Attachments of Policy and Regulatory

Attachment 1

Draft Wellington Region Natural Hazards Management Strategy February 2017

1 Introduction

1.1 Why develop a Natural Hazards Management Strategy?

The purpose of the Wellington Region Natural Hazards Management Strategy is to help create a region resilient to the impacts from natural hazard events through a focus on the reduction component of the 4 R’s (reduction, readiness, response, recovery) of the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act It will provide a framework that will allow the partner councils in conjunction with key stakeholders and the community to develop consistent responses to the challenging natural hazards that we face including coastal erosion and inundation, sea level rise, earthquakes, landslides and storms.

Having robust and consistent natural hazard policy approaches in city, district and regional plans will help us to consistently and rigorously identify our hazards and employ a risk based approach that enables progressive risk reduction over time. The scope of this strategy includes ensuring that partners in the work:

· Share and use the same information and assumptions

· Achieve consistency in risk reduction, including through district planning, across the region

· Undertake research in a coordinated and agreed way

· Collaborate with each other, (eg, partner councils, lifeline utilities, key stakeholders)

The Wellington region’s local authorities will do this by:

· Focusing on the role of reduction in the 4Rs of natural hazard risk management.

· Providing a vision and objectives for how we as a region want to approach planning for natural hazard risk reduction.

· Recognising the importance of regional leadership,specifically, the role of Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) in coordinating funding and leading regionally consistent science and information to underpin integrated natural hazards planning and management.

· Recognising that local government has important roles in determining the acceptable level of risk, and in risk reduction through infrastructure planning and management, resource management planning and decision making, agency coordination, and knowledge building and management.

· Explaining the nature of the challenge, including setting out the region’s natural hazards context and the consequences of hazard events for the region’s communities.

· Advocating for central government to develop better resilience knowledge and standards and to fund nationally consistent science and information to underpin effective hazards planning and management.

· Setting out an implementation plan designed to achieve the objectives.

· Working with lifelines and network utility providers and stakeholders to better understand natural hazard risks and how these can be managed

· Aiming to achieve region-wide consistency in policy and planning regulations for managing risks from natural hazards.

· Prioritising the investigation of natural hazards and the preparation of policy responses for managing the risks from these using a risk based approach.

1.2 How the Strategy was developed

The development of the Strategy was initiated by the Regional Planning Managers Group and overseen by a Programme Advisory Group made of the planning managers from each partner council, representatives from the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office, Greater Wellington Regional Council flood protection department and Te Hunga Whiriwhiri. It has been jointly funded by the partner councils with the approval of the Chief Executives from each council and endorsed by the Coordinating Executive Group of the Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group. The Strategy has been developed through a series of workshops involving representatives of the partner councils, lifeline utilities, key stakeholders and a wider group of interested parties who have participated at different stages. The vision and objectives were first developed, along with a series of principles. These were made available for public review. Numerous actions to achieve the objectives were then developed through further engagement, and refined into:

· A concise set of actions and an implementation plan.

· An equally important set of “ways of working” which will help to inform and provide guidance to those engaged in the actions.

There is no quick and easy means of reducing the risk of natural hazards on a regional basis. Rather the Strategy will set the region’s communities on a pathway towards risk reduction. The pathways involve long-term continuous and targeted action on a regionally consistent basis, along with regular review of achievements and adjustments over time to meet new or changed natural hazard circumstances.

1.3 Structure of the Strategy

The strategy is set out in three sections, with an introduction and background, the action points and implementation plan and a series of appendices and supporting documentation.

· Summary (stand alone pull out)

· Purpose of the strategy

· Context

· Key issues

· Strategy

· Appendices (Supplementary Information – Methodology, Description of Natural Hazards in the Wellington Region, Legislative Framework, Good Practice)

· Supporting Reports (Stocktake, Consultation Report)

· Hyperlinks for an electronic version of the Strategy

2 Context

Local authorities, the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office (WREMO) and lifelines utilities of the Wellington Region^{^[1]} are collaborating to prepare a Wellington Region Natural Hazards Management Strategy (“the Strategy”). The Strategy is to be part of a Natural Hazards Programme seeking the integrated management of natural hazards to gain consistency and reduce duplication of effort across jurisdictional boundaries.

The aim of the draft strategy is to provide a coherent regional framework to inform planning documents, such as city, district and regional plans, long term plans and asset management plans. It is paired with an implementation and action plan providing coherent actions designed to carry out the objectives embodied in the strategy.

The strategy provides an opportunity to explain how we will work together with our partners (councils, WREMO, Wellington Engineering Lifelines Group) to address shared goals related to risk reduction. It allows us to:

· Set priorities for co-funded hazards research

· Undertake joint investment in hazard mitigation and reduction activities

· Develop consistent hazard planning approaches

· Cooperate in community engagement

The Strategy provides a strategic overview of natural hazards in the region and is the guiding regional framework for integrated and coordinated natural hazard management planning, covering both Long Term Plan and RMA plan responses. It will coordinate with the Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan prepared by WREMO.

The Wellington region has one of the most physically diverse environments in New Zealand. It is also one of the most populous regions and, consequently, communities are affected by a wide range of natural hazards. Natural events become hazardous when they adversely affect our lives and property, businesses and livelihoods and the environment and our natural resources.

The Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group undertook a comprehensive analysis of natural hazards and risk for the region in 2007 (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007). This report, combined with the Regional Policy Statement for the Wellington Region^{^[2]} provides the background information on hazards and risks within the Wellington region (Greater Wellington Regional Council, 2013).

A summary of the natural hazards that occur in the region and the planning responses that have been developed to date is set out in the Stocktake Report^{^[3]}. The most significant natural hazards include earthquakes, coastal hazards (erosion and inundation), flooding and landslides. Other natural hazards such as drought, wind, snow and hail, and to a lesser extent wildfire and lightening also occur in the region.

2.1 The “4Rs”

The New Zealand integrated approach to disaster management is underpinned by the , 4Rs^{^[4]} Of the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act (figure 1) . The 4Rs are defined as :

“Reduction: Identifying and analysing long-term risks to human life and property from hazards; taking steps to eliminate these risks if practicable, and, if not, reducing the magnitude of their impact and the likelihood of their occurring.

Readiness: Developing operational systems and capabilities before a civil defence emergency happens; including self-help and response programmes for the general public, and specific programmes for emergency services, lifeline utilities and other agencies.

Response: Actions taken immediately before, during or directly after a civil defence emergency to save lives and protect property, and to help communities recover.

Recovery: The coordinated efforts and processes to bring about the immediate, medium-term and long-term holistic regeneration of a community following a civil defence emergency.”

The Strategy focuses on the first R, Reduction.

Natural Hazards Diagram 310716.JPG

Figure 1: Conceptualisation of the "4Rs" in terms of the Strategic Approach to Natural Hazard Risk Management

Modified from “A Strategic and Practical Options for Integrating Flood Risk Management”, MWH and PS Consulting Ltd, MfE 2009

2.2 Who Does What?

2.2.1 Functions of Councils

The GWRC has statutory functions under section 30 of the Resource Management Act 1991^{^[5]} (RMA) which include the establishment, implementation and review of objectives, policies and methods to achieve integrated management of the natural and physical resources of the region. GWRC must also give effect to the RMA by controlling the use of land for the purpose of ..the avoidance or mitigation of natural hazards. The region’s city and district councils have similar land use planning roles relating to the avoidance or mitigation of natural hazards.

Under the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA), all local authorities, in performing their roles, must have regard to the contribution core services make to communities including the avoidance or mitigation of natural hazards. Under the RMA^{^[6]}, there is also a requirement that local authorities must consider the preparation of appropriate combined documents whenever significant cross-boundary issues relating to the use, development or protection of natural and physical resources arise or are likely to arise.

Councils’ key resilience responsibility goes beyond the RMA and the LGA. The Civil Defence and Emergency Management Act 2002 (CDEM Act) requires community and infrastructure agencies to have an understanding of the potential hazards and vulnerabilities that they face and to take measures to manage those vulnerabilities to reduce the impacts of events. The Wellington, Porirua, Hutt and Upper Hutt city councils and the Greater Wellington Regional Council are classified in the CDEM Act as Lifeline Utilities for the supply of drinking water. The CDEM Act requires councils to ensure they are able to continue to function to the fullest possible extent following a hazard event; although this may be at a reduced level. Councils are required to plan, prepare for and respond to emergencies, working in conjunction with their regional emergency management office, in this instance the Wellington Regional Emergency Management Office (WREMO).

Given that natural hazards are not confined to local authority boundaries, the Strategy provides the opportunity for the Wellington region to develop a consistent regional approach to natural hazard management, and the avoidance and mitigation of exposure to natural hazard risk.

2.2.2 Programmes and Strategies

Internationally, effective natural hazards management has become a pressing need. A number of international initiatives have emerged in response, and these have been reflected through national, regional and local initiatives. The following are some of the currently most important:

Sendai Framework for Risk Reduction (2015-2030)

The Sendai Framework^{^[7]} is a 15-year, voluntary, non-binding agreement endorsed by the United Nations General assembly following the 2015 Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction . It recognizes that the State has the primary role to reduce disaster risk but that responsibility should be shared with other stakeholders including local government, the private sector and other stakeholders. It aims for the following outcome:

The substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.

Four priorities for action are outlined in the framework. They are: understanding disaster risk; strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk; investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience; enhancing disaster preparedness for effective responses, and endeavouring to “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

New Zealand is one of 187 UN member states to make a formal commitment to the Framework. Work is already underway on a national level to address risk reduction through^{^[8]}:

· reviewing and redeveloping the National Civil Defence and Emergency Management Strategy;

· amending the Resource Management Act;

· undertaking a review of the Building Act, specific to earthquake prone buildings; and

· developing a National Infrastructure Plan.

National Disaster Resilience Strategy

The Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management is reviewing the current National Civil Defence Emergency Management Strategy to demonstrate our commitment to the Sendai Framework and shift focus to ‘managing risk’ rather than ‘managing disasters’^{^[9]}.

Workshops in the various regions are considering where efforts could be better targeted to yield the greatest benefit across the four priority area outlined in the Framework.

Wellington Region Emergency Management Office: Community Resilience Strategy

The Community Resilience Strategy^{^[10]} prepared by the Wellington Region Emergency Management Office (WREMO) outlines how the WREMO team will engage with its diverse communities and apply a wide range of tools to help empower them to survive and thrive after an emergency event. It is broadly driven by three strategic objectives – build capacity, increase connectedness and foster cooperation.

WREMO comprises the nine councils of the Wellington Region. It has played a significant role in the preparation of the Wellington Natural Hazards Management Strategy.

Wellington Resilience Strategy

Wellington City’s membership of the Rockefeller Institute’s 100 Resilient Cities^{^[11]} (100RC) is centred around the development of a Resilience Strategy that draws on models, guidelines and resources developed by the 100RC to assist cities to better survive, and then grow, in the face of the shocks and stresses of the 21^st Century. Hutt City is developing a resilience strategy using the methodology developed and shared by Wellington City Council.

The recently release Preliminary Resilience Assessment (June 2016) represents Phase 1 of the project and defines the key areas of focus for Wellington to become a resilient city. Key ‘discovery areas’ are recovery from seismic shock; climate change and sea level rise; economic prosperity; and quality of life.

Climate Change Strategy

The Wellington Regional Council’s Climate Change Strategy (October 2015)^{^[12]} is an overarching document to align and coordinate climate change actions across GWRC’s responsibilities and operations. It aims to build on work programmes already underway, raise awareness of climate change drivers and impacts, and help coordinate regional effort through collaboration and partnerships. It also aims to strengthen information-sharing and integration across GWRC departments, between councils, with central government, and with the community.

2.3 What is Risk?

Natural Hazard risk is broadly defined as the combination of the probability of a natural hazard and the consequences that could occur from an event of a given likelihood and magnitude.

A framework for managing risk is outlined in AS/NZS ISO 31000:2009, Risk Management – Principles and Guidelines^{^[13]}A companion handbook has been prepared that provides guidance on implementing the risk management standard SA/SNZ HB 436:2013, Risk Management Guidelines – Companion to AS/NZS ISO 31000:2009. The standard outlines a risk based approach to risk management and is the direction promoted in the: “Regional Policy Statement for the Wellington Region” and in the GNS Science publication: “Risk Based Approach to Land-Use Planning”.

Other relevant guidance has been produced by Ministry for the Environment such as the soon to be updated: “Climate change effects and impacts assessment: A Guidance Manual For Local Government in New Zealand” 2008^{^[14]} which defines risk as:

“The chance of an ‘event’ being induced or significantly exacerbated by climate change, that event having an impact on something of value to the present and/or future community. Risk is measured in terms of consequence and likelihood.”

A risk-based approach takes account of the intended purpose of a use or development, the likelihood of natural hazard events occurring, the vulnerability and exposure of the site, use or development, the severity and consequences of potential hazard events and the costs and benefits of acting or not acting. A risk assessment needs to be commensurate with the size and scale of the use or development. The risk can be evaluated on a scale from low to high or acceptable to intolerable assessed on the basis of: (a) the scale, engineering design and intended life and use for the development, and (b) the likelihood, frequency and magnitude of natural hazard events that could potentially affect the site or development, and (c) the vulnerability and exposure of the development to natural hazards, and (d) the severity of any physical, social, economic and environmental consequences that could arise from natural hazard events affecting the site or development.

3 Key Issues

A stocktake was undertaken to better understand the information that the respective councils hold on natural hazards and hazard risks, and how these risks are currently managed. The stocktake provides an initial identification of key issues in relation to consistency in approach and application of good practice in hazard management and planning provisions used by different local authorities.

The key issues were grouped around:

· Information gathering

· Planning provisions

· Operational responses.

The issues are summarised in Table 3-1. This highlights both the need for and the potential benefits of integrated and consistent approaches across the various local government agencies.

Table 3‑1: Key Issues

INFORMATION GATHERING
Earthquakes · There is a marked variability of earthquake information mapped and available online through council GIS systems. · Council staff awareness of the existing information held by other agencies is limited.
Coastal Hazards · There is inconsistency in the ways that the councils identify and map coastal hazards. · There is little use of coastal hazard information internally within councils. · There is a lack of progress in preparing and adopting long term climate change adaptation plans. · Large variations in the knowledge of coastal hazards was found, and an increasing need to plan for the impacts of sea-level rise. · There are discrepancies between Council staff and local residents understanding about the reliability of the knowledge base and/or levels of risk acceptance.
Flooding · Improvements are needed in the mapping of residual flood risks (i.e. potential losses if flood protection is breached or overtopped). · Sea-level rise considerations are not yet adequately integrated into the mapping of flood risk in coastal areas. · Flooding hazards are generally well documented and mapped with greater regional consistency than other natural hazards.
General Comments · There is variability in approach and methodologies in managing the risks from natural hazard both within and between councils. It is not clear whether this variability is driven by specific contextual reasons a lack of co-ordination,or due to differing resource levels^{^[15]}. · There is limited justification of the hazard priorities that are focussed on within plans. It is not always clear how particular hazard priorities have been chosen. There is no systematic or strategic approach for determining what is important.

INFORMATION GATHERING

Earthquakes

· There is a marked variability of earthquake information mapped and available online through council GIS systems.

· Council staff awareness of the existing information held by other agencies is limited.

Coastal Hazards

· There is inconsistency in the ways that the councils identify and map coastal hazards.

· There is little use of coastal hazard information internally within councils.

