BEFORE THE AUCKLAND UNITARY PLAN INDEPENDENT HEARINGS PANEL IN THE MATTER of the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Local Government (Auckland Transitional Provisions) Act 2010 AND IN THE MATTER of Topic 017 RUB South AND IN THE MATTER of the submissions and further submissions set out in the Parties and Issues Report STATEMENT OF PRIMARY EVIDENCE OF STEPHEN KENNETH BROWN ON BEHALF OF AUCKLAND COUNCIL (PUHINUI – LANDSCAPE) 16 October 2015 SUMMARY 1. Hearing Topic 017 RUB South covers (amongst other matters) application of the Rural Urban Boundary (RUB) to the area of, and in the vicinity of, the Puhinui Peninsula, South Auckland. My evidence addresses the RUB in relation to Crater Hill, immediately north of that Peninsula and the Manukau Memorial Gardens, and directly west of SH25. Specifically, it addresses the landscape values and sensitivities of Crater Hill – which is identified in the Proposed Auckland Plan (PAUP) as an Outstanding Natural Feature (ONF) – and the implications that my assessment has for development on and around the feature. 2. I do not support the relocation of the RUB to include Crater Hills, as this would facilitate development on or across Crater Hills that conflicts with section 6 of the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA). INTRODUCTION 3. My name is Stephen Kenneth Brown. I am giving evidence in these proceedings on behalf of the Auckland Council (Council). I hold a Bachelor of Town Planning degree and a post-graduate Diploma of Landscape Architecture. I am a Fellow and past president of the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architects, an Affiliate Member of the New Zealand Planning Institute, and have practised as a landscape architect for 33 years. 4. During that period, the great majority of my professional practice has focussed on landscape assessment and planning. This has included evaluating the landscape effects associated with a wide variety of coastal development projects, including those of: . Various Waitemata Harbour crossing options in 2002/3 (for OPUS and NZTA); . the current Waterview Connection upgrade of S16 and the North- western Motorway (for Transit NZ); . the Sandspit Marina proposal (for Auckland Council); . the ALPURT B2 Waiwera River crossing on SH1 (for the Auckland Regional Council); . the proposed Weiti River bridge and highway (for the Auckland Regional Council); 2 . the Southdown Power Station (Mercury Energy / Transalta); . the Papamoa Gateway Project (for Tauranga City Council); . the Marsden Point port development (for Northport); and . a number of marina proposals in the early 1990s for the Americas Cup Planning Authority. 5. More strategically, I have undertaken and participated in many landscape assessments aimed at identifying landscape values at the district and regional levels. Of relevance to the current application, I have twice undertaken landscape assessments of the Auckland Region (in 1982-4 and 2002-13), and – among others – have also been responsible for studies of: . the West Coast Region - Buller / Grey / Westland Districts: Landscape & Natural Character (2012); . Buller District: Landscape & Natural Character (2010/2011) – for Meridian Energy Ltd in relation to the Mokihinui River appeals; . the Waikato Region: peer review of Outstanding Natural Landscapes (2011/12); . the Auckland Region: Outstanding Natural Features – Geological / Geomorphological (2012); . the Auckland Region: Amenity Values (2012); . the Auckland Region: Natural Character (2010 & 2012/13); . the Auckland Region: Landscape (2001-8); . Otorohanga District (2009/10); . the Horizons (Manawatu Wanganui) Region: Landscape – for Mighty River Power in relation to the Turitea Wind Farm application (2009/10); . the Thames Coromandel District: Landscape and Natural Character (2006-12); . the Kawhia and Aotea Harbour catchments: Landscape (2006); . the Mahia Peninsula and Wairoa District: Landscape (2003); . Waitakere City's Northern Strategic Growth Area Study: Landscape (2000); . North Shore City: Landscape (1997-2000); . Eastern Manukau City: Landscape (1995); . Auckland’s urban coastlines: Landscape (1995); . Whangarei District: Landscape (1994 & 2005); . the Far North District: Landscape (1994/5); 3 . Waiheke Island: Landscape (1988); and . the Auckland Region: Landscape (1982-4). 6. In 2006 I was also part of a team under the ‘umbrella’ of Urbis Ltd that was awarded the (UK) Landscape Institute’s Strategic Planning Award for the “Landscape Value Mapping Study of Hong Kong”. My contribution included development of an assessment method and evaluation criteria that were employed in that study. 