Monitoring and Operations Committee

Open Minutes

Commencing:             Tuesday 8 March 2022, 9.30 am

Venue:                         Via Zoom (Audio Visual Meeting)

Chairperson:               Cr Kevin Winters

Deputy Chairperson:  Cr Norm Bruning

Members:                    Cr David Love

Cr Bill Clark

Cr Stuart Crosby

Cr Toi Kai Rākau Iti

Chairman Doug Leeder

Cr Matemoana McDonald

Cr Jane Nees

Cr Stacey Rose

Cr Paula Thompson

Cr Lyall Thurston

Cr Andrew von Dadelszen

Cr Te Taru White

In Attendance:           Bay of Plenty Regional Council: Sarah Omundsen - General Manager Regulatory Services, Fiona McTavish - Chief Executive, Chris Ingle - General Manager Integrated Catchments, Tim Senior - Land Management Officer, Anna Dawson - Land Management Officer, Pim de Monchy - Coastal Catchments Manager, Rachael Burgess - Customer Contact Manager, Reece Irving - Senior Regulatory Project Officer, Helen Creagh - Rotorua Catchments Manager, Scott Kusabs - Land Management Team Leader, Laverne Mason - Integrated Catchments Programme Manager, Jon Jon Peters – Harbourmaster, Greg Corbett - Biosecurity Manager, Alex Miller - Compliance Manager (Land & Water), May Cheuyglintase - Senior Regulatory Project Officer, Santiago Bermeo - Senior Planner, Stephen Lamb - Environmental Strategy Manager, Prue Sisam – Senior Communications Partner, Amanda Namana - Committee Advisor, Shari Kameta - Committee Advisor

                                    External: Stuart Slade - Nukuhou Saltmarsh Care Group, Pam and Andrew Thorpe - Johnson Reserve Care Group, Brian Breen - Waioraka Care Group, Louise Saunders - Chief Executive Officer, Manaaki Kaimai Mamaku Trust

Apologies:                  Cr Stacey Rose (late arrival), Cr Paula Thompson (early departure), Cr Andrew von Dadelszen (early departure)

 

Chairperson’s Opening Statement

 

The Chair welcomed those present and advised that the meeting was being livestreamed and recorded, and that the recording would be made available on the Bay of Plenty Regional Council website following the meeting.

 

Recording link: Monitoring and Operations Committee Meeting - 8 March 2022 - YouTube

1.     Apologies

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Accepts the apologies from Cr Stacey Rose for late arrival, Cr Paula Thompson for early departure and Cr von Dadelszen for early departure tendered at the meeting.

Thurston/von Dadelszen

CARRIED

2.     Items not on the Agenda

The Chairman advised that a presentation on Forestry and Carbon Farming would be received under Item 14, Consideration of Items not on the Agenda.

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Accepts receipt of the presentation on Forestry and Carbon Farming.

Nees/Bruning

CARRIED

3.     Declaration of Conflicts of Interest

Agenda Item 9.1: Kaimai Mamaku Trust Presentation - Cr Bruning declared a conflict of interest for this item as the Kamai Mamaku Trust’s Chairman.

4.     Minutes

Minutes to be Confirmed

4.1

Monitoring and Operations Committee Minutes - 7 December 2021

Matters Arising

·       Minute Item 5.1, Chairperson’s Report, third bullet point – no update had been received on the High Court decision regarding mangrove/wetland management. Staff would circulate the Minister’s response to the local government sector’s letter once it was received. 

·       Minute Item 5.4, Mount Maunganui Industrial Airshed Update – regarding a query about dust issues in Tauriko arising from the transport and handling of bulk solid material, Sarah Omundsen, General Manager Regulatory Services advised that staff are looking at what industries are now operating in the area and will report back on this at the Committee’s next meeting.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Confirms the Monitoring and Operations Committee Minutes - 7 December 2021 as a true and correct record.

Bruning/Leeder

CARRIED

 

4.2

Public Excluded Monitoring and Operations Committee Minutes - 7 December 2021

As the only business conducted in Public Excluded minutes was to confirm the minutes, the Committee agreed that these minutes could be confirmed in the open.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Confirms the Public Excluded Monitoring and Operations Committee Minutes - 7 December 2021 as a true and correct record.