· There is a lack of progress in preparing and adopting long term climate change adaptation plans.

· Large variations in the knowledge of coastal hazards was found, and an increasing need to plan for the impacts of sea-level rise.

· There are discrepancies between Council staff and local residents understanding about the reliability of the knowledge base and/or levels of risk acceptance.

Flooding

· Improvements are needed in the mapping of residual flood risks (i.e. potential losses if flood protection is breached or overtopped).

· Sea-level rise considerations are not yet adequately integrated into the mapping of flood risk in coastal areas.

· Flooding hazards are generally well documented and mapped with greater regional consistency than other natural hazards.

General Comments

· There is variability in approach and methodologies in managing the risks from natural hazard both within and between councils. It is not clear whether this variability is driven by specific contextual reasons a lack of co-ordination,or due to differing resource levels^{^[15]}.

· There is limited justification of the hazard priorities that are focussed on within plans. It is not always clear how particular hazard priorities have been chosen. There is no systematic or strategic approach for determining what is important.

PLANNING PROVISIONS
· There is a general lack of information and provisions relating to liquefaction hazard. · The information contained in city, district and regional plans and explanations of the basis for planning provisions for coastal hazards are limited. · There is a lack of information about provisions relating to flood hazards in city, district and regional plans. A common theme is for this information to relate to only certain water bodies, without explanation as to why this is the case. · While landslides are addressed in some district plans, this tends to be through earthworks provisions. Naturally occurring or historical landslide hazards are not provided for. · There is minimal recognition in city, district and regional plans of other hazards and of climate change issues. · There is limited progress towards the integration of a risk based planning approach and risk assessment in natural hazard provisions. (Some progress is evident in more recent updates, but there is little evidence of this element of good practice where there are older provisions). · The district plans also provide little explanation as to why their focus is on some natural hazards and not on others. · While cross boundary issues are acknowledged in plans, little direction is provided on how these issues should be addressed. · There is a lack of hazard specific provisions in the District Plans. Objectives, in particular, tend to be generic to all natural hazards and do not provide clearly identifiable or measurable outcome statements. · The policy and planning approaches in city, district and regional plans are often outdated, are not based on a clear risk based model and do not meet good practice tests. · Related to this, there is no clear evaluation involving community and stakeholder input about what levels of risk are considered acceptable. · There is a lack of coordination between resource management planning and the response and recovery plans of civil defence emergency management and/or lifeline utility providers
Monitoring · There is no systematic approach to monitoring impacts of hazards, risks or evaluating the effectiveness of policy approaches to risk reduction. · There are key gaps in the monitoring protocols associated with landslides and coastal erosion.
Information Management · There is a lack (in most councils) of a protocol relating to the review and updating of information. Some councils are taking an ad hoc approach, and seem to be reliant on external parties to provide updated information. · There is no indication that a coordinated approach is being taken by councils in relation to the management and updating of information. · In some instances councils are relying on older data and information, which does not meet current good practice expectations. · The quality of information and accessibility to information about natural hazards varies considerably. · The level of confidence/uncertainty in hazard information is not always explicitly recognised or discussed.
Climate Change · Councils have different approaches to, and levels of understanding of adaptive planning practices. · There is a need for clarification around the source(s) of climate change projections, the planning timeframes being used and how they are being applied by the different councils. · Councils, institutions and the general public have different ‘levels of understanding about climate change, This impacts on people’s understanding of climate change projections and scenarios, levels of risk acceptance and degree of planning required for managing potential future impacts.

PLANNING PROVISIONS

· There is a general lack of information and provisions relating to liquefaction hazard.

· The information contained in city, district and regional plans and explanations of the basis for planning provisions for coastal hazards are limited.

· There is a lack of information about provisions relating to flood hazards in city, district and regional plans. A common theme is for this information to relate to only certain water bodies, without explanation as to why this is the case.

· While landslides are addressed in some district plans, this tends to be through earthworks provisions. Naturally occurring or historical landslide hazards are not provided for.

· There is minimal recognition in city, district and regional plans of other hazards and of climate change issues.

· There is limited progress towards the integration of a risk based planning approach and risk assessment in natural hazard provisions. (Some progress is evident in more recent updates, but there is little evidence of this element of good practice where there are older provisions).

· The district plans also provide little explanation as to why their focus is on some natural hazards and not on others.

· While cross boundary issues are acknowledged in plans, little direction is provided on how these issues should be addressed.

· There is a lack of hazard specific provisions in the District Plans. Objectives, in particular, tend to be generic to all natural hazards and do not provide clearly identifiable or measurable outcome statements.

· The policy and planning approaches in city, district and regional plans are often outdated, are not based on a clear risk based model and do not meet good practice tests.

· Related to this, there is no clear evaluation involving community and stakeholder input about what levels of risk are considered acceptable.

· There is a lack of coordination between resource management planning and the response and recovery plans of civil defence emergency management and/or lifeline utility providers

OPERATIONAL RESPONSES

Monitoring

· There is no systematic approach to monitoring impacts of hazards, risks or evaluating the effectiveness of policy approaches to risk reduction.

· There are key gaps in the monitoring protocols associated with landslides and coastal erosion.

Information Management

· There is a lack (in most councils) of a protocol relating to the review and updating of information. Some councils are taking an ad hoc approach, and seem to be reliant on external parties to provide updated information.

· There is no indication that a coordinated approach is being taken by councils in relation to the management and updating of information.

· In some instances councils are relying on older data and information, which does not meet current good practice expectations.

· The quality of information and accessibility to information about natural hazards varies considerably.

· The level of confidence/uncertainty in hazard information is not always explicitly recognised or discussed.

Climate Change

· Councils have different approaches to, and levels of understanding of adaptive planning practices.

· There is a need for clarification around the source(s) of climate change projections, the planning timeframes being used and how they are being applied by the different councils.

· Councils, institutions and the general public have different ‘levels of understanding about climate change, This impacts on people’s understanding of climate change projections and scenarios, levels of risk acceptance and degree of planning required for managing potential future impacts.

4 Strategy

4.1 Vision Statement

The communities of the Wellington region work together to understand and reduce risks from natural hazards

“to survive and thrive in a dynamic world”

4.2 Objectives

1. Our natural hazards and risks are well understood. [Knowledge and Understanding]

2. Our planning takes a long term risk-based approach. [Planning]

3. Consistent approaches are applied to natural hazard risk reduction. [Consistency]

4. We have an agreed set of priorities to reduce the risks from natural hazards. [Prioritisation]

4.3 Principles

1. Use the best available hazards information/science.

2. Identify and agree what is best practice for natural hazards risk management and reduction.

3. Identify and address what inhibits good practice in natural hazards management.

4. Bring the community along on the journey

5. Build in regular monitoring and review programmes.

4.4 Actions

The following actions address the issues and set out steps to achieve the four objectives that have been identified.

Attachment 1

Draft Wellington Region Natural Hazards Management Strategy February 2017

ACTIONS TO MEET OBJECTIVES (Five Year Framework)		TIMING	WHO IS INVOLVED?		COST (H,M,L)	PRIORITY (H,M,L)
OBJECTIVE 1 Our natural hazards and risks are well understood (Knowledge and Understanding)
Working together as Councils
1.1	Strengthen the multi-council approach of working collaboratively and collectively. · Establish a natural hazards steering group which will be the custodian responsible for overseeing the implementation of the strategy. · Establish a technical advisory group to assist the Steering Group, where necessary, on the implementation of the strategy. · Develop and maintain a programme to continually evaluate the effectiveness of objectives and achievement of actions (incorporating performance measures).	Year 1 Year 1 Year 1 Year 1	Steering Group Programme Advisory Group Steering Group Steering Group		L L L	H H H			Inception
1.2	Develop and maintain a regionally consistent information base about natural hazards (and community exposure to them). Refer to Appendix B and build on this information. · Develop common terminology and definitions for natural hazard management. · Develop common/shared Information Management Protocols. · Establish a mechanism to regularly update and share the latest scientific information. · Monitor natural hazard trends in the region, including recording the occurrence of extreme events.	Years 1-5 Year 1 Year 1 Years 1-2 Years 1-5	Steering Group – assisted by Technical Advisory Group		M	H			Workstream: Research & Information
1.3	Develop, fund and co-ordinate agreed natural hazards research programmes. · Identify, programme and prioritise research.	Years 1-5	Steering Group, GWRC and Councils assisted by Technical Advisory Group		M		H			Workstream: Research & Information
Working with our Communities
1.4	Provide for ongoing community resilience through education and information about long-term risk reduction across a range of natural hazards.	Years 1-5	Steering Group, WREMO, Business, Professional, Services and Community Organisations		L			M		Workstream: Education
1.5	Encourage better understanding of hazards, risks and consequences by all stakeholders on an ongoing basis	Years 1-5	Councils, Community, Businesses		L		M
OUTCOMES: Councils and communities have a good understanding of the risks associated with natural hazards and will be in a position to make well informed decision. PERFORMANCE MEASURES: Community Surveys/Responses (using established practices); Use the Long Term Plan process to plan actions, with a link to funding and definitive timeline.

OBJECTIVE 2: Our planning takes a long term risk-based approach (Planning)
Working together as Councils
2.1	Summarise all risk based methodologies and agree on consistent approaches for applying the risk based approach to natural hazards planning.	Years 1-2	Steering Group, Technical Advisory Group, Lifelines Groups		L	H			Workstream: Planning
2.2	Ensure that the different timeframes over which natural hazards are likely to occur are recognised and provided for.	Years 1-2	Steering Group		L	H			Workstream: Planning
Working with our Communities
2.3	Raise awareness about community needs and educate about council and lifeline utility responsibilities for managing impacts from natural hazards (eg, in land use planning). · Prepare a community engagement plan and undertake regular consultation with communities. · Engage with partners and stakeholders to define acceptable levels of risk	Years 1-5		Steering Group WREMO Insurance industry	M	H			Workstream: Education
OUTCOMES: Councils and Communities understand and agree what is acceptable risk, and base land use and asset planning decisions on this agreement. PERFORMANCE MEASURES: Damage costs associated with natural hazard events; Demonstration of identification of and response to natural hazards in new developments and existing established areas (e.g. across contents of regional, district, and asset management plans)

OBJECTIVE 3: Consistent approaches are applied to natural hazard risk reduction (Consistency)
Working together as Councils
3.1	Develop regionally consistent and coordinated city, district and regional plan provisions, including agreed objectives, policies, rules and methods. · Prepare jointly across all councils in the region and obtain buy-in from communities at an early stage (single process, single cost, rather than repeated multiple times, with duplicated costs).	Years 1-5	Steering Group, Council Planners		M	H			Workstream: Planning
3.2	Cooperate on common issues depending on the nature of the hazard and possible hazards management policy approaches · Develop common natural hazard policy approaches, standards or management plans for assets and infrastructure across the region for partner councils, network or lifeline utilities. These should be cross-referenced to development planning. · Formulate principles for decision-making, construction and urban design guidelines for hard protection structures (e.g. seawalls). · Develop common approaches and standards for LIM reporting	Years 1-5	Steering Group, Council Planners		L	H
3.3	Develop joint funding proposals for Long Term Plans and Annual Plans where there are areas of common concern around natural hazard planning.	Years 1-5	Steering Group		L
Working together with our communities
3.4	Strengthen linkages between council planning practices,civil defence emergency management recovery plans and the resilience programmes of lifeline utility providers	Years 1-5	Steering Group, WREMO, Council Planners		L	M
OUTCOMES: Councils follow a consistent approach in implementing practices and planning principles. PERFORMANCE MEASURES: Measure against findings of the Stocktake and Issues Report, and evolving good practice.

OBJECTIVE 4: We have an agreed set of priorities to reduce the risk from natural hazards (Prioritisation)
Working together as Councils
4.1	Recognise existing capabilities and agreeing to a forward work programme. · Develop a set of criteria to determine priorities and identify “quick wins” (e.g. priorities to be aligned with national, regional and district plans). · Identify and apply the range of tools to inform decision-making on vulnerabilities and likely effectiveness of actions. · Develop a regional resource base to build capacity and up-skill staff and community representatives.	Years 1-2 Year 1 Years 1-2 Years 1-5	Steering Group		L L L M	M H H M			Workstream: Planning
4.2	Assess acceptable risk with partners and stakeholders and provide targeted planning guidance (to avoid, mitigate and/or remedy). · Prioritise actions at regional level but also recognise local conditions and differences in the nature and risk of hazards.	Years 1-5 Years 1-5	Steering Group – assisted by Technical Advisory Group		M M	H M			Workstream: Planning
Working with our Communities
4.3	Engage with partners and stakeholders in prioritisation of decisions.	Years 1-5	Councils, Iwi		L	H			Workstream: ALL
4.4	Work with reference groups and involve other methods of community input into prioritisation.	Years 1-5	Steering Group Community		M	M			Workstream: ALL
OUTCOMES: Councils and Communities work towards an agreed set of priorities that are reflected in the Regional Policy Statement and Regional and District Plans, Annual and Long Term Plans, and Asset Management Plans. PERFORMANCE MEASURES: Measure against findings of Stocktake and Issues report; Inclusion of actions in Long Term and Annual Plans; The number of actions or activities successfully implemented.

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Greater Wellington Regional Council. (2012). Wellington - highest rate of sea-level rise in NZ. Retrieved 2015, from Greater Wellington Regional Council: http://www.gw.govt.nz/wellington-highest-rate-of-sea-level-rise-in-nz/

Greater Wellington Regional Council. (2013). Regional Policy Statement for the Wellington Region. Wellington: Greater Wellington Regional Council.

Greater Wellington Regional Council. (2014). Section 32 Report: Natural Hazards (Preliminary draft for discussion). Wellington: Greater Wellington Regional Council.

Greater Wellington Regional Council. (2015). Greater Wellington GIS Viewer. Retrieved 2015, from Greater Wellington Regional Council: http://mapping.gw.govt.nz/gwrc/

Group, Technical Advisory. (2012). Report of the Minister for the Environment’s Resource Management Act 1991 Principles Technical Advisory GrouP. Wellington.

Lane, E., Gorman, R., Plew, D., & Stephens, S. (2012). Assessing the storm inundation hazard for coastal margins around the Wellington region. Wellington: NIWA Client Report CHC2012-073 prepared for Greater Wellington Regional Council, Kapiti Coast District Council and Wellington City Council.

Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act. (1987). Section 44A: Land information memorandum. Department of Internal Affairs; Reprint March 2015.

Managing Flood Risk. (NZS9401:2008). Managing Flood Risk – A process standard, NZS9401:2008. Standards New Zealand.

Ministry for the Environment. (2008 a). Climate Change Effects and Impacts Assessment: A Guidance Manual for Local Government in New Zealand. 2nd Edition. Mullan B; Wratt D; Dean S; Hollis M; Allan S; Williams T, Kenny G and MfE. Wellington: Ministry for the Environment.

Ministry for the Environment. (2008 b). Preparing for climate change: A Guidance Manual for Local Government in New Zealand. Ministry for the Environment.

Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. (2001). Building on the edge: The use and development of land on or close to fault lines. Wellington: Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

Power, W. (2013). Review of Tsnunami Hazard in New Zealand. GNS Science consultancy Report 2013/131.

