24 Apr 2015

Share Newsletter April 2015

Easter has come and gone and it is amazing to think it has been four months since we sent out the first SHARE newsletter from Council’s Strategy and Environment Group.

I welcome any feedback on the content and usefulness of the newsletter (email clare.barton@ncc.govt.nz).

All the best, Clare
Clare Barton
Group Manager Strategy and Environment

Building

Contact details: Manager Building: martin.brown@ncc.govt.nz ph 5460302

What’s new from the Nelson Building Consent Authority (BCA)

Residential Lodgement Meeting Pilot

The pilot for residential lodgement meetings was kicked off on 30 March 2015. The pilot has been joined by several of the BCA’s customers.

The pilot is to find out whether a lodgement meeting with customers and/or their agent is beneficial and makes the process more efficient for processing building consents. The pilot runs for three months, so it is intended the next edition of SHARE will update you with the results of the pilot.

Building Works Authorised for Safety

The following article is reproduced from the "BRANZ GUIDELINE MARCH 2015"

Deck construction and consents

Tempting though it may be to carry out work without necessary building consents, the following should be a warning. Last month, a number of news websites reported that a faulty deck that collapsed in Auckland during an 80-year-old’s birthday party has resulted in the landlord being fined. The deck was only nail fixed (no bolts) to the adjacent support wall. During the party in September last year, the deck became detached, leaving five people injured as a result of the collapse.

Auckland Council argued in court that the deck was not compliant with the Building Code and had no building consent. The landlord pleaded guilty to constructing a deck that was unsafe and was ordered to pay a $4,500 fine and $130 in court costs.

The council said, “The purpose of the regulations is to protect life and make sure buildings are safe for occupants. All building works need to comply with the Building Code. Any kind of building work needs to have safety as the highest priority, and when the work requires building consent, working with council ensures compliance, and therefore safety.”

This article provides an example of why unauthorised works can be problematic. In this case a seemingly simple piece of work has resulted in injuries and court action. This outlines the need for all people undertaking building work to be aware of what the Building Act and Building Code require.

Guidance is available on work that does not require a Building Consent at: www.dbh.govt.nz/bc-no-consent

It is important to recognise that all building work must comply with the Building Code, even when a building consent is not required.

Nelson City Council has a reasonable rate for low value alteration consents, up to $5000 to encourage consent applications for these types of work. See: www.nelson.govt.nz/building-and-property/building-consents-2/building-consent-fees

Risky Approach Starting Building Work Without Consent.

There have been a few instances recently where our inspectors have turned up for a first inspection to find works have clearly been in progress for some time but the building consent has only just been issued. We understand how this can happen, however it is unlawful and can actually put your code compliance certificate (CCC) at risk.

The Building Consent Authority needs to ‘sight’ key elements to be able to be satisfied on reasonable grounds they comply when issuing a CCC.

If we do not get to see, for example, membranes under concrete slabs or structure before it is closed in, it is unlikely we will be in a position to issue a CCC.

Recently we have requested applicants remove elements which have not been inspected, because the work has been done before the building consent has been issued, or have recommended they apply for a Certificate of Acceptance for the work that has not been inspected.

It is always better to avoid this, as it can add significant additional cost and time to your building project.

If you do find yourselves in a situation where consent has been granted but it has not yet been issued, please contact us on 03 546 0200. If we know, we can work with you to find the best outcome.

Updates…

3rd quarter statistics for building consent and amendment applications received in comparison with other similar sized councils.Strategy and Environment Report - Third quarter Building Unit statistics 1Jan-31Mar2015 (482KB PDF)

What’s to come

Inspectors Mobile Devices Review – 15 months on

In November 2013 the Building Inspectors started using electronic mobile devices to undertake all building inspections. This has been a monumental culture and work flow change for the inspectors and they have adapted well.

As with any new process it is now time to review what the users need, what works, does not work and what could be improved. As a result, the Team Leader Building Consents is currently reviewing this and investigating what the ongoing strategy will be for these devices.

IANZ is due in June 2015

The Building Unit is proud of the fact that we have maintained accreditation as a Building Consent Authority since 2007.

June this year will see the Building Unit having its two yearly assessment for accreditation as a Building Consent Authority (BCA) by IANZ (International Accreditation New Zealand).

For customers the IANZ accreditation provides independent confirmation that the BCA is doing the job it is required to do and in a way that produces consistent outcomes.

Planning

Contact details:
Manager Consents and Compliance: mandy.bishop@ncc.govt.nz ph 5458740
Manager Planning: matt.heale@ncc.govt.nz ph 5395506

What’s new

Consented Development

A couple of community events required resource consent this year: the 2015 Pipe Band Championships and the Monster Slide.

Chorus obtained consent to provide an ultra fast broadband cable through the Tahunanui slump area.

NZTA has applied to widen the State Highway at Gentle Annie.

Nelson City Council obtained consent to reroute 120 metres of the Dun Mountain track. (Note: this is not the section affected by the recent slip.) The Council also received consent to extend an inanga spawning habitat beside the Maitai/Mahitahi River on Shakespeare Walk.

