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Invercargill public meeting

Wednesday 1 November

Waste policy

Waste levy

  • It is not clear the way it is written when you pay the levy e.g. is it at the landfill or at your farm.

Recycling, reuse and community

  • Secondary school pupils are not concerned about the environment in terms of eating takeaway foods and dropping the packaging out of their cars.
  • There is concern about the number of fastfood outlets and the amount of waste they are creating.
  • There is no incentive to minimise waste in terms of recycling or deterring the consumer to buy less, as it can just be put out on the side of road for pick up.
  • Kerbside recycling sends the wrong messages.
  • Disposal costs on items could be pro rated in terms of how much it costs to dispose of that item.  The cost of disposing of products should be charged to the consumer.

National Environmental Standards

Septic tanks

  • There is strong support for a standard on septic tanks.  Often overflows go into creeks and drains.
  • Septic tanks need to be cleaned often or else they overflow.  A standard is needed.  A WOF approach should be taken but should cater for different environments in different regions.  One size does not fit all.
  • We need to look at industry and the enforcement issue with spraying.  There is a growing tend of less industry compliance in Southland.
  • Standards need to be flexible but clear and consistent.  Performance and effects based outcomes driven standards are needed.
  • The 2007 state of the environment report needs to publicise success stories not just the negative.  It is important for everyone to hear the good stuff.
  • The key points about climate change need to be promoted nationally not just in publications. 

Transport

  • Freight is travelling by road not by rail.  Rail needs to be treated more fairly as the government is basically subsidising road transport.  Government should be subsidising Toll holdings.
  • There is a call for guidelines on water quality, not standards. Clearer targets need to be evident when it comes to standards.
  • Guidance is required on how to achieve standards.
  • Feedback on good standard stories around the country-share with other authorities so they can share good ideas.

Electricity transmission

  • A transmission standard is needed for building proximity to transmission lines.  A standard is needed for health related issues and transmission.
  • There should be an NPS setting targets for putting transmission lines underground e.g. all lines underground by 2021.

General comments

  • Environment Centres find it very difficult to educate the public when financial support that they depend on is withdrawn.
  • Communication and guidance is required on the disposal of TV sets and other electronic appliances.
  • Publicity needs to target the wider community not just industry.  This could happen through local papers etc.  The public should have input in the standards process.
  • Currently lighting is not good for visibility and is a major safety issue for driving etc.  Not enough people experience true darkness which is good for health.  Tighter standards are needed.  Street lights reflect upwards into the sky.  This should not happen as it results in light pollution.  Light pollution needs to be addressed.
  • The approach to developing national standards should be cross government and include agencies such as the Ministry of Health.

Water

Education and information

  • There is a role for education but people need to know when their practice is unacceptable.  Recent fines have been too lenient.
  • We need to learn from other regions.
  • Southland does not have an unlimited water resource.  People are only just starting to realise this.

Flood risk management and catchment management

  • There is a tangled web of tenure and land responsibilities.  Flood risk agencies have different, conflicting roles and end up paralysed.  Current flood risk management is not effective.  Agencies need to take responsibility.  Fish and Game are stopping all water management without evidence.
  • There is a lot of gravel but contractors are not getting consent to extract it because there too many hoops, e.g. access to riparian margins.  Flood risk management should address this and align processes and tenures.  Central government agencies should not be a barrier to managing flood risk.  Lack of agency integration will be the future cause of floods in Southland.
  • Biological controls to address broom and gorse are not getting support and cooperation from DOC and other central govt agencies.  Weed control is key to flood management.  Funding is needed to address weed control.
  • There is opposition to tradable water rights. If water is allocated, it should be divided up per hectare and should go to environment if it is not used.  Trustpower is taking all the water rights e.g. Waitahuna stream.  Local dams do not give benefits locally.
  • Intercatchment transfer has benefits but causes many problems.

Land use

  • Changing land use has had an impact on water quality and quantity that has been observed by industry, well and pump businesses, farmers and other members of the community, including anglers.
  • How do we stop inappropriate land use from occurring?  By being conservative on irrigation consents.  What about using existing overarching tools such as water plans, regional policy statements (RPS) and the district plan.
  • Tourism and recreation are putting pressures on Milford and spreading didymo.  This needs to be managed better.
  • The water plan variation says you can do anything you like but you cannot impact on water quality.