Quality Planning. (n.d.). Risk-based approach to planning for natural hazards. Retrieved 2015, from The RMA Quality Planning Resource: http://www.qualityplanning.org.nz/index.php/planning-tools/natural-hazards/risk-based-approach-to-planning-for-natural-hazards

Ramsay, D., Gibberd, B., Dahm, J., & Bell, R. (2012). Defining coastal hazard zones and setback lines. A guide to good practice. Hamilton, New Zealand: National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research Ltd.

Resource Management Act. (1991). Ministry for the Environment; Reprint as at 3 March 2015.

Saunders, W., Beban, J., & Coomer, M. (2014). Analysis of natural hazard provisions in regional policy statements, territorial plans, and CDEM Group Plans. GNS Science Report 2014/28.

Smith, N. (2015). Next steps in National’s Bluegreen agenda. Wild Things Conference; 13th August 2015.

The New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement. (2010). Policies 24: Identification of coastal hazards; 25: Subdivision, use, and development in areas of coastal hazard risk; 26: Natural defences against coastal hazards; 27: Strategies for protecting significant existing development from coastal hazard risk.

UNISDR. (n.d.). Local HFA: Local Government Self Assessment Tool (LGSAT). Retrieved 2015, from Prevention Web: http://www.preventionweb.net/applications/hfa/assets/lgsat/documents/en/LGSAT_Offline_Template_en.pdf

Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group. (2007). Updated Hazard and Risk Analysis for the Wellington Region CDEM Group Plan. Wellington.

Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group. (2013). Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan 2013 - 2018. Wellington.

Appendix A Methodology

The Strategy has been developed through a series of workshops involving representatives of the councils and a wider group of stakeholders who have participated at different stages.

The methodology for the development of the Strategy incorporates five stages:

· Stage 1: Vision and Objectives

· Stage 2: Issue Identification

· Stage 3: Draft Action Plan

· Stage 4: Local Government Act hearing processes

· Stage 5: Confirmation and implementation of the Strategy

Methodology for the development of the Natural Hazard Management Strategy

Stage 1: Vision and Objectives

The vision and objectives were first developed, along with a series of principles. These were made available for public review.

Stage 2: Issue Identification

A Stocktake and Issues Report^{^[17]} forms part of Stage 2 Issue Identification and outlines the results of a stocktake to better understand what information currently exists across the respective councils on hazards and hazard risk, and how these risks are currently managed. The stocktake provided an initial identification of key issues in relation to consistency in approach and application of good practice in hazard/risk mapping and planning provisions used by different local authorities.

Stage 3: Draft Action Plan (subject of this report)

Numerous actions to achieve the objectives were then developed through further engagement, and refined into:

· A concise set of actions and an implementation plan

· An equally important set of “ways of working” which will help to inform and provide guidance to those engaged in the actions

Governance and Reporting

The following diagram sets out the governance and reporting structure that has been followed in the preparation of the Strategy.

Timeline

The following timeline illustrates what has been completed and what the next steps are:

The Project Team

Dr Iain Dawe, Senior Policy Advisor (Hazards), Greater Wellington Regional Council

Sylvia Allan, Allan Planning & Research Ltd

Caroline van Halderen, Senior Planner, MWH

Council Representatives (the representatives varied over the period of the project)

Matthew Hickman, Greater Wellington Regional Council

Nicola Etheridge, Upper Hutt City Council and Porirua City Council

Matt Trlin, Porirua City Council and BECA

Jonathan Streat, Greater Wellington Regional Council

Sharyn Westlake, Greater Wellington Regional Council

Lucy Harper, Greater Wellington Regional Council

Tracy Berghan, Greater wellington Regional Council

Andrew Cumming, Hutt City Council

Bronwyn Little, Hutt City Council

Angela Bell, Upper Hutt City Council

John McSweeney, Wellington City Council

Mitch Lewandowski, Wellington City Council

Andrew McLeod, Wellington City Council

Peter Matich, Porirua City Council

Alison Lash, Kāpiti Coast District Council

Sarah Stevenson, Kāpiti Coast District Council

Sherilyn Hinton, Kāpiti Coast District Council

Darryl Lew, Kāpiti Coast District Council

WREMO

Bruce Pepperell

Sarah Gauden-Ing

Technical Experts

Dr Rob Bell, Principal Scientist, Coastal and Estuarine Physical Processes, NIWA

Dr Andrew Taie, Principal Scientist, Climate, NIWA

Dr Graeme Smart, Principal Scientist, Natural Hazards and Hydrodynamics, NIWA

Chris Robson, Engineering Geologist, MWH

Appendix B Description of Natural Hazards in the

Wellington Region

Natural events become hazardous when they adversely affect human lives. The Wellington region has one of the most physically diverse environments in New Zealand. It is also one of the most populous regions and, consequently, communities are affected by a wide range of natural hazards. The Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management group developed a comprehensive hazard and risk analysis report describing the region’s most at-risk areas from its relevant hazards in 2007 (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007). This report combined with the Regional Policy Statement for the Wellington Region provides the background information on hazards and risks within the Wellington region (Greater Wellington Regional Council, 2013).

Earthquakes

The Wellington region is located within an area of high seismicity near the boundary of the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates. Stresses in the earth’s crust produced by the subduction margin have produced a number of faults, both on land and on the seafloor, around the Wellington region. Many of these faults are still active and present a significant hazard. Earthquakes are caused when stresses that have built up on these faults are released, creating earthquake hazards of surface fault rupture, ground shaking and, in some areas, liquefaction (and potentially landslides and tsunami which are covered in a separate section of this report). The five faults that could potentially cause the most damage in the region are shown in the table below together with their recurrence intervals and maximum magnitudes.

Recurrence Interval & Maximum Magnitude for six of Wellington’s Most Potentially Damaging Faults

Fault	Recurrence interval (yrs)	Elapsed time since last event (yrs)	Maximum Magnitude (Richter Scale)
Wellington Fault	~ 900	~ 300	7.6
Ohariu Fault and North Ohariu	2200	1050 - 1000	7.6
Ohariu Fault and North Ohariu	1500 - 3500	~ 1000	7.3 - 7.7
Wairarapa Fault	~ 1200	160	8.3
Carterton Fault	700 -1000	unknown	7.0
Hikurangi Subduction Zone (whole)	6000 -7000	unknown	9.0
Masterton Fault	~ 1000	unknown	6.7
Hikurangi Subduction Zone (partial)	~ 500 - 1000	~ 550	8.1 – 8.5

Surface fault ruptures occur particularly in sufficiently large (magnitude 7.0+) and shallow (< 40 km) earthquakes where the fault movement may cause vertical uplift / downthrust or horizontal / lateral movements that deform the ground surface. Of particular interest are high magnitude earthquakes (7.0+) from the rupture of a local fault (especially the Wellington Fault) that will cause wide spread ground deformation and uplift and/or subsidence.

Ground shaking is the most widespread effect of an earthquake and is usually most severe closest to the fault. On release, waves of energy travel through the ground and produce a shaking effect. When the waves reach ground level, they slow down and are transformed into surface waves that produce either a vertical or lateral movement. The ground shaking is influenced by surface geology. In loose unconsolidated sediments such as gravels, sands and silts, ground shaking effects can be amplified. Areas likely to experience the highest amplification include reclaimed land around central Wellington, Kilbirnie, Rongotai and Miramar, Petone, Lower Hutt, Wainuiomata, Mangaroa Valley and low-lying areas around Porirua Harbour and Pauatahanui.

Liquefaction occurs when unconsolidated soils, particularly silty and sandy soils, become saturated with water in a shaking event and behave more as a liquid than a solid. Liquefaction has a range of associated effects such as ground subsidence, lateral spreading, landslides, foundation failures, flotation of buried structures and water fountaining. Areas at risk in the Wellington region include reclaimed land around Wellington City; Hutt River mouth and lower floodplain (Petone, Seaview, Gracefield); Porirua CBD and Pauatahanui; low lying areas on the Kāpiti coast, and areas built on drained/reclaimed watercourses or swamps (e.g. Wainuiomata, Miramar Peninsula interior and Kilbirnie).

Coastal Hazards

With over 500 km of coastline, the Wellington region is exposed to coastal hazards from a range of sources. Coastal hazards encompass coastal erosion and inundation, sea-level rise and tsunami.

Coastal erosion and inundation, often associated with storm surges and wave overtopping, have the capacity to cause significant damage to infrastructure and flooding in low-lying coastal areas. Storms in the Wellington region generally come from three main sources: southerly storms usually in winter, northwest storms persisting in spring and ex-tropical cyclones typically in summer and autumn months.

A storm surge is the short term elevation of the local sea level due to meteorological conditions of wind set-up and barometric lift (inverse barometer effect from relaxation of sea surface during low atmospheric pressure). Waves cause an additional wave setup through the surf zone and then run-up on the beach or seawall.

Around the Wellington region a combined storm-tide and wave setup elevation with a return period of 100 years is around 1.6–2.5 m (Otaki-Kāpiti), 1.6–2.3 m (south Wellington), and 1.5 m (Wellington Harbour) above Wellington Vertical Datum -1953 Invalid source specified..

Due to a mix of natural processes of geology, tectonics, sediment supply, wave exposure, storm-tide and relative sea-level rise, some sections of the coastline are in long term retreat – such as Paekākāriki and Te Kopi on the south Wairarapa Coast. Other areas have episodes of erosion that form part of a cycle of erosion and deposition (such as Paraparaumu). Storm-tide, wave run-up and associated coastal erosion can also cause inundation. Places particularly susceptible to coastal flooding and overtopping include areas on the Kāpiti Coast (Raumati South, Paekākāriki), Wellington south coast (Island Bay, Lyall Bay) and Wellington Harbour (Eastbourne, SH2, Lambton Quay).

Wellington has experienced an average rise in sea level of about 2 mm per year over the past 100 years. Most of this rise is due to climate change but it is being exacerbated by subsidence of the region (lower North Island) over the past decade, caused by slow-slip seismic events from deep tectonic plate movements. Projections for the end of this century indicate that the sea level in Wellington region could rise by 0.8 m by the 2090’s or 1.0 m by 2115 Invalid source specified., in line with the Ministry for the Environment guidance for coastal hazards and climate change Invalid source specified..

A tsunami is a series of waves generated by the sudden displacement of a water surface. The three main generating mechanisms are submarine fault ruptures, underwater or aerial landslides or volcanic activity. The Wellington region is at risk from tsunami generated from both distant (far-field > 3 hr travel time) and local sources (near-field < 1 hour travel time). Regionally-generated tsunami with 1–3 hr travel time (e.g. Solomon Islands or northern Kermadec area) are considered to pose less threat. Earthquakes off the coast of Chile present the largest far-field tsunami risk for the Central New Zealand region, while there are three potential sources of near-field tsunamis: the Hikurangi Subduction Margin of Pacific/Australia Plate boundary off the southeast coast, local faults in Cook Strait and submarine landslides off Cook Strait Canyon Invalid source specified..

Flooding

A flood occurs when an area of land, usually low-lying, is inundated with water from river flooding, flash floods or ponding. Frequent heavy rainstorms, the steep gradients of many river catchments and human occupation of floodplains combine to make flooding the most frequently occurring natural hazard event in the Wellington region. A heavy rainfall event is defined as 100 mm over a 24-hour period. The classic mechanism in the region for localised severe rainfall is a southerly front meeting a northwest front. The areas of greatest flood risk in the region are those catchments and floodplains that drain both west and east of the Tararua Range, where the highest rainfall occurs.

Flood risk also arises from high-intensity short-duration events over, for example 30 minutes to a few hours i.e. flash flooding.

River flooding from bank overtopping onto flood plains from prolonged rainfall is a particular risk for the Otaki and Waikanae River flood plains and the Lower Hutt valley. A credible event is a 500 year flooding event on the Hutt River exceeding the design standard of the stop banks. In order for this to occur, heavy intense rainfall from a stationary front bringing over 500 mm of rain over a 36-48 hour period to the Hutt River Catchment is needed. This would flood the Hutt Valley floodplain as well as causing flooding in the Otaki or Waikanae River valleys.

Serious flooding can also occur should flood defences fail before their supposed design capacity is reached. This can occur, for example, due to “piping” through or under banks, debris jams, out-flanking, bank scouring, bank slumping, landslide induced “tsunami” and channel capacity loss through in-channel deposition.

Sedimentation and erosion of rivers and streams, river mouths and tidal inlets, can be sudden (during an event) or develop gradually over time and can further exacerbate the flood risk by raising bed levels and undermining banks.

Flash flooding from intense heavy rainstorms is a high risk in short steep catchments such as in Waikanae, and Paekakariki. Surface flooding or ponding is due to the capacity of stormwater systems being exceeded, impeded drainage (drains being blocked) or antecedent conditions of the water table being high when the ground is waterlogged. This can occur around Porirua Harbour and Pauatahanui Inlet, as well as localised areas, such as the inter-dune depressions on Kāpiti Coast, and parts of Wellington City and Lower Hutt.

Other Natural Hazards

Landslides

The geology, tectonic setting and climate make the Wellington region particularly prone to landslides. These factors combined with inappropriate planning decisions and inadequate engineering design / maintenance make landslides second only to flooding, in terms of the economic costs from damages (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007).

Whether a slope fails or not depends on a balance between the strength of the slope material and the driving or shear stress acting on the slope. Water plays the biggest role in slope failure due to its addition to the mass on the slope. The two main types of antecedent conditions that lead to slips in the region are i) a wet winter with susceptibility increasing towards the end of the period, and ii) a dry summer with a major rainstorm event producing falls of over 200 mm.

Based on the region’s historical record, there are on average seven significant rainfall-triggered landslide events every year (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007). The next most common triggering mechanism is earthquake shaking. Strong earthquake shaking of intensity > MM eight is likely to generate large (>100,000 m³) bedrock landslides throughout the region. This intensity of shaking is expected in the region every 170 years on average.

Drought

Drought is a prolonged period of low rainfall leading to a severe soil moisture deficit. It becomes a hazard when people choose to live (and/or derive their livelihoods from the land) in drought-prone areas or when the drought limits water availability for municipal supply.

Research by the GWRC indicates a relationship between the Southern Oscillation Index and seasonal low rainfalls (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007). La Niña conditions, with predominant easterly/northeasterly flows, often result in lower than average rainfall in Kāpiti, the western and southern Tararua Range and the Rimutaka Range. This leads to low flows in the Otaki, Waikanae, Hutt, Wainuiomata and Orongorongo Rivers. Furthermore, if El Niño conditions are present in spring, then summer rainfall is likely to be below average in the central Wairarapa.

Wildfire

A wildfire is an unplanned blaze that starts in an open space, such as a hillside. Wildfires can be started through lightning strikes, arson, sparks (e.g. from a truck tyre blowout or train), or from out-of-control camp fires. Wildfire risk is heightened during prolonged drought conditions. The way a wildfire spreads will depend on the fuel (e.g. wood, scrub, dry grass/undergrowth), available oxygen, weather conditions (wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity) and slope angle.

Around 20 per cent of the land (165,500 hectares) in the Wellington region is at high to extreme risk from wildfire. This land is characterised by gorse and scrub vegetation, steep slopes, low rainfall and proximity to human habitation. The most at-risk areas are the southern and western edges of Wellington, the eastern Hutt hills and areas around Wainuiomata and Eastbourne.