Love/Winters

CARRIED

 

9.37 am – Cr McDonald entered the meeting.

5.     Reports

Information Only

5.1

Summary of care group and environmental volunteer activity 2021

Presentation - Nukuhou Saltmarsh Care Group: Objective ID A4052576

Presentation - Johnson and Waioraka Reserves' Care Groups: Objective ID A4056173  

Presented by: Tim Senior and Anna Dawson (Land Management Officers), Stuart Slade (Nukuhou Saltmarsh Care Group), Pam Thorpe (Johnson Reserve Care Group) and Brian Breen (Waioraka Care Group)

Key Points:

·     Outlined the substantial contribution and knowledge and growth of care groups over the past 20 years.

·     Acknowledged the additional funding provided through Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP) to support larger projects and additional resource.

·     Care groups needed further support and funding, noting the benefits and cost value they provided.

·     Recognised the importance of catchment groups that provided improvements to farming practices and looked forward to additional funding sought in the next LTP to support these groups further.

·     Acknowledged landowners who were undertaking biodiversity and riparian work and improvements on their land.

9.51 am – Cr Stacey Rose and Cr Te Taru White entered the meeting.

·     Presentations were provided by Care Group representatives: Stuart Slade (Nukuhou Saltmarsh Care Group, Ōhiwa harbour), Andrew and Pam Thorpe (Johnson Reserve Care Group, Welcome Bay) and Brian Breen (Waioraka Care Group, Welcome Bay).

·     The presentations provided background and highlights of the care groups’ activities, and acknowledged the involvement and contribution of the Councils, local agencies and members of their communities.

·     Acknowledged the support of Land Management Officers, Tim Senior and Anna Dawson, alongside Dianne Paton, Parks and Reserves Coordinator, Tauranga City Council.

In Response to Questions:

·     Recognised the ageing population of the volunteer workforce and hoped to encourage succession by seeking the interest of neighbouring residents who backed onto the reserves and were new to the area.

Key Points - Members:

·     Congratulated and thanked the care group members for their work to support their communities and care for the environment.

·     Supported care groups in encouraging the involvement of neighbouring landowners.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Summary of care group and environmental volunteer activity 2021.

2           Agrees to further discussion at Council’s Annual Plan Workshop on 9 March 2022, further support for volunteer organisations in the forthcoming Annual Plan.

Thompson/Thurston

CARRIED

6.     Presentation

6.1

Manaaki Kaimai Mamaku Trust

Presentation - Manaaki Kaimai Mamaku Trust: Objective ID A4056174  

Presented by: Louise Saunders, Chief Executive Officer, Manaaki Kaimai Mamaku Trust

 

Key Points:

·     Pim de Monchy, Coastal Catchments Manager introduced Louise Saunders, noting Council’s ongoing support and contribution since the formation of the Kaimai Forum in 2009.

·     Background on the whakapapa (origins), structure and formation of Manaaki Kaimai Mamaku Trust (MKMT), Joint Agency Committee (JAC) and Ngā Iwi Tōpu Māori Caucus.

·     Formation of the JAC was to better integrate and coordinate pest control operations throughout the Kaimai Mamaku, which had led to substantial funding contributions from stakeholder partners and was a key driver for attaining significant Jobs for Nature funding of $19 million in 2020.

·     Mission, vision and strategy approach for restoration.

·     Outlined multiple long-term projects led by iwi/hapū with collaboration, integration and support from JAC partners.

·     Progress of groundwork completed over the last nine months included: project and monitoring implementation, re-launch of the Forum, establishing communication channels, setup of governance, operations and specialist contractors.

·     Jobs for Nature funding agreement would commence on 1 April 2022.

·     Next steps: further collaboration, GIS database and monitoring, increasing capacity, further knowledge sharing, increasing community engagement and awareness, and seeking long-term funding sources.

·     Community engagement would seek to address the issue of ageing volunteer numbers.

·     MKMT had a significant workload ahead and were grateful for the Regional Council’s support and contribution.

Key Points - Members:

·     Congratulated Louise, the Trust Co-Chair and team for their mahi.

·     Recognised the relationship that had been built with Iwi/hapū, which was an exemplar model for how engagement should be working.

