PART 21 - CONTENTS PART 21 COASTAL ENVIRONMENT 2 1 . 1 INTRODUCTION 2 1 .2 GENERAL OBJECTIVE 2 1 .3 OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES FOR USE 21 .3 .1 Recreation 21 .3 .2 Economic Development 21 .3 .3 Public Access 21 .4 OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES FOR VALUES 21 .4. 1 Conservation Values 21 .4.2 Cultural/Historical Values 21 .5 ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR USES AND WORKS ALONG THE COASTLINE 21 .6 CROSS REFERENCES CITY OF MANUKAU SECOND REVIEW PART 21 - COAST AL ENVIRONMENT 21 .1 INTRODUCTION Manukau City has a total of 320 kilometres of coastline, 140 km on the Manukau Harbour, and 180 km on the Tamaki River and the Hauraki Gulf. Both coastlines have significant visual, recreational, ecological and cultural values. While the relatively undeveloped Hauraki Gulf coastline provides a contrast to the built up area of South Auckland, the Manukau Harbour and the Tamaki River coastlines have a mixture of rural, residential and industrial uses adjoining them. The Manukau Harbour coastline also includes two major facilities of regional importance, the Auckland International Airport and the Manukau Sewage Purification Works. The City's coastline is subject to a variety of demands for new and expanded uses, activities and works. As these urban pressures increase, protection of the natural character of the coastal environment will become increasingly important and there will be a need for clear management policies setting out an appropriate balance between conservation and development for each area. *Coastal planning and management is however handicapped by being undertaken by a range of agencies with fragmented responsibilities under a multiplicity of legislative mandates. These include government departments, regional planning authorities, regional water boards, harbour boards and local authorities. ( Ideally, planning and management of the coastal environment should recognise and be based on the interactions between land and water. Currently, however, Manukau City' s planning district extends only to Mean High Water Mark on the Hauraki Gulf and Tamaki River coastline, and to Mean High Water Springs on the Manukau Harbour. (However, note the second paragraph of Part 21 .3.2 relating to planning jurisdiction over structures adjacent to the Hauraki Gulf coastline). Therefore the District Scheme can only deal directly with the land side of the land/sea interface. However, the Council does have management responsibilities under the Harbours Act 1950 for its Hauraki Gulf coastline, as it has "grant of control" of the foreshore and of the seabed and waters for 200 metres seaward of Mean Low Water Springs. The Council has prepared a non-statutory coastal management plan for this coastline. This situation does not apply however, for the Tamaki River and Manukau Harbour coastlines, where the Auckland Harbour Board has grant of control. The Harbour Board also has maritime planning responsibilities for these latter areas under the Town and Country Planning Act. There is an operative maritime planning scheme covering the Tamaki River (the Waitemata Harbour Maritime Planning Scheme), and a proposed maritime planning scheme for the Manukau Harbour will be publicly notified during 1989. Water quality issues along the two coastlines are primarily the responsibility of the Regional Water Board **, although the Council does recognise that water quality is strongly influenced by adjoining land uses and activities, and will seek to ensure that the planning and use of coastal land is undertaken in a manner which minimises pollutants entering coastal waters. The Council also has responsibilities relating to liquid or solid wastes and other pollutants under the Health Act 1956, Drainage and Plumbing Regulations 1978, and Litter Act 1979. In the planning and management of its coastlines, the Council will emphasise and promote public use of foreshore and marine areas, conservative management in an ecological sense, and cultural sensitivity. * The management of the coast has undergone considerable change, see the Resource Management Act 1991 ** now Auckland Regional Council CITY OF MANUKAU -1- SECOND REVIEW PART 21 - COASTAL ENVIRONMENT 21.2 GENERAL OBJECTIVE Objective: ( 21.2.1 To work towards a better integration of land and water planning. Policies: 21.2.1.1 The Council will work with the maritime planning authority* for the Manukau and Waitemata Harbours to ensure compatibility between the district and maritime schemes** for Manukau City's coastlines, and will co-operate fully with the Auckland Regional Water Board and other agencies in implementing the Manukau Harbour and Tamaki Estuary Action Plans. 21.2.1.2 The Council will prepare and maintain a non-statutory coastal management plan for the City's Hauraki Gulf coastline which will be used as a guide when assessing proposals which affect this coastline. 