Manuka Street Hospital obtained consent for a new bore to test water quality and quantity.

Updates

Plan Change 18 settled via Environment Court mediation

Plan Change 18 rezones 67 hectares of rural land to Rural Higher Density Small Holdings and Residential over the portion of land bounded by Champion Road, Hill Street North and Saxton Field. A services overlay is applied to the undeveloped portion of the land and esplanade requirements are applied to Saxton Creek.

A consent memorandum was signed on 30 March resolving the appeals. Plan Change 18 should now be treated as effectively operative under s86F of the Resource Management Act.

The Nelson Plan

At the end of 2014, the Council decided to incorporate the review of the Air Plan with the Regional Policy Statement and the Nelson Resource Management Plan to have one integrated resource management plan for Nelson – The Nelson Plan. The aim is to have the Nelson Plan notified in mid 2016 with the notification of the air chapter before then.

The plan aims to create a city that is a vibrant, attractive place to live work and play, and in which business can operate successfully now and into the future. Natural resources should be managed in an integrated and sustainable way to maintain and enhance natural, ecological, recreational, human health and safety, and cultural values.

Since the last Share Newsletter, there have been a number of meetings with key stakeholders to guide the development of the Nelson Plan. It is anticipated that these meetings will continue through to late 2015 when policy papers will be released for wider public input.

Woodburner Community Meeting

In close collaboration with the community, Nelson City Council is reviewing the Nelson Air Quality Plan as part of the Nelson Plan. The review will consider options including how best to manage woodburners.

As a first step in the engagement process, Council held a community consultation meeting on Monday 16 March to better understand people’s concerns and how these could be addressed through a plan review. Over 60 people attended the meeting.

The aim of the review is to find a fair and reasonable solution to keeping people warm in their homes while still meeting the National Environmental Standard for Air Quality (NESAQ) set by the Government.

Further meetings are planned throughout 2015.

Iwi Liaison

A number of hui are being held with Iwi throughout 2015 as part of the development of the Nelson Plan.

Urban Environments Bylaw

The Urban Environments Bylaw combines seven bylaws into one and covers the following matters:

Keeping of animals
Urban Amenity
Trading in Public Places
Control of Alcohol in Public Places
Reserves
Burial and Cremation

The Planning and Regulatory Committee heard submissions and deliberated on the Urban Environments Bylaw on 12 March 2015 and 2 April 2015 respectively.

Recommendations will be reported to Council on 30 April 2015. The most significant change recommended to the bylaw was the inclusion of an additional alcohol ban area in the east of the Central City (block bounded by Riverside Drive, Tasman Street, Hardy Street, and Collingwood Street).

Resource Consents Application information

RMA changes effective on 3 March have led to only slight tweaks to our application form – the bulk of the application needs to be separately described and assessed anyway. We have prepared some guidance targeted for straight forward applications and non-professional applicants. This is available on our website now:

Please remember we encourage a pre-application discussion on the level of information required – appointments can be made with the Duty Planner by phoning 546 0200.

Resource Consent Statistics

Since January, between 26 and 35 resource consents have been issued each month, all complying with statutory timeframes. Two were limited notified and did not require a hearing.

Environmental Programmes

Contact details: Manager Environmental Programmes: dean.evans@ncc.govt.nz, ph 546 0339

What’s new

Love Food Hate Waste Campaign

A national campaign called Love Food Hate Waste that highlights the issue of avoidable food waste was launched on 12 March. Research has shown that on average New Zealand families throw away $563 worth of uneaten food a year, which equates to around 79kg of food waste a year. Tools are now being developed to support measurable behaviour change around reducing food waste.

Reduce Building Waste to Reduce Cost

In Nelson and Tasman cardboard makes up around 17% of the rubbish sent to local transfer stations and landfill, much higher than the national average of 9%.

Construction was identified as one of the main industries locally that send cardboard to landfill. A trial project was set up with three local builders, Bruce Design & Build, Gibbons Construction and Jennian Homes Nelson Bays to see if making some simple changes would reduce cardboard waste. Changes included putting separate recycling bins on site, and working with site managers to encourage teams to keep cardboard out of skips. It became apparent that other materials like metal, plasterboard, polystyrene, plastic and untreated timber could also be easily separated out and recycled. In total, 25% of the waste generated during the trial (15% of which was cardboard) was recycled rather than sent to landfill, leading to considerable cost savings.

This project is now being rolled out across the Nelson Tasman region. If you are in the building trade and would like more information, contact Karen Driver at the Nelson Environment Centre on 03 545 9176 or karendriver@nec.org.nz.

Enviroschools Awards

Birchwood Kindergarten has attained its Bronze Enviroschools Award, and Hira Kindergarten has attained its Silver Enviroschools Award. The Silver Award is achieved by those centres that are able to demonstrate an increasing range and depth of learning and action around sustainability and can show development of wider connections with their local community. Award ceremonies will be organised during Term 2.