·     Recognised Council’s $1.5 million funding contribution provided to the Trust which had led to the Jobs for Nature funding.

·     MKMT had received four applications for funding from younger people, which showed the reconnection of rangatahi and an upwelling from iwi/hapū and Māori community, which was gratifying to see.

10:51 am – the meeting adjourned.

10:51 am – Crs Stacey Rose and David Love left the meeting.

11:00am – the meeting reconvened.

7.     Reports Continued

7.1

Chairperson's Report

Presented by: Chair Cr Winters and Sarah Omundsen, General Manager Regulatory Services, Chris Ingle, General Manager Integrated Catchments

In Response to Questions:

·     Did not anticipate any overlapping issues with the new Motiti Protection Area (MPA) rules, and the Navigation Safety Bylaw (NSB) review. However, staff would be seeking feedback across the region on any emerging maritime and navigation safety issues as part of the NSB review.

·     The appeal made by Ngāi te Rangi Iwi Trust to the BOPRC global consent was in relation to matters within their submission, which the independent commissioners had not adopted, and they were in the process of seeking Court-assisted mediation for this.

11:07 am – Cr David Love entered the meeting.

·     Regarding water shortage issues, Tauranga City Council were working with Toi Moana and Western Bay of Plenty District Council on future drinking water supply, including long term requirements for the Waiari stream and wider community. This work had just commenced and terms of reference were being developed for the study, followed by baseline information on water availability and likely supply requirements. Further updates would be provided on the study’s progress.

 

Items for Staff Follow Up:

·     Provide an update to councillors on the implications of the High Court judgement of the Marine and Coastal Area application for Rangataua Bay to the Transpower consent.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Chairperson's Report.

Winters/Thurston

CARRIED

 

7.2

Customer Service Performance

Presented by: Rachael Burgess, Customer Contact Manager

Key Points:

·     It had been a busy year for customer service with approximately 68,000 interactions across the six customer service channels.

·     Visits to the office were reducing and digital interactions increasing with close to 45,000 calls received through the call centre.

·     Good progress had been made on improving customer service, as illustrated in the satisfaction scores across core customer service areas.

·     Call measurements were providing good insights into call abandonment and resolution levels to identify where improvements could be made.

·     The rates customer experience workstream was preparing for the transition of rates collection and future impacts on customer service channels, and good progress made towards the change scheduled later in the year.

In Response to Questions:

·     The rates webpage was now live on Council’s website and provided information on Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

·     February 2021 - January 2022 satisfaction results were collected over the past 12 months since using the new Zendesk system and would provide a baseline comparison for future results.

11:15 am – Cr Stacey Rose entered the meeting.

·     Land management, maritime and biosecurity enquiries were currently managed through the Zendesk and directed to those teams, however would be looking to manage enquiries directly moving into the next period.

·     Deeper dives into call abandonment results would guide where extra resource was needed.

·     Staff were only receiving a four percent response for pollution hotline satisfaction surveys and were looking at ways to improve response rates.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Customer Service Performance.

Nees/Crosby

CARRIED

 

 

7.3

Mount Maunganui Industrial area update

Presented by:  Reece Irving, Senior Regulatory Project Officer

In Response to Questions:

·     Regarding Council’s online odour pollution prevention tool ‘Report It’ that was currently being trialled in the Pāpāmoa area opposite Truman Lane:

o   The online tool was available on Council’s website and was working well.

o   Some pollution hotline customer service dissatisfaction results came from customers who wanted an immediate response or resolution, which the online tool provided some solution for, i.e. identifying recent complaints and where an odour assessment had been completed by a response officer.

o   A wind direction overlay was being developed for the online tool.

o   Two additional areas had been added to the online tool in the vicinity of the Alpine food factory in Judea and west of the industrial area in Te Puke. An information letter drop to residents in these areas was planned that would outline how to access and use the online tool.

o   If community uptake of the tool was successful, it would be expanded to other locations affected by odour issues.

·     Odour issues were extremely difficult to detect using technology and was best detected and confirmed using the human nose.

·     Different options had been investigated to assist officers with odour complaints and enforcement and one provider engaged to support highly objectionable complaints.