Wind

High winds can occur throughout the region and can cause widespread damage to buildings, infrastructure and forestry. These winds may also disrupt transport (particularly ferry crossings and plane landings), and impact on power and telecommunication lines. The windiest areas are generally along Wellington’s coasts. Westerly winds, turned south by the Tararua Range, are funnelled through the gap of Cook Strait to produce strong north or north-westerly winds in the western Wellington region. Southerly winds flow parallel to the main Wellington ranges and are not as strong or as characteristically gusty as the north-westerly, however, they have higher average sustained wind speeds. The return period for a severe wind gust (sustained over 3 seconds) of 200 kph is roughly 140 yr (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007).

Lightning

Lightning occurs most frequently in the region during northwest storms but can also occur when a cold dry southerly front meets a warm moist northerly front, or from cumulonimbus thunder cells. Higher incidence of lightning strikes occur in the Tararua ranges, north Wairarapa and Kāpiti Coast. On average, there are between 0.15 and 0.7 lightning flashes per square kilometre every year in the region. Risk from lightening is low and can be reduced to near zero if basic precautions are undertaken (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007).

Snow and Hail

Hail can occur in southerly storms, when a cold dry southerly front meets a warm moist northerly front, or from convection thunder cells (cumulonimbus) on warm summer days. Hail is considered severe when it is over 30 mm diameter (golf ball size) (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007).

Snowfalls occur in the region in winter and early spring each year. These falls are generated from southerly storms, and are particularly located in the Hutt Valley, SH1 north of Paraparaumu and elevated areas above 500 metres. Heavy snowfall is regarded as more than 25 cm falling in a 24 hr period or 10 cm in 6 hrs. Falls below 200m above sea level are infrequent but 1 per year may be expected at between 200-500 m and 5 per year at 600-1000 m (Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, 2007).

Volcanic Hazard

There are no volcanoes in the Wellington region. However, there is a residual risk from ash fall from volcanic eruptions in other areas. Based on the 1995 and 1996 Mt Ruapehu eruptions the extent of ash fall for the Wellington region is estimated to be around 1 mm if winds are from northwest direction. The consequences of ash fall include human health impacts, economic impacts such as damage to property, clean-up costs, contamination of water supplies and possible closure of the airport.

Appendix C Planning Legislative Framework

This section outlines the planning provisions that councils use for managing natural hazard risk. To understand this it is necessary to consider the wider RMA framework.

Resource Management Act

The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) provides a mandate for councils to manage natural hazards, climate change impacts and the effects of hazard mitigation measures on the environment and is the primary statute for promoting hazard provision in regional and district plans. The legislation reflects the concept that decisions which affect local communities should be made by those communities.

While natural hazards are not specifically mentioned in Part 2 of the RMA, there are many activities involved in the mitigation of natural hazards that may be considered under Part 2 matters. There are a number of sections and subsections under Part 4 of the RMA that require regional and district councils to manage the effects of natural hazards and to gather information, undertake research and keep records of natural hazards, viz s30(1), s35(1) and S35(5j) Invalid source specified..

Subdivision and land development is controlled through the RMA. The legislation grants local authorities powers under s106 (and s220) to refuse subdivision if the land is prone to natural hazards. Whilst this is an important provision, regional and district plans would incorporate adequate limitations to prevent the subdivision and development of at-risk land, or ensure mitigation methods for any development that does take place Invalid source specified..

The Minister for the Environment’s recent speech to the Environmental Defence Society’s conference reconfirmed the current Government’s intent to secure better management of natural hazards through changes to the RMA Invalid source specified.. Details on these changes are yet to be released.

National Policy Statements and National Environmental Standards

National Policy Statements (NPSs) provide direction to local government on how competing national benefits and local costs should be balanced. National environmental standards (NESs) are regulations that set baseline nationwide minimum standards for particular issues.

While there are yet no national policy statements or national environmental standards addressing particular natural hazards, the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010 (NZCPS 2010) identifies coastal erosion and other natural hazards as a key issue facing the coastal environment. The NZCPS includes policies on the identification of coastal hazards Invalid source specified.. These policies relate to at least a 100-year planning horizon, subdivision, use and development in areas of coastal hazard risk; natural defences against coastal hazards; and strategies for protecting significant existing development from coastal hazard risk.

The Minister for the Environment recently confirmed the Government’s intent to pursue a National Policy Statement on Natural Hazards, in addition to changes to the RMA itself, which will strengthen the system for managing risk from natural hazards Invalid source specified..

Given the anticipated RMA reforms and their focus on the management of natural hazards, local authorities will need to be aware of developments at the national level in the event that new NPSs and NESs are developed and consider whether and how to incorporate such documents into their RMA plans and decision-making.

Wellington Regional Policy Statement

The Wellington Regional Policy Statement (RPS) (operative from 2013) sets out the framework and priorities for resource management in the Wellington region, including natural hazards. The RMA requires all regional councils to produce an RPS for their region and to review it every 10 years. Regional and district plans must “give effect” to the RPS. The current RPS for the Wellington Region takes a general “all hazards” approach and mentions all the main hazards experienced in the region.

There are a number of non-regulatory methods in the RPS that will assist in managing natural hazards, both explicitly and indirectly in the regional plan. These methods relate to the sharing and collection of hazards information, integrating management across administrative boundaries and assisting with biodiversity restoration projects.

To ensure integration with other hazard management activities in the region, the preparation of hazard provisions in the regional policy statement is linked with work being undertaken, and priorities established, as part of the Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan (CDEM Group Plan).

Wellington Regional Plans

Regional plans address specific hazard issues relevant to regional council functions including coastal hazards, floodplain management, land stability and geothermal hazards. A regional council can prepare a specific natural hazard regional plan; however, the interrelated nature of hazards with other environmental features or effects means that natural hazard provisions are generally dispersed amongst various sections of other regional plans.

Regional plans can contain objectives, policies and rules addressing natural hazards. Unlike district councils, regional councils can have rules in regional plans for controlling land (for the purposes of avoiding or mitigating natural hazards) that are exempt from existing use right clauses under s10(4) of the RMA. This makes them particularly useful in managing natural hazard risk in areas where development has taken place before plan rules to manage these risks could be implemented.

Regional plans generally include rules requiring resource consents and set out specific objectives and policies against which such consents are measured.

In Wellington, there is no regional plan for natural hazards, but there are hazard-related policies in the coastal, freshwater and soils plans. The regional coastal plan has hazard policies relating to occupation, use and disturbance of the foreshore, the freshwater plan deals with flood hazards and mitigation, and the soils plan has policies relating to soil erosion Invalid source specified..

The regional plans are currently under review in the proposed Natural Resources Plan (NRP), which was publicly notified in late July 2015. The proposed NRP combines coastal and regional plans and incorporates regulatory and non-regulatory methods. It is taking a general hazards approach without singling out individual hazards.

Council District Plans

Territorial authorities are required to prepare a district plan for their district and these plans are required to give effect to regional policy statements. Territorial authorities, when reviewing their district plan, need to be aware of the direction outlined in a regional policy statement, and how that should be implemented through their district plan. The Wellington RPS directs councils to identify high hazard areas and avoid inappropriate development in those areas.

Wellington City Council (WCC), Porirua City Council (PCC), Hutt City Council (HCC), Upper Hutt City Council (UHCC) and Kāpiti Coast District Council (KCDC) are all involved in developing the proposed Natural Hazards Strategy. The current RPS post-dates the development of most of their district plans. New plans and plan reviews need to provide clear direction through policy, rules and other means as to the approach and the desired outcomes sought in managing natural hazard risk.

Other

It is also important to consider non-RMA legislation available to manage natural hazards. The Local Government Act, Building Act and the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act are complementary to the RMA, and whilst these have different functions in relation to natural hazards management they are particularly relevant for the NHMS. Furthermore, specific to flooding hazards, NZS 9401:2008, the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1948 (SCRCA), Land Drainage Act 1908 (LDA), and the River Boards Act 1908 (RBA) also form part of the statutory context. This context is summarised below.

Local Government Act 2002

The Local Government Act (LGA) focuses on the functions and operations of local government and includes financial management, and provision and management of community infrastructure. The Act requires local authorities to prepare Long Term Plans (LTP) to describe the activities and strategic direction of the local authority over a 10-year period. The main tool for addressing risk management for key community assets is the Asset Management Plan which deals with the procedures and works required to meet functional requirements of assets and infrastructure. Both these plans are expected to include (and continue to review) climate change risks on an ongoing basis, using up-to-date information on the extent and likely effects of potential change.

Local Government Official Information Act 1987

Under this Act Local Authorities must issue a Land Information Memorandum (LIM) on request that details information held about a property including relevant natural hazards information. If that information is included in the District Plan, the authority is not required to include it in the LIM.

Building Act 2004

The Building Act prescribes the legal requirements for all buildings and includes sustainability as its core purpose. The Act allows local authorities to delay building work until a resource consent is obtained and can apply where development is taking place on hazard-prone land where plan rules require a resource consent (s37) Invalid source specified..

The Building Code is a regulation that accompanies the Building Act and is required to take account of all physical conditions that may affect a building, including temperature, water, snow, wind, differential movement, time-dependent effects and reversing and fluctuating effects. The Building Code also applies to site works, which must take into account changes in groundwater level, water, weather and vegetation, and ground loss and slumping.

Under the Building Code, structural elements of buildings and elements that are difficult to replace must be designed for a life not less than 50 years. This provision is for the protection of life in a hazard event, rather than maintaining the integrity of the building.

Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002

One purpose of the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002 (CDEM) is to improve and promote the sustainable management of hazards in a way that contributes to the social, economic, cultural and environmental well-being and safety of the public, and also the protection of property (s3) (s4) (s7) Invalid source specified..

The Act provides for planning and preparation for emergencies and for response and recovery in the event of an emergency. While it focuses on emergencies and appropriate responses, it also has strong community engagement and risk management aims.

The CDEM Act requires the CDEM Group^{^[18]} to produce a group civil defence emergency management plan. The broad purpose of a CDEM group plan is to enable the effective and efficient management of natural, biological and technological hazards for which a coordinated approach would be required to manage an incident.

The second generation Wellington Region Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan (CDEM group plan) was made operative in 2013 Invalid source specified.. In addition to containing operating procedures for the response to hazard events, it also analyses all the hazards that affect the region and ranks them according to their effects and the vulnerability of the community.

NZS 9401:2008

NZS 9401:2008 provides a risk-based approach for the management of flood risk. The standard requires:

· A broad understanding of the natural and human systems from catchment headwaters to the seas, their interactions and the significant factors that affect flooding and in its impact on society

· A rigorous basis for managing flood risk, within broadly defined and evolving concepts of sustainability and the behaviour of natural systems

· Comprehensive assessment of risks associated with floods, and their management;

· Involvement of all stakeholders

· Definition and agreement on the roles, responsibilities and function for flood risk management among individuals and organisations from local to national level.

Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1948, Land Drainage Act 1908 & River Boards Act 1908

These three Acts provide operational powers for regional councils and territorial authorities to carry out works to protect property from flood damage and prevent soil erosion. The SCRCA is the most important of these for taking active steps to prevent flooding or control its effects (Technical Advisory Group, 2012).

The powers of local authorities under these Acts are subject to the RMA. For example, section 13 of the RMA places a restriction on certain uses of beds of lakes and rivers unless expressly permitted by a national environmental standard, regional plan or resource consent. Activities undertaken under these Acts need to comply with this restriction. Further, while the Acts provide authorities with powers to enter and use property to manage flood risk, they are subject to existing protection for private property rights (Technical Advisory Group, 2012).

The Government has been considering for a number of years whether to repeal these Acts and include their relevant provisions in other legislation (such as the LGA).

Legislative Framework for Natural Hazards Management in New Zealand

Appendix D Good Practice

This section provides a broad summary of ‘Good Practice’ for natural hazard management. The summary is based on input from the project technical experts and also on existing good practice material. Where existing good practice material is used the relevant references are provided. Non-referenced statements are based on the views of the project technical experts.

Hazard and Risk Information

This section provides an overview of ‘good practice’ in terms of collection of natural hazard information. Hazard information is clearly important to the management of natural hazards as it informs quality decision-making processes.

The detail of the information gathered should be proportionate to the nature of the decision-making process, e.g. higher level regional policy will need less detailed information, while land use regulation intended to apply at a property-by-property level requires more detailed information. In this respect the Quality Planning website, Invalid source specified., recommends varying scales for hazard mapping based on the intended end-use, as follows:

· Regional (1:100,000 to 1:500,000)

· Medium (1:25,000 to 1:50,000) - typically municipal or small metropolitan areas

· Small (1:5,000 to 1:15,000) - typically site or property level. This scale is recommended for district plan hazard mapping.

Good practice also includes knowledge of and active use of online resources which contribute to a combined approach for the region. By way of example, key resources which should be utilised for good practice in determining earthquake hazards are set out below in the table. Contributing to the updating of these resources will ensure a greater shared knowledge of natural hazards.

Earthquake Hazard Key Resources

Resource	Link to Resource
GNS Science Invalid source specified.	http://www.gns.cri.nz/Home/Our-Science/Natural-Hazards/Earthquakes
Greater Wellington GIS Viewer Invalid source specified.	http://www.mapping.gw.govt.nz/gwrc
PCE guidelines for building near fault lines Invalid source specified.	http://www.pce.parliament.nz/assets/Uploads/Reports/pdf/Building_edge.pdf
GNS Science: New Zealand Active Faults Database Invalid source specified.	http://data.gns.cri.nz/af/

The key information that needs to be gathered should cover all types of natural hazards present in an area, and their geographic extent within the area, their magnitude and return period. The table below provides a summary of the key parameters for good practice natural hazard information.

In addition to information directly related to the natural hazard, information is also needed to help inform understanding of the consequences associated with a hazard event. Such information should include the nature of existing and ‘planned’ land uses in the area expected to be impacted by the hazard. This may include information on key infrastructure and community resources or facilities, building construction type, and local demographic and economic information Invalid source specified.. Information should also be available on the known inadequacies limitations and weaknesses of existing hazard mitigation works (e.g. flood protection works) and the influence that climate change may have on the magnitude, changing frequency and risk of a hazard event.

Hazard Information Requirements

Natural Hazard	Key parameters of ‘Good Practice’
ALL	Information should be available to all council staff on GIS and a high level of internal awareness should be maintained of this information and how it should be used
	Information on natural hazards and risk to property and regionally significant infrastructure should be made public
	Review and update information regularly, in accordance with a protocol
	The use of site-specific information which has been developed by others should be undertaken consistently and in accordance with a protocol
	Information, modelling and mapping of natural hazard extent and magnitude should take into account the impact of climate change, including sea-level rise and rainfall intensity
	The detail of the information should be appropriate to the intended end use
Flood Hazard	River/stream flood risk in urban or rural residential areas mapped to the 1% annual exceedance probability (AEP)
	Awareness of the weaknesses or limitation of flood protection works
	Residual risk for flood protection failure mapped (i.e. potential flooding losses with protection measures breached or overtopped).
	Extent of the mapped flood risk should take into account climate change (both on rainfall/runoff and sea-level rise at downstream boundary)
Earthquake Hazards	Fault trace maps should show level of uncertainty and constraint
	Liquefaction potential
	Ground shaking intensity
	Earthquake-induced slope failure potential
Coastal Hazards	Tsunami evacuation maps (using 2013 GNS tsunami review AEP levels as boundary wave heights)
	Coastal storm tide inundation to 1% AEP mapped and taking account of sea-level rise
	Evacuation maps for more vulnerable areas
	Identification of coastal erosion and inundation setbacks Invalid source specified.
Other Hazards	Knowledge of area susceptible to landslide / slope instability
	Mapping of terrain categories for wind speed multipliers, based on AS-NZS 1170-2 (2011): Structural design actions - Part 2: Wind actions
	Consideration of the need to gather data on other hazards (e.g. wildfire, drought, thunderstorm/lightning)

In gathering and collecting information, consideration needs to be given to cross-boundary consistency and to how human activity and natural hazard events outside of a council’s jurisdiction may influence local natural hazards. In this respect, where a hazard risk crosses a boundary (e.g. a fault line or river) a coordinated effort to information gathering is recommended. Similarly, where activities from outside of the council’s area could influence the risk associated with a natural hazard then information on these matters should be collected.