Population Projections

In February, Statistics New Zealand published population projections for all local authorities, based on Census 2013 trends, which estimate population and demographics out to 2043. Later in the year, Statistics NZ will also publish population and household projections by suburb (area unit). In the meantime, to inform the Long Term Plan, Council has provided population and household projections which align with LTP reference years. A summary report is available on our website.

Updates

Project Maitai/Mahitahi

Planning is underway to determine the priorities for Project Maitai/Mahitahi in 2015/16. Ideas have been prioritised with input from key stakeholders and staff and the next step is to develop business cases for the top ten projects to be introduced in 2015/16.

In the meantime the current Project Maitai/Mahitahi projects are all progressing well with key updates as follows:

Project Maitai/Mahitahi was the subject of a 3 minute video made for the LAWA website. The video was noticed and promoted by Australia’s International River Foundation. It can be viewed at www.lawa.org.nz

An information board and earthworks to extend the inanga (whitebait) spawning area next to Shakespeare Walk were completed in time for the March king tide inanga spawning event. It was fantastic to see the shoals of fish swimming amongst the hay bales, and during the flood tide the entrance to the trenches saw a feeding frenzy from over six fat brown trout and a few heron and shag.

Rising mains and storm water outlets in the lower reaches of the Maitai and Saltwater Creek have all been recently investigated with no concerns raised so far. The rising mains were dye tested to look for leaks where they pass under the river.

A grant was made to Nelson College and Nelson College for Girls to purchase freshwater monitoring equipment. This is part of a programme to align school freshwater monitoring protocols with those used by Council and community groups, so that data collected by the schools can usefully contribute to the regional data set.

Project Maitai/Mahitahi contributed part funding towards five Cawthron Institute summer students whose research projects were all focused on aspects of Maitai river health. These included; investigating sources of nutrient and sediment input into the river, monitoring the new fish passage improvements at the South Branch weir, checking the impact of Maitai reservoir discharge water on macro-invertebrate communities and algal growth, further investigation into Cyanobacteria growth drivers and patterns.

Heritage funding

A total of 119 applications were received from heritage building owners for the Council’s rates remission for heritage maintenance for the 2015 - 2017 period. The Council offers these rates remissions in three yearly rounds to encourage the maintenance of heritage buildings in Nelson. All owners of heritage buildings listed as either Group A or B in the Nelson Resource Management Plan, who register a commitment to maintaining their buildings, are eligible.

The Council also provides annual grants under the Heritage Project Fund to maintain, repair, restore, stabilise or to provide advice and work for seismic strengthening for heritage buildings, objects and sites. Applications for next year’s fund closed on 17 April and the work of past recipients (‘Heritage Heroes’) was recently celebrated at a ceremony at Elma Turner Library during Heritage Week.

What’s to come

Project Maitai/Mahitahi public planting day in June

There will be a public planting day on Saturday 6 June from 10am until 2pm next to the Maitai River in the recreation area just below the Maitai Camp. Spades, plants and a sausage sizzle provided, so bring the family!

State of Environment River Monitoring

Five of the monitoring sites (Saxton at Main Rd, Poorman at Barnicoat, Brook at Manuka St, Wakapuaka at Maori Pa Rd and Hillwood at Glen Rd) have shown long term improvements in water quality (2000-2012).

Four of the monitoring sites (Sharland at Maitai Confluence, Groom at Maitai Confluence, Wakapuaka at Hira and Whangamoa at Kokorua Rd) have shown long term declines in water quality (2000-2012).

Overall there was an improvement in the water quality classification for 2014, with 7 sites classed as Degraded or Very Degraded compared to 12 sites in 2013.

State of environment river monitoring this year has moved from quarterly to monthly monitoring to align with national environmental monitoring and reporting requirements, regional council reporting to LAWA and information requirements for the Nelson Plan review. Two of the monthly water quality sampling rounds include flow gauging to get flow-adjusted nutrient and suspended sediment loads and provide correlations for water quantity assessments within catchments.

Fish surveys

State of environment fish surveys this year will target the Whangamoa River monitoring sites, where few native fish records exist and the upper reaches of the Maitai/Mahitahi River A fish survey of the Collins (7.5 km) and Graham (12.5 km from sea) was carried out on 1 April.

Overall seven fish species were recorded; their distribution reflecting the distance from the sea, fish habitat and presence of fish passage barriers.

Collins Stream

Inanga, bluegill bully and brown trout were absent upstream of the Collins weir (core hydrology site), which is a fish passage barrier for the latter fish species. Lamprey was previously recorded above the Collins weirs, though were not detected during this survey.

Graham Stream

There are no previous fish records for Graham Stream. Good numbers of long fin eel, koaro and brown trout were found, and a few upland bullies. The low species richness is more a reflection of the distance from sea.

Bluegill bully (downstream of Collins weir); first record for Collins River and Whangamoa catchment

Koaro Graham River

Upland bully Collins River

Redfin bully Collins River