Ecological Status of Okains Bay Estuary
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Ecological status of Okains Bay estuary Report No R08/53 ISBN: 978-1-86937-853-0 Lesley Bolton-Ritchie June 2008 Report R08/53 ISBN 978-86937-853-0 58 Kilmore Street PO Box 345 Christchurch Phone (03) 365 3828 Fax (03) 365 3194 75 Church Street PO Box 550 Timaru Phone (03) 688 9069 Fax (03) 688 9067 Website: www.ecan.govt.nz Customer Services Phone 0800 324 636 Ecological status of Okains Bay estuary Executive Summary This report presents detailed information on the ecological status of the Okains Bay estuary. The Okains Bay estuary is the tidally influenced lower 2.8 km of the Opara Stream. Over the last 150 years it has been highly impacted by sedimentation and modification of the estuary margins, and it has potentially been supplied with considerable quantities of nutrients. That is, the present estuarine environment is not in a pristine state. It is likely that the size and depth of the present-day stream channel and the size and extent of the aquatic vegetation, mud/sand and sand flats reflect past impacts on this estuary. The present day impacts include unnatural disturbance particularly by vehicle use, high recreational use particularly over the summer months and nutrient and sediment inputs. This estuary has three main habitat types. These are: • saltmarsh - approximately 21.5% of the area • mud/sand flats (firm, soft and very soft mud/sand) - approximately 35% of the area • sand flats (firm, soft and mobile sand) – approximately 29% of the area There are also areas of live cockles and/or cockle shell, artificial structures including roads and fences and the stream channel. Sizeable areas of saltmarsh occur in the upper reaches and along the margins of the middle and lower reaches. The mud/sand sediment predominates from the upper estuary to around 450 m from the estuary mouth with the sediment in the lower 450 m predominantly sand. Where the sediment was mud/sand the sediment was typically firm at the high shore, becoming softer with distance down the shore to be soft to very soft at the waters’ edge. In the sandy area the sediment type was patchy, with patches of soft sand, patches of mobile sand and patches of firm sand. The sediments within the estuary had a low organic matter content, low-moderate nutrient enrichment and low copper, chromium, lead, nickel and zinc concentrations. Thirty four invertebrate taxa were found to live on and in the sediments. There were typically more taxa and individuals in the lower reaches than the middle and upper reaches. Cockles were the most abundant taxa occurring at all sites sampled. However, they were most abundant in the lower reaches where they were found at densities up to 5,343/m2 with half of these new recruits to the population. This study has identified that: 1. this estuary is the larger of the two estuaries of Banks Peninsula. 2. there is a considerable area and diversity of aquatic vegetation and a variety of sand and mud flat habitats in this estuary. These provide habitats and food for birds, fish and a diversity and abundance of invertebrates. These attributes along with the findings from a landscape study (Boffa Miskell, 2007) support the classification of the estuary as an area of significant natural value and an area of high natural physical, heritage or cultural value. To ensure that the recognised values of this estuary are protected and enhanced the issues of nutrient inputs, degradation of marginal habitats and unnatural disturbances and any other risks to these values need to be addressed. A number of recommendations have been made including water quality, saltmarsh, broad-scale and fine-scale monitoring and provision of information to residents and visitors about the values of this estuary and how they might be protected. The issue of the modified estuary margins is one that Environment Canterbury and local residents could address in the future. The information in this report provides: • a baseline against which changes in the sediments and macrobiota can be assessed. • detailed information that the local community can use if planning enhancement activities. • information that will be useful to future resource consent applicants for, for example, subdivision developments within the bay and discharges into the stream or estuary. • data against which data from urbanised estuaries in the region can be compared. Environment Canterbury Technical Report i Ecological status of Okains Bay estuary ii Environment Canterbury Technical Report Ecological status of Okains Bay estuary Table of contents Executive Summary....................................................................................................i 1 Introduction .....................................................................................................1 1.1 Okains Bay..................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Background information................................................................................................. 2 2 The estuarine environment ............................................................................3 2.1 Evaluation of Okains Bay estuary.................................................................................. 3 2.1.1 Description of the estuary ................................................................................. 3 2.1.2 Flushing of the estuary...................................................................................... 4 2.1.3 Birds of the estuary ........................................................................................... 4 2.1.4 Fish and shellfish of the estuary ....................................................................... 5 2.1.5 Cultural significance.......................................................................................... 5 2.1.6 Status of the estuary ......................................................................................... 5 2.1.7 Recreation......................................................................................................... 5 2.1.8 The Okains Bay estuary as a feature of Banks Peninsula................................ 6 2.2 Past and present stressors ............................................................................................ 6 2.2.1 Sediment inputs ................................................................................................ 6 2.2.2 Nutrient inputs ................................................................................................... 6 2.2.3 Habitat loss - alteration of the estuary margins ................................................ 9 2.2.4 Microbiological contamination......................................................................... 11 2.2.5 Toxic contamination ........................................................................................ 11 2.2.6 Unnatural disturbance of the estuary .............................................................. 11 3 Broad-scale intertidal habitat assessment .................................................12 3.1 Methods ....................................................................................................................... 12 3.2 Results .........................................................................................................................13 3.2.1 Salt marsh ....................................................................................................... 13 3.2.2 Mud and sand habitats.................................................................................... 16 3.2.3 Shellfish beds.................................................................................................. 17 3.2.4 Artificial structures........................................................................................... 17 3.2.5 Terrestrial margin (200 m)............................................................................... 17 4 Fine scale intertidal assessment .................................................................18 4.1 Methods ....................................................................................................................... 18 4.1.1 Sampling sites................................................................................................. 18 4.1.2 Sample collection ............................................................................................ 18 4.1.3 Sample processing.......................................................................................... 19 4.2 Data analyses .............................................................................................................. 20 4.3 Results .........................................................................................................................21 4.3.1 Sediments ....................................................................................................... 21 4.3.2 Macrobiota ...................................................................................................... 25 4.3.3 Sediment characteristics and the macrobiota................................................. 30 4.4 Discussion.................................................................................................................... 31 4.4.1 Sediments ....................................................................................................... 31 4.4.2 Macrobiota ...................................................................................................... 32 4.4.3 Sediments and macrobiota