Finally, the approach to information collection should recognise the cyclical nature of the planning process. In this respect information collection should be ongoing and include monitoring of the effectiveness of the natural hazard decision-making and management/treatment plan. A protocol should be established which ensures that the results of the monitoring are incorporated into an information review and update process.

Planning for Natural Hazards

Good practice recommends that a risk-based approach is taken to planning for natural hazards and follows a rational planning cycle (see diagram below). Detailed descriptions of the steps involved are provided on the Quality Planning Invalid source specified. and GNS websites Invalid source specified. and with specific reference to flood risk in NZS 9401 Invalid source specified..

The initial phase in a risk-based planning approach is gathering information on the hazards of relevance to a district or region. Discussion on this aspect of the process is covered above. The next steps in the risk-based planning approach are to determine the consequences of the hazards occurring (including consequences from cascading hazards e.g. flooding and land slips) and then the likelihood of those hazards (or cascading hazards) occurring.

A variety of qualitative and quantitative methods are available to help determine the risk associated with a natural hazard. The method selected should be based on the hazard context, objectives of the analysis, the intended end use and resourcing. Consideration should also be given to cross-boundary consistency and how to incorporate cross-boundary influences on the consequences and likelihood of a hazard event. Finally, given that all approaches will contain a degree of uncertainty and inaccuracy, sensitivity analysis should be applied, i.e. the analysis should consider ‘what if’ the assumptions that have been made do not eventuate in the manner or to the extent envisaged.

A risk-based approach requires the ‘acceptable’ level of risk to be determined and a treatment or management plan established. While stakeholder engagement is important throughout the process, it is particularly critical during this phase. Determining the acceptable level of risk and the associated treatment plan involves evaluating trade-offs. The trade-offs that need to be considered are between an absolute risk-free community, the costs (environmental, social and economic) that may arise in achieving that outcome and who or what bears these costs. Community input is critical to this evaluation.

The treatment plan may involve regulatory (resource management policy and rules), non-regulatory (education and engagement programmes) and engineered solutions, or most likely a mix of these.

The final stage in the risk-based cycle is monitoring and evaluation. The purpose of this stage is to evaluate the effectiveness of measures implemented under the treatment plan and re-evaluate these where it is shown that they are not achieving the acceptable level of risk determined in the earlier stage.

Risk-based planning approach and steps Invalid source specified.

Including Climate Change in Plans

Local authorities have both social and legal obligations to take climate change effects into account in their decision-making. Local government is required to operate under a range of principles that are set out in law or have evolved through good practice and case law. All must be kept in mind when dealing with climate change effects.

Guidance from the Ministry for the Environment, “Preparing for Climate Change: A Guide for Local Government in New Zealand” identifies the following key principles Invalid source specified..

• sustainability

• consideration of the foreseeable needs of future generations

• avoidance, remedy or mitigation of adverse effects

• adoption of a precautionary / cautious approach

• the ethic of stewardship / kaitiakitanga

• consultation and participation

• financial responsibility

• liability

The guide also provides checklists to help ensure that climate change is considered in various plans.

Framework pillars	Regional strategy priority	Wellington City focus – local response
Participation opportunities	· Low participation groups · Providing young people with a broad range of quality participation opportunities – in and outside of school · Removing/minimising barriers to participation	· Identify and support low participation groups · Reduce barriers to participation
Regional Sporting Success	· Athlete development · Developing strategic partnerships – tertiary, HPSNZ, franchise sports, funders · Celebrating regional sporting success	· Attract and support regional and national events · Support franchise and representative sport · Work in partnership with Sport Wellington to expand the successful talent development programme across the region
Spaces and Places	· Regional Spaces and Places plan (including venues/stadia for hosting events) · Facility partnerships · Sportsville and sports hub development · Regional and community events planning	· Work with Sport NZ, Sport Wellington and other TAs to develop a regional facilities plan (spaces and places) · Work with GWRC and other TAs, and mountain biking and the trail user community to develop a regional trails framework
Workforce Excellence	· Workforce development - paid staff - volunteer planning and development - leadership development · Knowledge building - research and insights	· Sport club capability and health · Support for emerging sports
Strategic Investment	· Regional Investors’ Network · Growing the funding pool	· Provide grant funding to clubs for planning · Provide grant funding to support strategic projects and partnerships with the community · Review the criteria for why and how Wellington City Council invests in and supports sport · Investigate the regional funders’ model adopted in Auckland and establish the benefits of adopting a similar approach in the Wellington region.

Attachment 1

Appendix 1 Local Governance Statement

3. STATUTES PERTAINING TO HUTT CITY COUNCIL

In fulfilling its purpose, Hutt City Council exercises powers and fulfils responsibilities conferred on it by various Statutes. Chief among these are the:

§ Building Act 2004

§ Bylaws Act 1910

§ Dog Control Act 1996

§ Hutt Valley Drainage Act 1967

§ Local Authorities (Members Interests) Act 1968

§ Local Electoral Act 2001

§ Local Government Act 2002

§ Local Government Act 1974 (part)

§ Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

§ Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987

§ Resource Management Act 1991

§ Reserves Act 1977

§ Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012

§ Public Records Act 2005

Other key general and local Statutes that confer powers on Hutt City Council and regulate its functions are detailed in Appendix 2 to this Governance Statement.

4. THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE IT

Hutt City Council currently operates its elections under the First Past the Post (FPP) electoral system. Electors vote for their preferred candidate(s), and those with the most votes win.

The other option permitted under the Local Electoral Act 2001 is the Single Transferable Voting electoral system (STV). This system is used in District Health Board (DHB) elections. Under this system electors rank candidates in order of preference and successful candidates must receive a quota (expressed as a percentage of the valid votes cast). When there are enough candidates with a quota to fill all the seats, they are declared elected.

Under the Local Electoral Act 2001, there are three ways in which Council’s electoral system can be changed:

§ Council can resolve to change the system (to be used at the next two elections).

§ Council can conduct a binding poll.

§ Electors can demand a binding poll by gaining the signatures of five per cent or more of the registered electors on a petition.

Hutt City Council last conducted a poll on its electoral system on 21 May 2003, and the decision of the voters was to retain the FPP electoral system.

An opportunity to conduct a poll to change the electoral system for the 2019 triennial general election for Hutt City Council and its community boards is available to Council and electors, but must be triggered by a demand by electors or a resolution of Council by 28 February 2018.

5. REPRESENTATION ARRANGEMENTS AND REVIEW OF REPRESENTATION

Hutt City Council has 12 councillors elected through a ward system. The Mayor is elected at-large on a city-wide basis.

WARDS

Hutt City is divided into six wards with representation as follows:

Ward	No. of Members	Population (2006 Census figures)	Ratio of Councillor: Ward Population (2006 figures)
Northern	2	16,350	1:8175
Eastern	2	17,950	1:8975
Central	2	16,950	1:8475
Western	2	15,650	1:7825
Wainuiomata	2	18,100	1:9050
Harbour	2	17,950	1:8975
Total	12	102,948	1:8579

COMMUNITY BOARDS

Hutt City Council has three Community Boards. The composition of each is as follows:

Eastbourne Community Board

Five members elected by the community plus two councillors appointed by Council.

Petone Community Board

Six members elected by the community plus two councillors appointed by Council.

Wainuiomata Community Board

Six members elected by the community plus two councillors appointed by Council.

Each Community Board elects its own chair at its first meeting after the election. The Local Electoral Act 2001 requires Council to review its community board structure periodically and this was last completed in 2013.

Review of Representation Arrangements

Council is required to review its representation arrangements at least once every six years. The next review will take place in 2018. This review must include the following:

§ The number of elected members (between six and 30 including the Mayor).

§ Whether the elected members (other than the Mayor) shall be elected by the entire city, or continue to be elected by their ward, or a mix of both systems.

§ The boundaries and names of those wards and the number of members that will represent each ward (if election by wards is preferred).

§ Whether or not to have separate Māori wards.

§ Whether to have community boards and if so how many, their boundaries, membership and whether to subdivide a community for electoral purposes.

Council must follow the procedure set out in the Local Electoral Act 2001 when conducting this review and should also follow guidelines published by the Local Government Commission. The Act gives members of the public the right to make a written submission to Council, and the right to be heard if requested.

Members of the public also have the right to appeal any decisions on the representation review proposals to the Local Government Commission, which will make a binding decision on the matter. Further details on the matters that Council must consider in reviewing its membership and basis of election can be found in the Local Electoral Act 2001.

6. ELECTED MEMBERS’ ROLES AND CONDUCT

Division of Responsibility between Council and Management

A key to the efficient running of any Council is that there is a clear division between the role of elected members and that of management. This Governance Statement:

§ Clarifies the governance and the management responsibilities.

§ Clarifies the governance role and expected conduct of elected members.

§ Describes the effective, open and transparent processes used by Council.

§ Ensures separation of regulatory and non-regulatory responsibilities.

§ Explains the good employer requirements.

Governance statements ensure the community has information on the processes Council follows when making decisions and taking action and how the community can influence these processes. While many of Council’s functions have been delegated, the overall responsibility for maintaining effective systems of internal control ultimately rests with Council. Internal control includes the policies, systems and procedures established to provide measurable assurance that specific objectives will be achieved.

Role of the mayor

The Mayor provides leadership to Council and the people of the district. This includes leading the development of Council’s plans, policies and budgets. The Mayor has the power:

§ To appoint the deputy mayor;

§ To establish committees of Council;

§ To appoint the chair of each Council committee.

Role of Council

Council – as elected members – has overall responsibility and accountability for the proper direction and control of Council’s activities in pursuit of community outcomes. This responsibility includes:

§ Formulating the City’s strategic direction and policy in conjunction with the community – currently incorporated in the Long Term Plan (LTP).

§ Employing the Chief Executive and reviewing the performance of the organisation.

Hutt City Council, as an organisation, has responsibility for:

§ Providing good quality local infrastructure, local public services, and regulatory functions in a cost effective way.

§ Determining the services and activities to be undertaken.

§ Managing principal risks.

§ Administering various regulations and up-holding the law.

§ Implementing and monitoring the LTP.

§ Ensuring the integrity of management control systems.

§ Safeguarding the public interest.

§ Ensuring effective succession of elected members.

§ Reporting to ratepayers.

ROLE OF COMMUNITY BOARDS

Community Boards are constituted under section 49 of the Local Government Act 2002 to:

§ Represent and act as advocates for the interests of their community.

§ Consider and report on any matter referred to them by Council and any issues of interest or concern to the Community Board.

§ Make an annual submission to Council on projects and expenditure in the community.

§ Develop a Local Community Plan in consultation with their community.

§ Maintain an overview of services provided by Council within the local community.

§ Act as a channel of communication between the community and Council.

§ Undertake any other responsibilities delegated by Council.

Responsibilities Delegated to Community Boards

The delegations made to the community boards by Hutt City Council are attached as Appendix 3 to this Governance Statement.

Code of Conduct

The Local Government Act 2002 requires every council to adopt a code of conduct for the elected members of Council. Hutt City Council adopted its code on 15 December 2016. This code also applies to all people appointed to committees or subcommittees of Council.

Hutt City Council’s Code of Conduct provides guidance on the standards of behaviour expected from elected members in their dealings with:

§ Each other.

§ The Chief Executive.

§ Staff.

§ Social media.

§ The general public.

The Code of Conduct is attached as Appendix 4 to this Governance Statement.

7. Governance arrangements

Open Government

Council believes that its democratic election by citizens of Hutt City ensures that it is able to operate in the best interests of the city. Hutt City Council operates under ‘open government’, which means it will share information and follow open and transparent processes.

Hutt City Council will:

§ Make sure that there is easy access to Council’s public facilities and buildings.

§ Be visible and open.

§ Provide the community with information as required by relevant legislation.

§ Give reasons for the non-disclosure of information.

§ Handle all complaints fairly and efficiently.

§ Encourage suggestions to improve its community.

§ Encourage participation by assisting residents to work with Council.

Council Meetings

Council and standing committee meetings generally take place on a six weekly cycle.

In addition, given the importance of the Long Term Plan and Annual Plans and Council’s strategic planning for the future, the full Council meets as the Community Plan Committee for these purposes each year.

Council holds its meetings to monitor management activities and to ensure that the affairs of Council are being conducted in accordance with legislative mandate and Council objectives. Council also monitors the performance of Council Organisations and Council-Controlled Organisations (including Council-Controlled Trading Organisations), and sets out their obligations to Council via Statements of Intent which are negotiated annually.

Council Committees

Council has set up five principal standing committees made up of elected members to monitor and assist in the effective discharging of specific responsibilities. The committee cycle is generally six-weekly.

The responsibilities of the five principal standing committees are as follows:

Policy and Regulatory Committee

This committee assists Council monitor the development of strategies and policy that meet the current and future needs of communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and business. This committee also considers matters relating to regulatory and quasi-judicial responsibilities of Council under legislation.

City Development Committee

This committee monitors Council’s performance in promoting the on-going growth, redevelopment and improvement of the City, oversee the delivery of projects which contribute to these outcomes and to monitor the delivery of the regulatory and operational services in accordance with goals and objectives set by Council and ensure compliance with relevant legislation.

Finance and Performance Committee

This committee is responsible for assisting Council to execute its financial and performance monitoring obligations and associated risk, control and governance frameworks and processes.

Community Services Committee

This committee assists Council with the development of community services which contribute to the character, culture, and identity of the city and to pursue an active community development role in active partnership with local communities.

District Plan Committee

This committee monitors the effectiveness of the City of Lower Hutt District Plan as a strategic policy and operational documents for the district and facilitate consideration of Plan Changes. This committee also considers matters relating to quasi-judicial responsibilities of Council under legislation.

The following committees are also standing committees of Council but meet as required to deal with the particular matters related to their delegations:

Code of Conduct Committee

This committee is responsible for carrying out all necessary consideration and hearings and make decisions on material breaches of Council’s Code of Conduct.

District Licensing Committee

The functions of this committee are specified under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012.

Civic Honours Committee

The Civic Honours Committee meets once a year to consider and select the recipients of the annual Civic Honours awards.

Community Plan Committee

This committee is responsible for carrying out all necessary consideration and hearings precedent to Council's final adoption of Long Term Plans and Annual Plans.

Council has two joint committees – HVSC and Wellington Water

The Hutt Valley Services Committee’s purpose is to facilitate coordination and decision-making on combined council services in the Hutt Valley.

The Wellington Water Committee’s purpose is to provide a governance oversight of the network infrastructure for the delivery of bulk water, water reticulation, wastewater and stormwater services in the areas of Lower Hutt City, Porirua City, Upper Hutt City and Wellington City.

Hutt City Council is also represented by elected members on the following Greater Wellington Regional Council operated committee / subcommittee:

§ Hutt Valley Flood Management Subcommittee.

§ Wellington Regional Strategy Committee.

