items for Staff Follow Up (WBOPDC)

·         Staff to provide a presentation on this topic at the next meeting.

·         Staff to follow up with Manu Pene regarding his request that this item be presented to Ngāti Whakaue at Maketū.

 

 

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

1           Receives the report, Te Puke/Maketu Reserve Management Plan Review.

Flavell/Thompson

CARRIED

 

 

4.4

Essential Freshwater Policy Programme 2022

Presented by:   Jo Watts, Senior Planner (Water Policy)

Presentation:   Freshwater Vision: Objective ID A4048219  

Key Points

·         A three person panel for Regional Policy Statement (RPS) Proposed Change 5 - Kaituna River Hearing, had been confirmed by the Freshwater Commissioner, and included Antoine Coffin as Chair of the panel, Rawiri Faulkner as the iwi nominee, and Councillor Andrew von Dadelszen as the Regional Council nominee.

·         The main focus of the Essential Freshwater Policy Programme (EFPP) for 2022 would be setting the vision and the development of outcomes, targets and limits.

·         The current key task was to try and progress the example long-term vision.

·         Direction was being sought on whether TMoK were comfortable to endorse the example Kaituna vision for iwi and community engagement, and whether TMoK wished to provide any specific feedback to Toi Moana in response to the Freshwater Vision letter (Attachment 2).

In Response to Questions

·         The letter referred to a vision for freshwater for the whole region.  It did not take away from the visions for the Kaituna and Rangitāiki.

·         There were common synergies and good alignment between the existing documents that the example vision was based on.

 

 

Key Points - Members

·         It was suggested that a (Zoom) hui be held with staff and the Chairs and Deputy Chairs of the co-governance groups to discuss how gaining an across region approval for a vision could be achieved.

·         It was important that the vision work already undertaken in iwi management plans was also included in any freshwater vision discussions.

·         Low water flows and levels across the region would require other options for water harvesting to be considered.

 

 

Resolved

That Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority:

1           Receives the report, Essential Freshwater Policy Programme 2022.

Nees/White

CARRIED

 

 

5.     Karakia Kati
Closing Karakia

A karakia was provided by Manu Pene.

12.22pm  – the meeting closed.

 

 

Confirmed 20 May 2022                                                                 

                                                                                            Dean Flavell

Chairperson, Te Maru o Kaituna River Authority