·     Officers undertook to respond to all complaints that were received. For selected sites, such as Ziwi, two calls to the hotline in an hour would trigger a response.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Mount Maunganui Industrial area update.

Thurston/Rose

CARRIED

 

7.4

Maritime Summer Programme Report for 2021/22

Presented by: Jon Jon Peters, Bay of Plenty Harbourmaster/Manager

In Response to Questions:

·     The number of infringements in comparison to breaches could be attributed to a portion still being processed, taking positive attitudes into account and a focus on education in Whakatāne where patrols had just been introduced.

·     A future date was being sought to visit and engage with Matakana Island iwi/hapū to discuss compliance and navigation safety in Hunters Creek.

·     25 percent of the breaches identified as having no name on a vessel were applicable to powered vessels over four metres and had to follow guideline specifications.

Key Points - Members:

·     Congratulated the launch of the new boat Eke Ngaru in Rotorua.

·     The majority of people were conscious of those who breached the navigation safety bylaws and wanted more visibility of maritime patrols across the region.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Maritime Summer Programme Report for 2021/22.

White/Iti

CARRIED

 

7.5

Climate Change Programme Reporting

Presented by: Laverne Mason, Integrated Catchments Programme Manager and Jane Palmer, Senior Planner Climate Change

In Response to Questions:

·     Not enough was known about the pending national emissions budget guideline therefore responsive planning would be undertaken after its release.

·     Staff did not have details as yet of Tauranga City Council’s (TCC) Climate Action Plan and how it would address carbon reduction traffic transport emissions.

 

Items for Staff Follow Up:

·     Requested further detail be provided at the next SmartGrowth Leadership Group briefing on TCC’s transport emissions strategy and action plan.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Climate Change Programme Reporting.

Crosby/Rose

CARRIED

12.00 pm – Cr Rose withdrew from the meeting.

7.6

Lake Rotorua Sustainable Land Gains 2017 - 2022

Presentation - Lake Rotorua Catchment Update: Objective ID A4056179  

Presented by:  Helen Creagh, Rotorua Catchments Manager and Scott Kusabs, Land Management Team Leader

Key Points:

·     Paid tribute to the late Geoff Ewert and his significant contribution/work.

·     Provided a presentation on the progress made towards sustainable nutrient loads that involved strong working relationships with landowners, critical sources areas, management of phosphorus and environmental programmes to improve water quality.

·     Staff had in depth knowledge of farm-scale information, data management systems/processes and strong relationships with farmers, most of whom had good compliance, buy-in and solutions.

In Response to Questions:

·     Confirmed that the proposed legislation on carbon sequestration was driving land use change and the uptake of the incentive scheme.

·     Support for the use of Overseer had been ongoing in the Lake Rotorua catchment following its review and hoped to see this continue following the Government’s response.

·     Staff had reviewed the incentive scheme’s policy following the review of Overseer, with a focus on securing land use change.

·     Use of detainment bunds as an option for critical source area management and loss of phosphorus was being looked at as part of the regional plan review, and would require engineering design oversight in construction.

·     Staff were confident that other interventions would help drive land use change to achieve the sustainable nitrogen load by 2032.

Key Points - Members:

·     Acknowledged the passing of Geoff Ewert.

·     Further consideration was needed regarding the use of detainment bunds and potential opportunities to meet the economic benefit.

·     Referred to the Lakes Water Quality Society conference presentation by Ian McLean and the need to consider a review of the Rotorua Te Arawa Lakes Strategy Group terms of reference to take into account longer-term changing climate conditions.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Lake Rotorua Sustainable Land Gains 2017 - 2022.

White/Thurston

CARRIED

12.25 pm – Cr Thompson and Cr White withdrew from the meeting.

 

7.7

Biosecurity Activity Budget Trends 2016 - 2021

Presentation - Biosecurity Budget Trends: Objective ID A4056177  

Presented by: Greg Corbett, Biosecurity Manager

Key Points:

·     Provided key highlights and trends for the biosecurity activity on exclusion, eradication, progressive containment, sustained control, aquatic and marine pests, wallabies, wild kiwifruit and woolly nightshade.

·     Delivery and a desire from mana whenua to participate in wallaby control was being worked through with government agencies.