§ Regional Transport Committee.

§ Civil Defence Emergency Management Group (Wellington Region).

And the following joint committees:

§ Wellington Regional Waste Minimisation and Management (WMMP) Joint Committee.

§ Wellington Regional Amenities Fund Joint Committee.

A diagram of Council’s committee structure is attached as Appendix 5 to this Governance Statement.

Subcommittees / Working Groups

Council may also set up subcommittees or working groups to deal with various other functions and activities. These subcommittees and working groups may report to a standing committee or directly to Council and usually have quite specific terms of reference.

Arts and Culture Subcommittee

This subcommittee advises Council regarding a strategic direction for community arts and culture in Hutt City that aligns with the principles of Council’s Arts and Culture Policy 2016-2021.

Chief Executive’s Employment Subcommittee

This subcommittee has primary responsibility for executing the Chief Executive’s performance agreement and monitoring the Chief Executive’s performance. This subcommittee also has responsibility, if required, of conducting a Chief Executive recruitment process.

Temporary Road Closures Subcommittee

This subcommittee has primary responsibility for approving temporary road closures.

Traffic Subcommittee

This subcommittee has primary responsibility for considering and making recommendations to Council on traffic matters and consider any traffic matters referred to it by Council. For the avoidance of doubt, “traffic” includes parking and excludes temporary road closures under clause 11(e) of the Tenth Schedule of the LGA 1974 and the Transport (Vehicular Traffic Road Closure) Regulations 1965.

Working / Steering / Advisory Groups

§ Cycling Steering Group.

§ Civic Precinct Project Steering Group.

§ Safe Hutt Valley Governance Group.

§ CBD Making Places Task Force.

§ Community Arts and Culture Advisory Group.

§ Property Working Group for Advancing Strategic Projects.

§ Huia Pool Project Control Group.

Community Boards

Community boards focus on local matters within a particular community or ward and are responsible for assessing their community’s requirements. They exercise decision-making power on issues specifically delegated by Council within the strategic direction and LTP framework set by Council.

Councillor Briefings / Workshops

Briefings / workshops provide opportunities for members to discuss particular matters, receive briefings and provide guidance for officials. Briefings / workshops are not meetings and cannot be used to either make decisions or come to agreements that are then confirmed without the opportunity for meaningful debate at a formal meeting. Standing orders do not apply to workshops and briefings. The Chair or briefing/workshop organisers will decide how the workshop / briefing should be conducted.

Advertising of Meetings

All meetings convened by Council are publicly advertised each month and are open to the public, except for those parts of the meeting from which the public is excluded in accordance with the requirements of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987. Agendas for meetings of Council, its committees and community boards are available to members of the public before the meeting from Council’s offices and are also available on Council’s website www.huttcity.govt.nz.

There are many different ways in which members of the public can voice their opinions to Council and its committees, including presentation of petitions, deputations and through the public comment section, which is generally held for a period of up to 30 minutes at the beginning of each public meeting.

The Terms of Reference and Delegations for Council and its committees and community boards are attached as Appendix 6 and Appendix 6A to this Governance Statement.

Partnerships

Hutt City Council seeks to establish close working relationships with various sectors within the community and a partnership approach will be encouraged when working towards community outcomes with the following:

§ Contractors, service suppliers, consultants and advisors.

§ Businesses and their representative organisations.

§ Volunteer organisations.

§ Local mana whenua and Marae.

§ Community groups.

§ Government agencies.

8.
Meeting processes

The legal requirements for council meetings are set down in the Local Government Act 2002 and the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (LGOIMA).

All Council, committee and community board meetings must be open to the public unless there is reason to consider some item under public exclusion. Hutt City Council allows for public comment at the beginning of most of its meetings. The LGOIMA contains a list of the circumstances where councils may consider items with the public excluded (these circumstances generally relate to protection of personal privacy, professionally privileged or commercially sensitive information and the maintenance of public health, safety and order).

Council agenda is a public document, although parts may be withheld if the above circumstances apply.

The Mayor or committee chair is responsible for maintaining order at meetings and may, at his or her discretion, order the removal of any member of the public for disorderly conduct, or remove any member of Council who does not comply with Standing Orders (a set of procedures for conducting meetings). Minutes of meetings must be kept and made publicly available, subject to the provisions of the LGOIMA.

For an ordinary meeting of Council, at least 14 days’ notice of the time and place of the meeting must be given. Extraordinary meetings can generally be called on three working days’ notice. Council agrees to its ordinary meeting schedule for the upcoming year on an annual basis, although amendments may be made from time to time.

During meetings of Council, committees or community boards, all Council participants must follow Standing Orders unless Standing Orders are suspended by a vote of 75% (or more) of the members present. Copies of Standing Orders can be obtained from the Secretariat Services Division of Council or from Council’s website www.huttcity.govt.nz.

9. Relationships with MĀORI

Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi)

Council has an obligation to take into account the principals of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and to recognise and provide for the special relationships between Māori, their culture, traditions, land and taonga

The obligation to consult includes recognising those who have mana whenua, or inherited rights of land ownership.

Within Hutt City these rights are vested in Te Rünanganui o Taranaki whänui ki te Upoko o te Ika a Maui and Ngä Tekau o Pöneke (Wellington Tenths Trust). Both groups represent Te Atiawa and the Taranaki tribes within the Wellington region

The Treaty of Waitangi has a significant effect on the functions of Hutt City Council. Council is clear that it has a relationship with iwi resident within the City. This relationship includes the acknowledgement of Te Atiawa as the iwi mana whenua and kaitiaki (those with authority and guardianship over their tribal territory).

This relationship also includes the acknowledgment of Te Taura Here o Te Awakairangi (representing twenty three tribal groups).

Open and honest communication between Council and Māori is an important step in strengthening this relationship. In order to improve Council's relationship with Māori, the following is used as a strategic guideline;

§ To acknowledge the role of mana whenua (authority over tribal territory).

§ To give effect to the principals of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi).

§ To maintain and improve opportunities for Maori to contribute to local government decision-making processes.

§ To promote tikanga Māori (Te Atiawa protocol) throughout Council.

§ To take up opportunities where Māori, as a major contributor to economic and social improvement, offers to advance the best interest of Hutt citizens as a whole.

10. Management STRUCTURE

Chief Executive

The Local Government Act 2002 requires Council to employ a Chief Executive. Council sets the broad strategic direction and policies for the Chief Executive and staff to implement and audits the results. Council ensures, on behalf of the community, that the organisation achieves what it should and that it avoids undesirable situations and circumstances. The Chief Executive of Council is the sole employee of the elected members of Council. The Chief Executive in turn is the employer of all other Council staff members. The Chief Executive is responsible to Council for:

§ Implementing the decisions of Council.

§ Providing timely advice to Council, community board and community committee members.

§ Ensuring all functions delegated to the Chief Executive or to any other employees are carried out.

Hutt City Council monitors the Chief Executive’s performance through a series of performance measures and the Chief Executive is accountable to Council through a quarterly reporting process.

The Chief Executive is the only person who may lawfully give instructions to a staff member. Any complaint about individual staff members should, therefore, be directed to the Chief Executive, rather than the Mayor or councillors.

Council Management

Hutt City Council’s Strategic Leadership Team’s (SLT) role is to lead the organisation and ensure they deliver Council’s expected outcomes. This is done by collectively and individually:

§ Painting the big picture.

§ Inspiring our people.

§ Driving positive results.

§ Being customer driven.

In order to best deliver Council’s Integrated Vision, key Strategies and LTP, SLT’s priority for 2016-2019 will be to rejuvenate and create an exciting new Hutt City.

To do this we will:

§ Provide the best local government services.

§ Develop new world-class community facilities.

§ Stimulate economic and social development.

The Strategic Leadership Team's key priorities for 2016-2019 are:

Provide the Best Local Government Services

We want HCC to lead in providing the best local government services. This is so all who work here know they are part of a successful organisation delivering great results for our customers and for Hutt City.

Develop New World-Class Community Facilities

Accessible world-class community facilities drive greater participation and foster pride. Our facilities will enhance wellbeing through physical achievement, creativity, learning, social interaction and community development.

Stimulate Economic and Social Development

We can make Hutt City an exciting place for businesses to locate and people to work. We can make a positive difference to the lives of people who live here.

Council management is divided into four groups:

· City Infrastructure

· Strategic Services

· Community Services

· Governance and Regulatory

with Finance and Human Resources reporting to the office of the Chief Executive, as detailed below:

Tony Stallinger
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
,Executive Assistant,General Manager
City Infrastructure
,Chief Financial Officer,General Manager
Strategic Services
,General Manager
Governance and Regulatory
,General Manager
Community Services
,Divisional Manager
Human Resources

Kathryn Stannard
Divisional Manager Secretariat Services
,Helen Oram
Divisional Manager Environmental Consents
,Geoff Stuart
Divisional Manager Regulatory Services
,Enid Davids
Manager
Risk and Assurance

Attachment 1

Appendix 1 Local Governance Statement

City Infrastructure Group

The City Infrastructure Group is comprised of five Divisions. In summary the Group is responsible for managing the community’s infrastructural assets in the form of Parks and Gardens, Roading, Water Supply, Wastewater and Stormwater networks, the Wastewater treatment system and the city’s Solid Waste Operations.

Roading, Parks and Gardens, and Solid Waste are managed ‘in house’, while Water activities are managed by Wellington Water Limited.

Wellington Water Limited was originally established by Hutt and Wellington City Councils, but is now owned by, and manages water treatment and supply, stormwater and wastewater networks for their current shareholding Councils; WCC, HCC, PCC, UHCC and GWRC.

Bruce Sherlock
GENERAL MANAGER
CITY INFRASTRUCTURE
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
,Executive Assistant,Solid Waste
Landfills
Recycling Collection
Refuse Collection

,Wellington Water
Water supply
Stormwater
Wastewater
,Maintenance Contracts Manager ,Divisional Manager Parks and Gardens ,Divisional Manager
Road and Traffic

Kathryn Stannard
Divisional Manager Secretariat Services
,Helen Oram
Divisional Manager Environmental Consents
,Geoff Stuart
Divisional Manager Regulatory Services
,Enid Davids
Manager
Risk and Assurance

STRATEGIC Services Group

The activities managed by Strategic Services Group are outlined below:

§ Provides information services including IT operations, application development and management, applications training, geographical information systems (GIS), business analysis, corporate information and engineering records.

§ Provides communications and marketing advice and support.

§ Operates Council’s customer service centre and front counter.

§ Supports business, tourism and environmental development in Hutt City.

§ Develops and implements environmental objectives, policies and rules, and monitors the environment, primarily through the District Plan.

§ Provides policy advice, develops strategy, carries out research and manages corporate planning.

§ Provides architecture and urban design advice.

§ Manages Kaupapa Māori projects.

§ Leads strategic projects across the organisation.

Kim Kelly
GENERAL MANAGER
STRATEGIC SERVICES
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
,Executive Assistant,Divisional Manager Strategy and Planning,Manager
Urban Design
,Chief Information Officer,Divisional Manager City Promotions

Kathryn Stannard
Divisional Manager Secretariat Services
,Helen Oram
Divisional Manager Environmental Consents
,Geoff Stuart
Divisional Manager Regulatory Services
,Enid Davids
Manager
Risk and Assurance

Community Services Group

Community Services Group’s purpose is to:

Deliver the best core local government public services in New Zealand in the areas of Libraries, Museums, Physical Recreation, and Community Safety and Connections. This Group:

§ operates seven public libraries;

§ operates three indoor aquatic facilities and three outdoor summer pools;

§ operates two museums;

§ runs literacy, recreational and arts programmes and services across the city;

§ facilitates and leads various safety initiatives;

§ provides and enables key connections with local community groups and individuals; and

§ provides various forms of community funding for initiatives and projects that are aligned to Council’s strategic objectives.

Work to renew and revitalise Hutt City’s network of community facilities. This Group:

§ works closely with the Communities Facilities Trust to deliver on Council’s Long term Integrated Community Facilities Plan; and

§ in particular on initial community facility projects approved by Council, including:

o Fraser Park Sportsville

o Stokes Valley Community Hub

o Huia Learn to Swim pool

o Naenae Community Hub

Improve the quality of life and wellbeing of those living in high deprivation communities starting in our Northern and Eastern suburbs. This Group:

§ runs or facilitates programmes and initiatives that provide greater access (especially for youth) to literacy, recreation and the arts;

§ operates a community services office in Taita; and

§ works in partnership with key government agencies, schools, community groups and individuals on projects and initiatives.

Matt Reid
GENERAL MANAGER
COMMUNITY SERVICES
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
,Executive Assistant,Divisional Manager Community Hubs,Community Facilities Manager,Divisional Manager Libraries,Director Museums ,Divisional Manager Leisure Active,Community Projects and Relationships Manager

Kathryn Stannard
Divisional Manager Secretariat Services
,Helen Oram
Divisional Manager Environmental Consents
,Geoff Stuart
Divisional Manager Regulatory Services
,Enid Davids
Manager
Risk and Assurance

GOVERNANCE AND REGULATORY Group

The activities managed by the Governance and Regulatory Group are outlined below:

Risk and Assurance

Risk and Assurance works across the organisation, focusing on assurance and advisory activities, including monitoring and reporting to SLT and to staff on:

§ Internal audit.

§ Risk management framework.

§ Service / business service continuity.

§ Staff conflict of interest and gifts registers.

§ Fraud risk management framework.

§ ISO 14001 environmental management systems compliance.

Secretariat Services

§ Provides advice and support to Council in terms of its democratic processes.

§ Provides advice to the Mayor's office and elected members.

§ Manages the provision of Council’s meeting processes.

Mayoral Office

Provides administrative support and assistance to the Mayor of Hutt City including managing the Mayoral Office ceremonies, awards and functions.

Legal Services

§ Building Act Issues.

§ CCO Relationship management.

§ Commercial Advice.

§ Conflicts of Interest.

§ Contract Law.

§ Delegations Register questions.

§ General legal advice.

§ Governance and Procedural Issues.

§ Litigation case management.

§ Members’ Interests Register.

§ Privacy Officer.

§ Property law – leases and licenses, easements, caveats, encumbrances and building line restrictions.

§ Resource Management and Planning Issues.

§ Requests for Official Information.

§ Risk management.

§ Warrant Issues – warrant holders or obtaining warrants.

Environmental Consents

§ Manages the building and resource consent procedures for Hutt City; this includes both processing and inspections for these applications; along with public enquiries and meetings.

§ Deals with complaints under the Building Act and the Resource Management Act (unconsented structures, activities not complying with the District Plan rules, unauthorised tree removal, etc).

§ Manages Environment Court appeals, prosecutions, judicial reviews, abatement notices, RMA infringement notices, weathertight homes claims.

§ Manages the fencing of domestic swimming pools.

§ Manages property information; in Land Information Memoranda (usually applied for when a member of the public wants to buy a property in the Hutt) and in building information searches.

§ Administers the Earthquake Prone Building Policy.

§ Offers a free Eco Design Advisor service, where technical trained staff offer free independent advice to customers about how to make their homes healthier, drier and warmer, and free design advice to customers.

Regulatory Services

This Division is responsible for the monitoring and enforcement of government legislation and HCC bylaws in the function of Animal Services, Environmental Health, Parking Services and Trade Waste.

§ Animal Services – monitoring and enforcement under the Dog Control Act and the Dog Control Bylaw which require services such as dog registration, managing dog investigations, safety around dog education, rehoming and microchipping.