21.2.1.3 While the Council does not have planning jurisdiction over structures or those parts of structures such as boatsheds, wharves, jetties and boat ramps which are located below Mean High Water on the Manukau Harbour or Tamaki River coastlines, if asked for its comment on any such proposal, the provisions applying to adjoining reserves and/or of the coastal management plan will be used as a guide. ( 21.3 OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES FOR USES 2 1.3.1 RECREATION Manukau City's coastlines are used for a variety of recreational activities ranging from passive activities such as walking and picnicking to more active activities such as boating. Some of these activities require little or no modification of the environment whereas others may result in a demand for modifications or for areas to be exclusively set aside. There is a need to provide for a diverse range of recreational opportunities along the coastline. These opportunities need to be convenient and adequate for the local and regional population as well as for tourists, while not detracting from the natural environment. Objective: 21.3.1.1 To provide for and encourage the establishment of a range of recreational activities based upon the natural resources of the coastline, provided that such opportunities do not unnecessarily degrade the natural resource, or result in undue conflicts with other uses. Policies: 2 1.3.1 .1.1 The importance of recreational experiences that are dependent on remoteness and seclusion will be recognised and attempts made to protect the characteristics of beaches and stretches of coastline which make those areas suitable for such forms of recreation. 21 .3.1.1.2 The importance of informal recreational activities not involving structures or buildings will be recognised when considering any proposal that may adversely affect that activity. · * now Auckland Regional Council * * see Transitional Regional Coastal Plan CITY OF MANUKAU -2- SECOND REVIEW PART 21 - COASTAL ENVIRONMENT 21.3.1.1.3 The Council will, where appropriate and practicable, support efforts to acquire coastal land for public recreational use and enjoyment, e.g. regional parks, esplanade reserves etc. 21.3.1.1.4 The Council will provide public facilities, including public boatramps, public toilets, tables etc, in selected areas along the coastline, and will encourage the provision of further camping facilities in appropriate locations. 21.3.1.1.5 Recreational activities which require areas of the coastline to be set aside for their exclusive use will only be supported where: (a) a public need and benefit is shown; and (bl they do not interfere significantly with other recreational activities or unnecessarily degrade the natural resources of the coastline. 21.3.1.1.6 No consent to new privately owned recreational structures, boatsheds and other water orientated developments on Hauraki Gulf foreshores adjacent to rural, residential, industrial or commercial zones will be granted. Consent to the erection in these locations of recreational boatsheds or structures by clubs, non-profit making organisations or the Council may be granted after consideration of the following aspects: (a) Necessity for location on a foreshore, and the availability and practicality of alternative locations. (b) The impact on public access and views to, from and along the foreshore. (c) The extent of public use and public benefit. (d) The size or extent of the proposed use or work, and its impacts on the surrounding environment in terms of Policy 21 .4. 1 . 1 . 2. Note: Structures on reserves and on foreshores on the Hauraki Gulf coastline adjacent to reserves are controlled by Policies 13.2.5.5 and 13.2.5.6 and Ordinance 13.4.1 in Part 13. 21.3.1.1. 7 Recreational uses which do not require locations on the waters edge should be located inland, away from the immediate coastal area. 21.3.2 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT These objectives and policies deal with the built environment and particularly with commercial and industrial facilities and structures within the coastal environment. This includes marine related industry, tourist facilities, and other development which is particularly dependent on a coastal location and/or water access. For the Hauraki Gulf coastline, once any structure, excavation or work is situated or proposed to be situated below mean high water adjacent to the district, it becomes part of Council's district under Section 2 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1977, but for the Manukau Harbour and Tamaki River coastlines, such structures or works come under the jurisdiction of the adjoining Maritime Planning Authority. The Council's general strategy for the Hauraki Gulf coastline has been to confine development to existing urban zones in order