12:46 pm – Cr Love entered the meeting.

In Response to Questions:

·     Treasury had granted $6.9 million of ongoing funding for pest management across the country after the Jobs for Nature funding ended in June 2024.

Action Follow-up:

·     Provide councillors an estimation on the consumption of biomass from browsing pests in the region.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Biosecurity Activity Budget Trends 2016 - 2021.

Nees/Clark

CARRIED

 

 

7.8

Overview of WWTP Compliance in the Bay of Plenty Region - 2021/22

Presented by: Alex Miller, Compliance Manager – Land & Water, and May Cheuyglintase, Senior Regulatory Project Officer

Key Points:

·     Highlighted areas of challenge in regard to wastewater treatment plant and ongoing network overflows.

·     General compliance had shown slight improvement and encouraged with the good results in response to overflow issues.

·     The uptake of best practice guidance provided assurance that unforeseeable events were being well managed.

In Response to Questions:

·     Staff are satisfied with the best practice guidelines for managing overflows, which had been developed with Toi Te Ora and Territorial Local Authorities (TLA) and in consultation with tangata whenua.

·     The annual compliance reports are shared with TLA staff.

·     Staff were engaging with TLAs that have consents due for renewal in 2026.

Key Points - Staff:

·     Staff were available to present at relevant TLA meetings with councillors where requested.

Items for Staff Follow Up:

·     Provide a category breakdown of overflow incidents to identify the reason of non-compliance in future reporting, i.e. infrastructure failure, human intervention, external contractor fault.

·     Encourage compliance reports to be shared with TLA elected members to ensure an appropriate level of awareness and understanding of the size of their TLA compliance issues.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the report, Overview of WWTP Compliance in the Bay of Plenty Region - 2021/22.

McDonald/Crosby

CARRIED

8.     Consideration of Items not on the Agenda

8.1

Presentation on Carbon/Forestry Farming

Presentation - Forestry and Carbon Farming: Objective ID A4052563  

Presented by: Santiago Bermeo, Senior Planner

 

Key Points:

·     Provided an introduction on the issue of carbon sequestration of exotic pine vs native forest.

·     Two separate discussion papers had been released:

o   Proposed changes to forestry settings under the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) - by the Government (Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and Ministry for the Environment (MfE)); and

o   Green Paper Managing Forestry under Carbon Prices - by Yule Alexander Limited (commissioned by several district councils and Beef & Lamb New Zealand).

·     Outlined the potential issues with land conversion, proposed solutions and other considerations to the government’s proposal to ban permanent exotic forestry from the ETS.

·     Suggested next steps would include responding to the Yule report, making a submission to the MPI/MfE discussion document, contributing to the sector-wide position and keeping a watching brief on impacts for Council’s work.

·     Links to the discussion papers and additional information for further reading was provided in the presentation:

o   ETS: reward native not pine forest | RNZ

o   Managing exotic afforestation incentives (beehive.govt.nz)

o   Green-Paper-Managing Forestry-Land-Use -Carbon.pdf (beeflambnz.com)

o   He Waka Eke Noa Agricultural emissions pricing options – Exec Summary (hewakaekenoa.nz)

Key Points - Members:

·     The market had moved well ahead of regulatory and would have a substantial impact on the economy, landscape and biodiversity.

·     Considered that a workshop was needed to examine the implications and investment opportunities to assist Council with its responsibilities for climate change and nitrogen reduction in the Rotorua catchment.

·     Further understanding and consideration was needed in regard to the significant impacts on Iwi/Māori in respect of marginal land.

·     Highlighted this was a policy issue over the next 50-60 year horizon.

·     MPI would be running a special engagement process with Iwi from 14 March to the end of April 2022.

Key Points - Staff:

·     Would consider the discussion papers and investigate the implications and how to advance the issue.

Items for Staff Follow Up:

·     Provide a copy of the discussion papers and information to councillors.

 

Resolved

That the Monitoring and Operations Committee:

1           Receives the presentation, Forestry and Carbon Farming.

Thurston/Bruning

CARRIED

1:09 pm – the meeting closed.

 

 

Confirmed 29 June 2022                                                                

                                                                                   Cr Kevin Winters

Chairperson, Monitoring and Operations Committee