Environmental reporting

General comments

  • Farmers should have more information about how they can measure their own water quality and what they can do to improve it.
  • Encourage sheep farmers to think from the “farm to the plate” and how the environment links in with farming practices.
  • The challenge for MfE is to provide information to as many decision makers as possible – i.e. at multiple levels, not only government.

Climate change

Adaptation and mitigation

  • Why are policy decisions delayed?
  • Why did we back away from the carbon tax?  A backlash is possible now that the Stern report has been released.  The political landscape has changed.  Therefore Permanent Forest Sinks Initiative (PFSI) and other initiatives have gone through.
  • PFSI may not be effective for small foresters.
  • Climate change could be solved by planting new trees, but must be either permanent or replanted.  We must plant the right trees.
  • The National Party is talking about forced planting.  We need to plant on erosion prone land. 
  • There is scope for improving the utilisation of wood as a heating and energy source as an alternative to coal.
  • The loss of credits is a concern.  There is not a lot of planting going on and the only thing encouraging planting is PFSI.  PFSI is not helpful for all types of forest.  There is no incentive to plant trees.  At the moment there is no reason to go to the effort and cost of planting.
  • The Ebex21 (Emissions-Biodiversity Exchange) is useful model but is grey market and not Kyoto compliant.  What is government going to do?
  • Forestry has other benefits such as biodiversity and erosion control, not just climate change benefits.
  • Should New Zealand be part of the Kyoto Protocol?  It is going to help?  It is important for the world to do something “together” rather than standing alone.  New Zealand’s emissions are small, but we do need to do something.
  • There are initiatives afoot even in USA and Australia despite the fact that they do not buy into the Kyoto Protocol.
  • The way refrigerants have been handled could be a useful model for dealing with climate change.

Transport

  • Public transport needs to be taken seriously and should be promoted to encourage higher usage.
  • The rail infrastructure should be rebuilt.
  • Central government should encourage increased use of rail freight.
  • There needs to be a control on the age of car imports such as in Singapore.
  • Is aviation a real problem?  If it is, what should we do about it?  Fuel prices may alter air travel patterns.
  • We need to consider carefully whether we build new roads.

Education and information

  • The New Zealand government should advertise and promote “International Climate Change Week”.  It is an opportunity that central government should not have missed.
  • The Labour Party’s emphasis an education is very important and is obviously lacking in National’s blue green policies.
  • Education is very important, particularly of our young.
  • We need to encourage and push education and behaviour change of the 45+ age group.
  • More education and information is needed.

General comments

  • What is being done about Didymo?  It is wise to accept it just as fate?
  • It is interesting that the Stern report is making such a stir both nationally and internationally, but no one acts if you talk about impacts on people or our country.
  • We should be planting native forests on all disused government owned land.
  • We are looking at possum control (which increases the capacity of our forest sinks) but we should consider rabbit control.
  • The climate has changed in our lifetime, there is no doubt climate change is real.
  • MfE should be more vociferous in counteracting those who deny climate change is happening.
  • The environmental calculator on the MfE website is not working and needs work.  The one MfE uses is not accurate.

General interest

General comments

  • MfE should help publicise good examples of sustainability e.g. bokashi bucket composting systems.
  • The need to reduce light pollution should be incorporated into the Govt3 bottom line and the Urban Design Protocol.
  • MfE should assist with disseminating good practice guidance on the development of iwi management plans to other Iwi, particularly in the North Island.  The Ngai Tahu iwi management plan is a good example.
  • Farmers are investing a lot but need resources and help.
  • Farmers are pressured from all sides, including environmentalists and demands by supermarkets to keep costs down.
  • The percentage of salary that is required to buy a house has increased and the percentage of consumers’ salary available to spend on food has reduced.
  • Retailers like sustainable brands because they are traceable and the retailer can commit to the product because it will be there for years.

Environmental reporting

  • Perspective determines how information is portrayed.
  • There is frustration with the lack of information.

Education and information

  • Direct ways of communicating are needed.  Good research and standards are needed e.g. water quality standards.  What level of nitrate in water is acceptable?

Last updated: 27 February 2008