§ Environmental Inspections– monitoring and enforcement under the Sale of Alcohol , RMA and HCC Bylaw which require services for sale of alcohol, food safety / food control plans, emergency incidents, health nuisance, hazardous / pollution / noise incidents, fire and litter.

§ Parking Services – monitoring and enforcement under the Land Transport Act and HCC Bylaws which require services for parking offences, stationary vehicle parking complaints, educating drivers, involvement in special events and parking permit dispensations.

§ Trade Waste – management of the Hutt Valley Trade Waste Bylaw which requires services for inflow reduction projects, monitoring all commercial liquid flows into the sewer, stormwater problem issues, pollution / hazardous response, consenting commercial waste water disposal systems and vegetation over growths.

Risk and Assurance Manager,Solicitor,Divisional Manager Secretariat Services,Divisional Manager Regulatory Services,Divisional Manager Environmental Consents,Joycelyn Raffills
GENERAL MANAGER
GOVERNANCE AND REGULATORY
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
,Executive Assistant

Council Organisations and Council-Controlled Organisations

In order to achieve its objectives, Council operates several Council Organisations, Council-Controlled Organisations and Council-Controlled Trading Organisations. These organisations independently manage facilities, as well as deliver services and undertake developments on behalf of the Hutt City community. Hutt City’s Council-Controlled Organisations are detailed in the Long Term Plan document. Their obligations to Council are set out in their Statements of Intent, negotiated annually with Council.

11. BYLAWS

Hutt City Council bylaws are as follows:

§ Cemeteries Bylaw 2007 – adopted by Council 3 July 2007. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate interments, digging the ground in a cemetery, backfilling plots, interruption of interments, disinterments, restoration of plot monument, plants and damage to cemetery.

§ Control of Alcohol in Public Places Bylaw 2016 – adopted by Council 15 December 2016 and effective from 21 December 2016. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate prohibited acts, resolution to specify alcohol free zones, exceptions, permits for exceptions, powers of the Police, breaches and penalties.

§ Control of Animals Bylaw 2008 – adopted by Council 3 June 2008. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate keeping of goats and poultry, no roosters in urban areas, noise from animals, health and safety issues from bee keeping and trapping devices.

§ Dog Control Bylaw 2015 – adopted by Council 15 December 2015. The purpose of this bylaw is to cover limitation on number of dogs permitted on land or premises, licensing of additional dogs, revocation of licence, limitation on numbers not to apply in certain areas, general controls in public places, dog exercise areas, prohibited areas, exemption for certain working dogs, owner deemed to have permitted dog to be in a public place, confinement of dogs at night, impounding of dogs, standards for keeping of dogs and notice to upgrade standards.

§ Fire Prevention (Urban Fire District) Bylaw 2008 – adopted by Council 3 June 2008. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate limits on fires during a prohibited and restriction fire seasons, prohibited activities, declaring a prohibited fire season, permits and special exemptions and incinerators.

§ Food Premises Bylaw 2014 – adopted by Council 16 December 2014. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate closure of premises, staff qualifications, appeals and offences.

§ Speed Limits Bylaw 2016 – adopted by Council 28 July 2015. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate speed limits, consultation and offences.

§ Hutt Valley Trade Wastes Bylaw 2016 – adopted by Hutt City Council 20 September 2016 and adopted by Upper Hutt City Council 21 September 2016. The purpose of this bylaw is to control trade wastes discharges into the wastewater system, provide a basis for consenting and monitoring discharges from industry and trade premises, charging trade waste users and ensure that the costs of treatment and disposal are shared fairly.

§ Parks and Reserves Bylaw 2007 – adopted by Council 3 July 2007. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate hours of opening, closing of reserves, leased or licensed premises in reserves, no entry into restricted areas or places in reserves, interference with reserves, vehicles, animals, dogs, horses, camping, safety and fires in reserves obstructing another person’s enjoyment of a reserve, buying, selling or advertising in reserves, dangerous weapons in reserves, organised sports, events and games in reserves, offences and exemptions.

§ Public Places Bylaw 2016 – adopted by Council 20 September 2016. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate a wide range of activities undertaken in public places in Hutt City which reflects the many and varied situations concerning the use and range of activities managed by Council involving public land.

§ Refuse Collection and Disposal Bylaw 2008 – adopted by Council 18 March 2008. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate the collection of domestic refuse and recyclable material, prohibited activities, alternate arrangements and recycling stations.

§ Trading in Public Places Bylaw 2008 – adopted by Council 18 March 2008. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate restrictions on hawking, mobile shops and stalls, permits for hawkers, mobile shops and stalls and expiry of permit and permit renewal process.

§ Traffic Bylaw 2007 – adopted by Council 3 July 2007. This bylaw is made under the Local Government Act 2002 and the Land Transport Act 1998. Council may, by resolution, prohibit or otherwise restrict the stopping, standing or parking of vehicles on any road or part of a road or on any piece of land owned or controlled by Council set aside, designate, or reserve any road, part of a road or any piece of land owned or controlled by Council and prohibit

§ Water Supply Bylaw 2010 – adopted by Council 21 September 2010. The purpose of this bylaw is to regulate the application of supply, point of supply, responsibility of maintenance, on demand supply, restricted flow supply, continuity of supply, fire protection connection, backflow protection, meters and flow restrictors, customer responsibilities, working around buried services, council equipment, transfer of rights and responsibilities, change of ownership, termination, offences, resolution power and code of practice.

The above bylaws are available on Council’s website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/publications.

12. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES POLICY

Hutt City Council is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity in the recruitment, employment, training and promotion of its employees.

Key principles of this policy are as follows:

§ To provide fair and proper treatment for employees.

§ To eliminate inequality in respect of the employment of any person or groups of persons.

§ To ensure that no preference or discrimination is made on the basis of:

o Gender (and transgender)

o Marital status

o Religious or ethical belief or its absence

o Colour

o Race

o Ethnic or national origins

o Health status

o Disability

o Age

o Sexual orientation

o Pregnancy

o Political opinion

o Employee association involvement

o Employment status

o Beneficiary status

o Family status

o Identity of partner or relative.

§ To require supervisors and managers to be both responsible and accountable for the implementation and integration of EEO.

Goals

§ To integrate EEO principles and practices into Hutt City Council culture.

§ To realise the business benefits accruing to Council through valuing and fully utilising its human resources.

13. KEY APPROVED PLANNING AND POLICY DOCUMENTS

CITY OF LOWER HUTT District Plan

The District Plan is one of the principal statutory documents of Council prepared under the provisions of the Resource Management Act 1991 and became operative on 24 June 2003. The District Plan is relevant to you if you are:

§ Intending to buy a property.

§ Thinking of making alterations to a property you already have.

§ Considering starting or changing a business.

§ Considering subdividing your land.

The full document is available on Council’s website www.huttcity.govt.nz/districtplan as well as being available for viewing at Council’s Administration building (Customer Services) and all Hutt City Libraries or may be purchased for $256 ($500 from 1 July 2017). If you have any queries regarding the District Plan please contact Customer Services on 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY.

Long Term Plan and Community Outcomes

Under section 93 of the Local Government Act 2010, Councils are required to have a Long Term Plan at all times. The purpose of a Long Term Plan is to:

§ Describe the activities of the local authority.

§ Describe the community outcomes of the local authority's district or region.

§ Provide integrated decision-making and co-ordination of the resources of the local authority.

§ Provide a long term focus for the decisions and activities of the local authority.

§ Provide a basis for accountability of the local authority to the community.

§ Provide an opportunity for participation by the public in decision-making processes on activities to be undertaken by the local authority.

The effect of a long term plan and an annual plan adopted by a local authority is to provide a formal and public statement of the local authority's intentions in relation to the matters covered by the plan.

Council has completed the process of identifying the City’s community outcomes and the activities it currently undertakes that relate to each outcome. The 2015-2025 Long Term Plan contains Council’s Integrated Vision for Hutt City as well as a hierarchy of strategies Council is putting in place to realise that vision. This strategic hierarchy is made up of four work streams – Urban Growth 2012-2032, Leisure and Wellbeing 2012-2032, Environmental Sustainability 2015-2045 and Infrastructure 2015-2045. These polices are available on Council’s website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/publications.

Key Policies

The following policies, issues and key decisions were taken out to the community as part of the extensive consultation on the draft Long Term Plan in 2015. They are explained in detail in the Long Term Plan document, and copies of the Plan are available by contacting the Call Centre on 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY or on Council’s website Long Term Plan 2015-2025.

§ Financial Strategy

§ Significance and Engagement Policy

§ Statement of Accounting Policies

§ Revenue and Financing Policy

§ Funding Impact Statements

Decision-making Requirements

To promote compliance with the decision-making requirements of the Local Government Act 2010, Council has adopted a process to assist it in making good decisions. This process includes a guide to good decision-making and a checklist to assist staff in the presentation of issues and the formulation of recommendations to Council and committees. It also includes Council’s Significance Policy and Consultation Policy, which are key documents that guide Council decision-making.

Significance AND ENGAGEMENT Policy 2015-2018

The Local Government Act 2002 requires Council to adopt a Significance and Engagement Policy, which it first did in 2003 (Council’s Significance and Engagement Policy is attached as Appendix 7 to this Local Governance Statement). This document is relevant to the decision-making process because Council must use the Special Consultative Procedure in relation to any proposal that meets the thresholds/criteria of Council’s Significance and Engagement Policy. The Policy sets thresholds to determine whether a decision is “significant” and therefore requires the use of the Special Consultative Procedure. (Details of the Special Consultative Procedure are attached as Appendix 8 to this Governance Statement). The policy was revised in 2012 and confirmed through the 2012 LTCCP process.

REMUNERATION POLICY

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to ensure all employees are aware of Council’s position on and commitment to competitive and effective remuneration practices.

Scope

This policy applies to all employees of Hutt City Council.

Policy statement

Hutt City Council is committed to ensuring its remuneration practices are competitive against the market to attract and retain the best people and are affordable to Council.

Council offers employees remuneration which is competitive against other organisations and consistent with the worth of their role to the organisation, and which recognises the contribution of employees to the achievement of the organisation’s goals and objectives.

Remuneration systems and structures take account of remuneration levels and practices outside Hutt City Council, but are based also on the need for internal consistency and relativities.

Council seeks to position its remuneration levels competitively to other organisations in the labour markets in which it operates. This positioning is reviewed annually in July each year through formal and informal surveys of market levels and trends.

Council considers that remuneration systems and structures are most effective when they are kept simple and avoid unnecessary complexity.

While systematic approaches such as job evaluation are used to establish the comparative value of jobs to the organisation, Council seeks to develop and maintain flexible remuneration systems which allow it to provide incentives for future performance and rewards for past performance. However, Council recognises that remuneration is only one aspect of the motivation and rewards process.

Consultation Policy

As part of the decision-making process Council will need to identify whether it should consult the community. Council has developed a Consultation Policy, which sets out Council’s general approach to consultation and the principles that should direct Council’s approach. Council has also developed consultation guidelines to ensure that the consultation is methodical, consistent and complies with the requirements of the Local Government Act.

Council’s Consultation Policy is attached as Appendix 9 to this Governance Statement.

Other Policies, Plans and Strategies

Council has many other policies, plans and strategies that influence its decision-making and the way in which it conducts its business. Examples of these include a purchasing policy, asset management plans, environmental management plan, reserve management plans and an economic development strategy. For information on these and other policy documents please contact the Call Centre on 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY or visit Council’s website www.huttcity.govt.nz/publications.

Council is also a partner to a Sport and Recreation NZ (SPARC) initiative called "No Exceptions". It was launched in 2007 and its aim is to ensure people have the opportunity to participate in the physical recreation and sports activity of their choice. As a partner, along with Upper Hutt City Council, Hutt Valley District Health Board, Sports Wellington and SPARC, Council is committed to ensuring that our sport and recreation facilities, events, programmes and services are accessible to and inclusive of people with disabilities. More information can be found on the www.sparc.org.nz/ website.

We provide essential services to our community which include safety initiatives involving a partnership with key agencies such as the Police, Health, and other key organisations.

14. PUBLIC ACCESS TO COUNCIL AND ITS ELECTED MEMBERS

How to Contact Council

Phone Council on 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY

Our Customer Call Centre is staffed during business hours – Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm. If you call outside of business hours and it is an urgent matter such as a noise, flooding or an animal issue, then you can choose to go through to our after-hours service. You can also choose to leave a message and a Customer Service representative will call you back on the next business day.

Book it

You can book the following Council facilities through our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Pay it

You can pay the following Council services online though our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Find it

You can find the following Council facilities through our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Report it

You can notify Council of the following problems by submitting an online request through our website www.huttcity.govt.nz/Services/Report-a-problem/. Another option is to call our Customer Services 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY or forms are available at any Council office.

Say it

You can give feedback on the following Council services through our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Apply for it

You can apply for the following Council services through our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Join it

You can sign up to the following Council services through our website http://www.huttcity.govt.nz/.

Email Council

Email via contact@huttcity.govt.nz.

After hours services (emergencies only)

Telephone 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY, press 1 for urgent issues.

Council’s Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/huttcitycouncil/?fref=ts.

Website

You can find out the latest events, contact details, opening hours and locations of Council venues on our website at www.huttcity.govt.nz or you can phone our InfoLine.

Phone Council InfoLine on 04 570 6660

Our InfoLine provides 24 hour access to recorded answers to the most commonly asked questions about Hutt City Council services and facilities, such as locations and opening hours.

Write to Council

Hutt City Council, Private Bag 31912, Lower Hutt 5040, or drop your letter into the main Council building or any Council office shown in the table below.

You can also visit our website at www.huttcity.govt.nz for all information about Council.

Visit any Council office

The main Council Administration building is staffed during business hours – Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm. A Customer Services representative will be there to assist you. Your nearest Council office is:

Main Council Building

30 Laings Road, Lower Hutt

Eastbourne Community Library

Rimu Street, Eastbourne

Koraunui Stokes Valley Community Hub

186 Stokes Valley Road (opening spring 2017)

Moera Community Library

Corner Randwick Road and Randwick Crescent, Moera

Naenae Community Library

Hillary Court, Naenae

Petone Community Library

Britannia Street, Petone

Stokes Valley temporary Library

162 Stokes Valley Road

Taita Community Library

Taine Street, Taita

Wainuiomata Community Hub

Queen Street, Wainuiomata

War Memorial Library

Corner Queens Drive and Woburn Road, Lower Hutt

Contact the Mayor and Councillors

For details on how to contact our Elected Members please see Appendix 10 to this Governance Statement.

15.
REQUESTS FOR OFFICIAL INFORMATION

Under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (LGOIMA) any person may request information from Council. A requestor does not have to specify that they are making a request under LGOIMA as any request for information is deemed to be a request made under LGOIMA.

Once a request is made, Council must supply the information unless there is a good reason for withholding it. Some of the grounds for withholding information include, if the release of the information would:

§ Endanger the safety of any person.

§ Prejudice the maintenance of the law.

§ Compromise the privacy of any person.

§ Reveal confidential information.

§ Cause offence to tikanga Māori or disclose the location of waahi tapu.

§ Prejudice public health or safety.

§ Compromise legal professional privilege.

§ Unreasonably disadvantage the local authority or a third party’s commercial or negotiating position.

§ Allow information to be used for improper gain or advantage.

