Our Natural Capital Wellington’s biodiversity strategy and action plan 2015 ISBN: 978-1-877232-87-9 Cover photo: Juvenile New Zealand fur seal at Frank Kitts Park, Wellington City. The main Wellington seal colony is at Sinclair Head on the edge of Te Kopahau Reserve. This is a “haul out” area for New Zealand fur seals during winter (May–October). Breeding season is November–January. New Zealand fur seals are also seen around Wellington Harbour. When around seals, people are advised to stay at least 10 metres away and to keep their dogs on a lead. New Zealand fur seals – particularly those living near the city – connect people with the natural world and represent the link between the marine and terrestrial environments. Our Natural Capital 3 Contents 1. Summary 4 10. Measuring Wellington City Council’s performance 61 Part One: Strategy 7 10.1 City Biodiversity Index 61 2. Introduction 7 10.2 Operational monitoring 65 2.2 What is natural capital? 7 11. Rationale for goals, objectives and actions 67 2.3 What is biodiversity? 8 11.1 Protect 67 2.4 Why is this important? 9 11.2 Restore 77 3. Māori and mana whenua relationship 11.3 Connect 84 to biodiversity 13 11.4 Research 91 4. Vision 15 Glossary 97 5. Guiding principles 17 Appendix 1 – Policy context 100 6. Policy framework 19 Appendix 2 – Ecological significance criteria 104 7. Wellington’s biodiversity journey 21 Appendix 3 – Wellington’s vegetation 106 7.1 Past 21 Appendix 4 – Significant Ecological Sites 107 7.2 Present 22 7.3 Future 30 Appendix 5 – Nationally threatened, regionally threatened and locally significant species 108 8. Concept plans 33 Appendix 6 – Environmental pests 112 8.1 Wildlife Safe Wellington 33 8.2 Community Catchments 34 8.3 Blue Belt 35 Part Two: Action Plan and Rationale 37 9. Action plan 37 1. PROTECT 37 2. RESTORE 44 3. CONNECT 49 4. RESEARCH 56 4 Wellington City Council 1. Summary Our Natural Capital is about Wellington’s indigenous biodiversity. These are the species that occur or occurred naturally in Wellington. Our Natural Capital: Wellington’s Biodiversity Strategy and that creates healthy people. It also recognises and Action Plan is Wellington City Council’s vision that healthy biodiversity contributes to our economic for the city’s indigenous biodiversity. The strategy sustainability – through tourism, by providing a outlines our vision, goals and objectives, and sets the desirable base for businesses, and contributing to our priorities that give our work direction and purpose, quality of life. underpinned by a set of guiding principles. It is the Council’s responsibility to recognise, protect, The aim of the strategy is to protect and restore our and maintain indigenous biodiversity, but we won’t be indigenous biodiversity. In order to protect and restore able to achieve our desired outcomes without working our indigenous biodiversity we have to connect closely with our partners. people with it and carry out research so we can better Since the 2007 Wellington Biodiversity Action Plan manage it. These are the four themes under which our was approved, we have moved from a position biodiversity management guidelines, goals, objectives of needing to identify much of our significant and actions are grouped. biodiversity to actively managing it. Our protection • To achieve our biodiversity goals, we will aim to and restoration programmes now focus on ecological protect the ecologically significant areas on both needs. We continue to question our techniques, and private and public land. are working to improve our knowledge and refine our • We will restore these areas, create safe buffer zones approach. The Council’s role continues to strengthen, around them and connect them together. and we are known for being a collaborative organisation. However, we are still facing some major • We will reduce pest numbers throughout challenges such as the ongoing degradation of our Wellington City to a point where our native species aquatic ecosystems and the development pressures can survive and expand. faced through the needs of our growing city. • Throughout the urban environment, we will focus on raising awareness of the issues facing indigenous There are also wider issues that affect the health biodiversity and connecting people to their natural of Wellington’s indigenous biodiversity, including environment. We will enable our community to land and water use, waste, response to natural continue restoration work across all of our reserves disasters, and transport. While these have an effect and we will support them in these efforts. on biodiversity and contribute to the success of this strategy, they are dealt with under other plans and We recognise that Wellington is an urban environment policies, as are issues of city-wide resilience. and will continue to contain a wide range of species, both exotic and indigenous. As a city, we need to take This strategy ensures that international, national, into account the role of all species in contributing and regional