Te Kaunihera O Heretaunga State of the Environment Report Ko to Te Taiao
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
HASTINGS DISTRICT COUNCIL - TE KAUNIHERA O HERETAUNGA STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT REPORT KO TO TE TAIAO 2008 Introductory Message from the Mayor & Chief Executive We have great pleasure in presenting to you, the first State of the Environment Report for the Hastings District. The Report is a snapshot of the Hastings District detailing current environmental conditions and the interaction between the people and the environment as at 31 December 2008. State of the environment monitoring provides Council and the community with access to information on the state or condition of our environment, enabling us to identify key environmental pressures and, from this information, then assess responses to those pressures. It is important that we as a community are informed about how we are performing in the management of our natural and built environment. The Report is not so much a report card on Council‟s management of the environment, but a report card on us all as custodians/kaitaiki of the environment. This Report is an important first step in identifying what state our District‟s environment is in. The Report acknowledges that there are gaps in the information that we as a community hold, and that there are areas yet to be covered – such as the state of our urban stormwater, and further incorporation of mana whenua customary values which would add a further dimension to our state of the environment reporting. We expect to include this in future reporting, with the identification of further key indicators and collection of additional data. Council has already changed the way that some data is being collected to provide more useful information for future reporting as a result of the gaps that have been identified. We are confident that this first Report provides a solid foundation for fine tuning how and what information we ought to collect and how we report that data in future. Because this Report is a snapshot in time, it has not included all of the great work that Council and the community have been undertaking since 31 December 2008; the District Plan Review, the Heretaunga Plains Urban Development Strategy (HPUDS), the Landmarks Strategy, the Three Waters works programme and Ararau the Draft Arts Culture and Heritage Strategy. All of these plans and strategies will provide useful information for the next State of the Environment Report and in turn, the State of the Environment Report will provide useful information for the plans and strategies that will influence the state of our environment in the future. The Council has committed to a sustainable development approach as a central tenet of its strategic planning framework. It is focused on meeting the needs of its citizens today, as well as those of future generations. Protecting and enhancing the environment is key in achieving this, alongside addressing social, cultural and economic imperatives. This is something that will require the efforts of the whole community, not just Council. We all have a part to play in safeguarding our environment now and for future generations. We see this report as a vital tool for those involved in that protection and enhancement work. “Ki te kahoe he whakakitenga Ka ngaro te whenua” “Without foresight and vision, the land, water, air will be lost” Contents How to Read this Report ....................................................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Snapshot of Hastings District & Its People ...................................................................................................................................... 4 Environmental Values ........................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Sustainability ............................................................................................................................................................................ 8 Mana Whenua Customary Environmental Values ........................................................................................................................... 9 Summary of the State of the Environment ......................................................................................................................................... 11 Sustainable Land Use.......................................................................................................................................................................... 20 Land Use .......................................................................................................................................................................... 21 Sustainable Urban Development .................................................................................................................................................. 25 Protection of Versatile Soil ............................................................................................................................................................ 32 Air & Water Sustainability ................................................................................................................................................................... 40 Air Quality .......................................................................................................................................................................... 41 Water Quality .......................................................................................................................................................................... 44 Amenity, Character & Heritage Management ..................................................................................................................................... 49 Residential Amenity ...................................................................................................................................................................... 51 Coastal Amenity .......................................................................................................................................................................... 62 Natural Heritage/Landscape Character ......................................................................................................................................... 70 Cultural & Historic Heritage........................................................................................................................................................... 78 i Sustainable Infrastructure .................................................................................................................................................................. 84 Transportation .......................................................................................................................................................................... 86 Water Management ...................................................................................................................................................................... 98 Wastewater Treatment ............................................................................................................................................................... 105 Trade Waste Disposal ................................................................................................................................................................ 112 Energy Use ........................................................................................................................................................................ 115 Hazard Management .......................................................................................................................................................................... 118 Natural Hazards ........................................................................................................................................................................ 119 Hazardous Substances ............................................................................................................................................................... 127 Sustainable Waste Management ...................................................................................................................................................... 131 Solid Waste ........................................................................................................................................................................ 132 Hazardous Waste ....................................................................................................................................................................... 140 Contaminated Sites .................................................................................................................................................................... 144 ii How to Read this Report This State of the Environment Report is organised in two parts. Each section commences with a summary table which provides a quick glance at the indicators for that topic and a summary of the indicators over the reporting period. This first part provides an introduction to state of the environment