Foreword by the Ministry
Clean air is seen by many New Zealanders as part of their birthright. In September 2004, the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality (the Standards) were introduced. Driven by a need for action on ambient levels of particles in many parts of the country, the Standards lay the foundation for an effective air quality management framework. The Standards were amended in July 2005 and an Updated Users Guide explaining the intent of the regulations, was published in October of that year.
When granting new designations and land-use consents, territorial authorities and/or requiring authorities should now be considering the Standards. The New Zealand Land Transport Strategy has a key objective to protect and promote public health. This, coupled with a requirement for regional land strategies to be safe and sustainable, makes it clear that consideration of air quality issues is integral to transport development.
This (draft) Good Practice Guide on Assessing Discharges to Air from Land Transport provides clear, comprehensive guidance on exactly how to consider air quality impacts from transport development. The guide promotes a three-tiered approach in order to separate the simple from the complex. It makes recommendations for the assessment approach to be adopted, while recognising the wide range of potential users − from planning professionals and technical experts, to council staff and hearing commissioners.
Taken together with its sister document, the Good Practice Guide on Assessing Discharges to Air from Industry, this guide provides the final link in the information chain on air quality management in New Zealand. The document is published in draft form to provide an opportunity for comment and discussion, and I encourage all interested parties to enter a submission. It is intended that benchmarking of the guidance against real life cases occur and to this end, submissions will be accepted until 1 December 2006.
Hugh Logan
Chief Executive
