Port Otago Limited Disposal of Dredged Material - Three Inshore Sites adjacent to the entrance of Otago Harbour Resource Consent Application and Assessment of Environmental Effects June 2016 Table of contents 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Purpose of this report........................................................................................................... 4 1.2 Background .......................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Scope and limitations ........................................................................................................... 4 2. Existing environment ...................................................................................................................... 5 2.1 Otago Harbour ..................................................................................................................... 5 2.2 Current capital works programme ........................................................................................ 5 2.3 History of disposal in Otago ................................................................................................. 5 2.4 Existing disposal sites .......................................................................................................... 7 2.5 Seabed elevation at disposal sites ...................................................................................... 7 2.6 Geology ................................................................................................................................ 8 2.7 Coastal processes ............................................................................................................... 8 2.8 Disposal records .................................................................................................................. 9 2.9 Previous resource consents .............................................................................................. 11 2.10 Monitoring requirements of current resource consent ....................................................... 12 3. Proposal ....................................................................................................................................... 13 3.1 Proposed activity and locations ......................................................................................... 13 3.2 Proposed disposal volumes ............................................................................................... 14 3.3 Monitoring and adaptive management .............................................................................. 15 3.4 The alternative proposal .................................................................................................... 15 3.5 Dredging and disposal methodology ................................................................................. 16 3.6 Disposal site selection ....................................................................................................... 18 3.7 Consideration of alternatives ............................................................................................. 19 4. Statutory planning assessment .................................................................................................... 23 4.1 Otago Regional Plan: Coast .............................................................................................. 23 4.2 Activity status summary ..................................................................................................... 24 5. Assessment of environmental effects .......................................................................................... 25 5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 25 5.2 Economic effects ................................................................................................................ 25 5.3 Social effects ...................................................................................................................... 26 5.4 Physical effects on coastal processes ............................................................................... 26 5.5 Effects on water quality ...................................................................................................... 31 5.6 Effects on ecosystems ....................................................................................................... 33 5.7 Contamination .................................................................................................................... 36 5.8 Effects on recreational and commercial fishing ................................................................. 39 5.9 Cultural impacts ................................................................................................................. 40 5.10 Natural hazards and hazardous substance risk ................................................................ 40 5.11 Summary of effects ............................................................................................................ 40 i 6. Assessment of objectives and policies ........................................................................................ 41 6.1 New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement ............................................................................ 41 6.2 Operative Otago Regional Policy Statement ..................................................................... 41 6.3 Proposed Regional Policy Statement ................................................................................ 41 6.4 Otago Regional Plan: Coast .............................................................................................. 42 6.5 Kāi Tahu ki Otago Natural Resource Management Plan ................................................... 42 7. Part 2 assessment ....................................................................................................................... 44 7.1 Section 5 - Purpose ........................................................................................................... 44 7.2 Sections 6, 7 and 8 ............................................................................................................ 44 8. Consultation ................................................................................................................................. 46 8.1 Consultation undertaken .................................................................................................... 46 8.2 The Working Party ............................................................................................................. 46 8.3 Iwi consultation .................................................................................................................. 48 8.4 Other key stakeholders and interested parties .................................................................. 49 8.5 Public open days ................................................................................................................ 49 8.6 Public feedback provided ................................................................................................... 51 8.7 Other consultation .............................................................................................................. 52 8.8 Consultation on draft AEE ................................................................................................. 52 8.9 Notification ......................................................................................................................... 53 9. Monitoring .................................................................................................................................... 54 9.1 Monitoring for all sites ........................................................................................................ 54 9.2 Specific monitoring for Aramoana site ............................................................................... 54 9.3 Specific monitoring for Heyward Point site ........................................................................ 56 9.4 Summary of recommended ecological monitoring ............................................................ 56 9.5 Proposed adaptive management process ......................................................................... 57 10. Draft consent conditions ............................................................................................................... 61 11. Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 68 References ............................................................................................................................................. 69 Figure index Figure 1 Location map ....................................................................................................................... 6 Figure 2 Proposed disposal sites ..................................................................................................... 13 Figure 3 Port Otago suction dredge New Era .................................................................................. 16 Figure 4 Port Otago grab dredge Vulcan ......................................................................................... 17 Figure 5 Proposed Aramoana disposal