7. In relation to Crater Hill, I was engaged in early 2014 by Council to undertake an assessment of landscape values and sensitivities as part of the Puhinui Structure Plan process. I have since assisted both Council and Te Akitai with the mapping of Cultural Heritage values in the vicinity of the Peninsula, together with Crater Hill, Waokauri Creek and Pukaki Crater. CODE OF CONDUCT 8. I confirm that I have read the Code of Conduct for Expert Witnesses contained in the Environment Court Practice Note 2014 and that I agree to comply with it. I confirm that I have considered all the material facts that I am aware of that might alter or detract from the opinions that I express, and that this evidence is within my area of expertise, except where I state that I am relying on the evidence of another person. SCOPE 9. My statement addresses the following matters: Description of the Crater Hill landscape; Evaluation of its sensitivity to modification and potential development; and My conclusions about the RUB in relation to Crater Hill. 4 THE CRATER HILL LANDSCAPE 10. Crater Hill lies at the strategic nexus of the upper Waokauri Creek – abutting both the northern edge of Manukau Memorial Gardens and the western margins of SH20. At its core, Crater Hill is one of the two most significant remaining explosion craters and tuff rings within the former Manukau City (the other crater is nearby Pukaki Crater / Te Pukai Tapu o Poutukeka – see Annexure 1). Crater Hill’s form is complex, with a large, embayed tuff ring that is some 600m in diameter enclosing a partly quarried, scoria cone and small lava flow. Uniquely, within the wider Auckland volcanic field, Crater Hill contains the cooled remnants of a lava lake that filled the maars (explosion crater), and then largely withdrew back down the volcanic vent. Furthermore, it is the only remaining explosion crater within the field that retains external walls around the crater rim, which are almost entirely intact and unmodified (Annexures 2 & 3). Two lava caves are also present: Selfs Lava Cave is approximately 48m long, loosely following the circumference of the tuff ring, while the 40m long Underground Press Lava Cave contains a large main chamber that was reputedly used for the clandestine, subversive publishing during WWII – hence, its name. Although the Crater Hill quarry faces and exposures clearly disfigure part of the internal crater, they also have educational value as they display successive layers of lithic tuff, basaltic lapilli, areas of crater rim collapse and a thin layer of rhyoltic tephra from the Central North Island volcanic emissions. 11. In addition to these geomorphic values, the gentle, but clearly articulated, profile of the crater is a local feature that is apparent from the lower reaches of Tidal Rd, the nearby Memorial Gardens, and Waokauri Creek and its margins. The pastoral land cover across most of the lower slopes and coastal apron surrounding the crater helps to express its volcanic profile – making it much more legible than if its subtle landform was covered in vegetation and/or buildings – while the crater’s central lake and island display considerable aesthetic appeal. The clearly defined physical character of the internal crater, framed by its circumference of crater walls, serves to enhance both its character and visual attraction. 12. Again, while the area of previous quarrying activity clearly erodes some of this appeal in relation to the southern and eastern sides of the crater, the distinctive 5 volcanic form of the crater remains sufficiently apparent that it still has a strong sense of intactness and continuity. Indeed, the quarrying has exacerbated the breach of the crater wall on its eastern side which allows for a degree of engagement between Crater Hill – especially its lake area, island and internal tuff ring – with the motoring public using SH20. 13. The relatively undeveloped and unmodified nature of Crater Hill’s external slopes also creates a strong sense of contrast with the more ‘developed’ land in its vicinity: an area of state housing then light industrial premises stretching up Tidal Rd and along Portage Rd; rural-residential development and market gardening at the end of Tidal Rd and down Retreat Drive; SH20 itself; and the rather different patina of ‘development’ stretching across the Manukau Memorial Gardens. Even the Air New Zealand workshops lend their presence to the wider landscape farming Crater Hill and Waokauri Creek. 14. This contextual situation is further complicated by the presence of multiple sites of archaeological and cultural significance on the crater apron – extending down to the various arms of Waokauri Creek. Symbolically linked to nearby Pukaki Marae (Te Akitai), together with multiple former pa and settlement sites around Waokauri Creek, and an urupa at the ‘mouth’ of Pukaki Crater and lagoon, this creates the strong sense of a nexus of culturally significant sites – perhaps even a ‘cultural landscape‘ – that embraces Crater Hill and the wider coastal landscape directly west of it. SENSITIVITIES 15. There are also three key public vantage points that afford visual access to Crater Hill: . Tidal Rd merging with Portage Rd; . the Papatoetoe section of the Manukau Memorial Gardens; and . SH20. 16. Of these vantage points, SH20 is the most important, offering glimpses and brief views into the crater – of the central lake flanked by pasture across the crater floor 6 and steeper, inside walls of the tuff ring. This interaction relies on retention of an open ‘apron’ between SH20 and the crater covering most of the area previously subject to quarrying activity and equipment storage.