targets relating to biodiversity are to our cultural identity and our role in protecting translated into local action, and that Wellington City species that are threatened in their original habitat. is positioned as a world leader in urban biodiversity. Exotic biodiversity is only considered within this plan Our Natural Capital covers biodiversity within Council where it has a direct role in the survival of indigenous boundaries and jurisdiction, but acknowledges that species. The strategy recognises that healthy biodiversity does not recognise these boundaries. biodiversity contributes to healthy environments Our Natural Capital 5 We will achieve our goal of protecting biodiversity by help people to understand the importance and value focussing on the protection of priority biodiversity of biodiversity to their wellbeing; and enable them sites on public and private land and rare, threatened, to take action to protect and restore biodiversity. or locally significant species; controlling pest A range of partners will work with us to achieve animal and pest plant species to sufficient levels and a shared vision for Wellington’s biodiversity. eradicating them if possible; and managing the impact We will gain an increased understanding and of urban growth and human activity on all ecosystems knowledge of biodiversity, actively share this and remaining habitat. knowledge and use it to improve our programmes; To restore biodiversity, we will increase the number we will gain a better understanding of our biodiversity and population size of indigenous species and their management through enhanced monitoring habitats and create resilient ecosystems; we will programmes. improve aquatic ecosystem health across the city; put Wellington’s residents have made it clear that restoration programmes in place for rare, threatened having an attractive and healthy city environment or locally significant species and develop ecological is important to them, and that they’ll work alongside networks across the landscape. us to achieve this. People will be connected with biodiversity by making it a common experience for all Wellingtonians; we will Above: Tui are a local success story. Due to pest control, their numbers have increased and they are now a common sight in downtown Wellington. Our Natural Capital 7 Part One: Strategy 2. Introduction This plan supports Wellington’s wider vision to 2.2 What is natural capital? be the “Smart Capital”, and be internationally We are a “Natural Capital” due to our natural recognised for its connection with and love of nature. environment and our nature-driven attractions. Wellington’s open spaces and natural areas are part It is part of what makes us the “coolest little capital of what make Wellington an exciting and vibrant in the world”. It is an important part of what makes city in which to live, work and visit. Our physical people want to live and work here, and helps to proximity to nature plays a key role in our excellent attract visitors. quality of life, which as a city is our greatest strength. Wellington City Council is also unique in that we Natural capital is our stock of natural assets, which manage most of the publically owned open space includes biodiversity as well as earth, air and water. land (around 4500 hectares). Cities depend on a healthy natural environment that continuously provides a range of benefits, known The purpose of this plan is about ensuring Wellington as ‘ecosystem services’. Healthy ecosystems are indigenous biodiversity is protected and restored. Part the foundation for sustainable cities, influencing of ensuring the ongoing protection and restoration of and affecting human well-being and most economic our biodiversity is to get people to value and respect it. activity. We can achieve this through allowing people to form a connection with the natural world. To ensure the Biodiversity is an integral part of this range of best outcome for our biodiversity, we also need to services. The cost to replace, replicate or restore carry out research to create and refine innovative these ecosystem services far outweighs the cost of biodiversity management practices. maintaining and protecting these functions today. The biodiversity that contributes to these services The protection of biodiversity not native to Wellington exists in our reserves, parks, urban gardens, is not addressed in this strategy except where exotic waterways, wetlands and coast. species are currently protecting indigenous values such as providing habitat or shelter or can be used as a mechanism to connect people with nature. Some of the aspects in this plan are aspirational, whereas others are easily achievable. Our community We can achieve this through has told us they desire both as part of a comprehensive strategy, provided Council reports back regularly allowing people to form on what has been accomplished. Some actions depend a connection with the on our partners to implement, and Council will have a facilitation role.