Council must answer requests as soon as practicable, with a maximum timeframe of 20 working days (although there are certain circumstances where this time-frame may be extended). Council may charge for official information. Council officers can advise you of the relevant charges.

Contact Numbers

T 04 570 6666 or 0800 HUTT CITY

E legal@huttcity.govt.nz

Attachment 2

Appendix 2 Legislation Affecting Local Government

APPENDIX 2: legislation affecting local government

As a local authority, we and our work are governed by a large number of pieces of legislation

Here’s a description of the main ones, in alphabetical order. Note it’s not an exhaustive list as we’re also bound by general legislation, but it highlights the major pieces of legislation that govern our activities.

1. building act 2004

The Building Act covers:

• The regulation of building work.

• A licensing regime for building practitioners.

• The setting of performance standards for buildings to ensure users’ health and safety, physical independence and wellbeing and ability to escape in a fire, and the design, construction and use of buildings in ways that promote sustainable development.

2. BYLaws act 1910

The Bylaws Act covers the validity of bylaws introduced by Councils.

3. civil defence emergency management act 2002

The Civil Defence Emergency Management Act:

• Promotes the sustainable management of hazards to contribute to the social, economic, cultural and environmental wellbeing and safety of the public and protection of property.

• Provides for planning and preparation for emergencies and for response and recovery in emergencies.

• Requires local authorities to co-ordinate regional planning, programmes and activities related to civil defence emergency management.

• Provides for the integration of national and local civil defence emergency management planning and activity.

• Encourages the co-ordination of emergency management, planning and activities related to civil defence emergency management.

4. dog control act 1996

The Dog Control Act covers the care and control of dogs by:

• Requiring them to be registered.

• Making special provisions for dangerous and menacing dogs.

• Imposing on dog owners’ obligations to ensure that dogs do not cause a nuisance, injure, endanger or cause distress to any person, stock, poultry, domestic animal or protected wildlife.

• Making provision for damage caused by dogs.

5. forest and rural fires act 1977

The Forest and Rural Fires Act aims to safeguard life and property by preventing, detecting, controlling, restricting, supressing and extinguishing fire in forest and rural areas and other areas of vegetation.

6. hutt valley drainage act 1967

The Hutt Valley Drainage Act covers sewage and trade waste disposal.

7. Local authorities (members’ interests) act 1968

The local Authorities Members’ Interests) Act restricts contract-making between local authorities and their members, and restricts members’ actions when a Council is considering matters in which they have a pecuniary interest.

8. Local Electoral act 2001

The Local Electoral Act:

• Governs the conduct of local elections and polls through uniform rules for elections, rights of individuals to participate, the appointment of officials, the compilation of electoral rolls, the procedures for the conduct of elections and polls, offences and penalties, disputed elections, electoral expenses and vacancies.

• Allows local decision-making on the electoral system to be used, the review of representation arrangements and the voting method to be used.

9. Local government act 1974 (Part)

This Act outlines Councils’ general powers in respect of roads, service lanes and access ways, requirements for private drains and Council land drainage works.

10. Local government official information and meetings act 1987

The Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act:

(a) To enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and

(b) To meet the current and future needs of communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses.

11. Local government official information and meetings act 1987

The Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act:

• Makes official information held by local authorities more freely available.

• Provides for public attendance at local authorities’ meetings.

• Protects official information held by local authorities, and their deliberations, to the extent consistent with the public interest and the preservation of personal privacy.

12. Local government (Rating) act 2002

This Act promotes the purpose of Local government by:

• Providing local authorities with flexible powers to set, assess and collect rates to fund their activities.

• Ensuring that rates are set through decisions made in a transparent and consultative way.

• Providing for processes and information to enable ratepayers to identify and understand their liabilities for rates.

13. Resource management act 1991

The Resource Management Act promotes the sustainable management of natural and physical resources by:

• Managing the use, development and protection of natural and physical resources in a way, or at a rate, that enables people and communities to provide for their social, economic and cultural wellbeing and for their health and safety.

While:

• Sustaining the potential of natural and physical resources to meet the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations avoiding, remedying or mitigating any adverse effects of activities on the environment.

14. Sale AND SUPPLY OF ALCOHOL ACT 2012

The Sale and supply of Alcohol Act established a system of control over the sale and supply of alcohol to the public with the aim of creating a system that is reasonable to achieve the objects of the Act, being:

(a) The sale, supply, and consumption of alcohol should be undertaken safely and responsibly; and

(b) The harm caused by the excessive or inappropriate consumption of alcohol should be minimised.

OTHER KEY PIECES OF LEGISLATION THAT CONFER POWERS ON HUTT CITY COUNCIL AND REGULATE ITS FUNCTIONS ARE LISTED BELOW

LOCAL STATUTES
Hutt Valley Drainage Act 1967	Lower Hutt City (Free Ambulance Site) Act 1977
Hutt Valley And Bays Metropolitan Milk Board Validation Act 1952	Lower Hutt City (Name Of City Council) Act 1991
Hutt Valley Electric Power Board Empowering Act 1950	Petone Borough Council Empowering Act 1956
Lower Hutt City Council (Hutt Park) Act 1982	Petone Borough Empowering Act 1905
Lower Hutt City Empowering Act 1951	Petone Water Supply Conservation Act 1907

GENERAL STATUTES (Please note that this is not an exhaustive list – Council is bound by general legislation)
Arts Council of New Zealand Toi Aotearoa Act 1994	Litter Act 1979
Biosecurity Act 1993	Local Authorities (Members Interests) Act 1968
Building Act 2004	Local Authority Reorganisation (Property Transfers) Act 1990
Building Research Levy Act 1969	Local Electoral Act 2001
Burial and Cremation Act 1964	Local Government Act 1974
Bylaws Act 1910	Local Government Act 2002
Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002	Local Government (Rating) Act 2002
Commerce Act 1986	Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987
Companies Act 1993	Machinery Act 1950
Conservation Act 1987	Minimum Wage Act 1983
Consumer Guarantees Act 1993	Municipal Insurance Act 1960
Copyright Act 1994	New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990
Crimes Act 1961	New Zealand Geographic Board Act 1946
District Courts Act 1947	New Zealand Library Association Act 1939
Dog Control Act 1996	New Zealand Walkways Act 1990
Earthquake Commission Act 1993	Oaths and Declarations Act 1957
Electricity Act 1992	Ombudsmen Act 1975
Employment Relations Act 2000	Privacy Act 1993
Environment Act 1986	Property Law Act 1952
Fair Trading Act 1986	Prostitution Reform Act 2003
Fencing Act 1978	Public Finance Act 1989
Fencing of Swimming Pools Act 1987	Public Records Act 2005
Financial Reporting Act 1993	Public Works Act 1981
Fire Service Act 1975	Railway Act 2005
Fisheries Act 1996	Rating Valuations Act 1998
Food Act 1981 and 2014	Rates Rebate Act 1973
Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004	Receiverships Act 1993
Forest and Rural Fires Act 1977	Reserves Act 1977
Forests Act 1949	Residential Tenancies Act 1986
Gambling Act 2003	Resource Management Act 1991
Goods and Services Tax Act 1985	Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012
Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996	River Boards Act 1908
Health Act 1956	Secret Commissions Act 1910
Health and Safety at Work Act 2015	Securities Act 1978
Historic Places Act 1993	Securities Transfer Act 1991
Housing Act 1955	Smoke-free Environments Act 1990
Housing Corporation Act 1974	Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941
Human Rights Act 1993	Standards Act 1988
Impounding Act 1955	Summary Offences Act 1981
Income Tax Act 2004	Telecommunications Act 2001
Insolvency Act 1967	Transport Act 1962
Insolvency Act 2006	Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975
Interpretation Act 1999	Trespass Act 1980
Land Act 1948	Trustee Act 1956
Land Drainage Act 1908	Unit Titles Act 1972
Land Transfer Act 1952	Wages Protection Act 1983
Land Transport Act 1998	Wild Animal Control Act 1977
Land Transport Management Act 2003	Wildlife Act 1953

Attachment 3

Appendix 3 Policy on Functions and Roles of Council and Community Boards

APPENDIX 3: POLICY ON THE FUNCTIONS AND ROLES OF COUNCIL AND COMMUNITY BOARDS

1. Purpose

This policy outlines the purpose and functions of Council and Community Boards, and how the two will work together to serve and strengthen all communities in Hutt City in order to achieve the outcomes identified as a priority for their future well-being and to create a better City.

2. Preamble

2.1 The Council acknowledges the purpose of local government as set out in the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA), namely:

· to enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and

· to meet the current and future needs of communities for good quality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses.

Good quality, in relation to local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions, means infrastructure, services and performance that are:

· efficient;

· effective; and

· appropriate to present and anticipated future circumstances

2.2 The Council acknowledges that its statutory role, as set out in the LGA 2002, is to:

· give effect to the above purposes, in relation to the local authority’s district or region.^{^[26]}

2.3 The Council acknowledges that the LGA states that the local authority must act in accordance with the following principles:

· conduct its business in an open, transparent, and democratically accountable manner

· give effect to its identified priorities and desired outcomes in an efficient and effective manner:

· make itself aware of, and have regard to, the views of all of its communities

· take account of:

I. the diversity of the community, and the community's interests, within its district or region

II. the interests of future as well as current communities; and

III. the likely impact of any decision on the interests referred to in subparagraphs (i) and (ii) above:

· provide opportunities for Māori to contribute to its decision-making processes

· collaborate and co-operate with other local authorities and bodies as it considers appropriate to promote or achieve its priorities and desired outcomes, and make efficient use of resources

· undertake any commercial transactions in accordance with sound business practices by periodically:

I. assessing the expected returns to the authority from investing in, or undertaking, a commercial activity; and

II. satisfying itself that the expected returns are likely to outweigh the risks inherent in the investment or activity

· a local authority should ensure prudent stewardship and the efficient and effective use of its resources in the interests of its district or region; and

· in taking a sustainable development approach, a local authority should take into account:

I. the social, economic, and cultural interests of people and communities; and

II. the need to maintain and enhance the quality of the environment; and

III. the reasonably foreseeable needs of future generations

2.4 The Council acknowledges the role of a Community Board as set out in the Act, which is to:

a) represent and act as an advocate for the interests of the community

b) consider and report on all matters referred to it by the territorial authority, or any matter of interest or concern to the community board

c) maintain an overview of services provided by the territorial authority within the community

d) prepare an annual submission to the territorial authority for expenditure within the community

e) communicate with community organisations and special interest groups within the community

f) undertake any other responsibilities that are delegated to it by the territorial authority

The Council therefore recognises the following functions and roles:

2.5 Councillors are elected to Council to govern the affairs of the City and the interests of all the city’s residents.

2.6 Community Boards are elected to represent the resident communities and business communities of their specific community.

2.7 The role of Council therefore, is to exercise its role of governance for all electors of the city. In matters affecting individual communities however, the Council will:

· Delegate to Community Boards those decision-making functions expressly prescribed under the LGA;

· Delegate to Community Boards other decision-making functions, which may properly be identified as the province of a specific community;

· Entrust to Community Boards the oversight of specific functions or projects, which are, or should be, the exclusive concern of a specific community;

· Recognise that the recommendations made to the Council by Community Boards, represent the views of the local community. The Council will accord such recommendations consideration and respect and will not, in the matters which affect a specific community, without good cause, override the recommendations of a Community Board.

2.8 Councillors appointed to Community Boards are full members of the Community Board, and sit on the Community Board as a Community Board member, not a Councillor.

2.9 In matters which affect communities, the views of the community will be represented to the Council by the chair of the Community Board, or a designated deputy. The Council will ensure that in all matters of procedure and process, including standing orders, the ability of communities and Community Boards to represent their views to Council is facilitated.

2.10 The Council will ensure that the CEO is provided with all the necessary resources to support the efficient functioning of Community Boards, as is required under the provisions of the Act.

2.11 In carrying out its role and responsibilities Council operates within the following parameters:

§ Council is charged under the Local Government Act with making decisions for the benefit of the whole city.

§ Council will from time to time be required to make decisions with which individual communities may disagree.

§ Council is bound by the Local Government Act in terms of how, when and with whom it consults.

§ Council can legitimately form its own view on the preferences of communities within the city and may choose to undertake its own consultation with those communities.

§ Council and Community Boards are bound to follow statutory processes, even where those vary with community expectations.

3. Ensuring the effective operation of this policy

3.1 In accordance with Section 38, Schedule 7, Part 2 of the LGA Council will ensure that the CEO is provided with adequate resources to ensure the effective implementation of this policy.

4. Explanatory Note: Role and responsibilities of Council, Wards, Communities and representation

4.1 Role of Council

The role of a Council is set out in section 11 of the Local Government Act, and is to:

· Give effect in relation to its district or region, to the purpose of local government stated in section 10 of the Act;

· Perform the duties and exercise the rights conferred on it by or under the Act and any other enactment.

The function of Councillors is to ensure that that role is carried out. The manner in which they are to carry out those functions is set out in the oath of office, namely:

“…faithfully and impartially, and according to the best of my skill and judgement, execute and perform, in the best interests of [region or district], the powers, authorities, and duties vested in, or imposed upon, me as [mayor or chairperson or member] of the [local authority] by virtue of the Local Government Act 2002, the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, or any other Act”.

4.2 Responsibilities of Council

In carrying out its responsibilities Council:

· is bound by the Resource Management Act in the formulating the District Plan and processing resource consents.

· is bound by the Building Act in processing building consents.

· is bound by the Rating Act in how it sets and collects rates.

· must balance heritage, development and private property rights when developing and reviewing policies and plans under the Resource Management Act.

4.3 Wards

The manner in which a person is elected to a Council is set out in the Local Electoral Act.

Representation must be fair and effective, and a means of achieving this is to divide the local authority district into area, or wards, such that each Councillor is elected by a roughly equal number of electors.

A Councillor is therefore elected primarily to exert governance in the best interests of the city. Although the Councillor may have been elected by the electors of the ward, any role as a representative of the ward is secondary. The primary responsibility is to the city, not to the ward.

4.4 Communities

Although the word “community” is used very extensively throughout the Local Government Act, its use is very varied and broad. To all intents and purposes the word is left without definition, except for one specific place, where Schedule 6 allows for the constitution of a “community” and such a “community” may elect a Community Board.

The Local Electoral Act however is very specific, and states that for it a “community” means a community constituted under Schedule 6 of the LGA. A ward is not a community. A ward is an electoral device.

4.5 Representation

The LGA is clear that the role of a Councillor is to look after the affairs of the whole city, and the role of a Community Board is to represent the interests of its community.

To put this another way, the role of the Councillor must be city-focussed and the role of the Community Board member must be community-focussed. A Councillor may be appointed to a Community Board and will operate as a full member of that Community Board. But that Councillor does not represent the Council on the board. Equally, the appointed Councillor does not represent the Community Board at the Council table. The role of the appointed Councillor is best explained as one of information intermediary: bringing a broader city-wide perspective to the Community Board, and conveying local community perspective to the Council table.

Participation opportunities	Regional sporting success	Spaces and places	Workforce excellence	Strategic investment
More people participating in sport and/or active recreation and meeting the Ministry of Health’s physical activity guidelines.	More athletes on the talent pathway and more regional sporting success (teams and individuals) nationally and internationally.	Integrated network of local and regional places and spaces that provide more people in the region with better places to participate.	A high-performing workforce delivering quality sport and active recreation opportunities to the region.	Sufficient, sustainable and targeted investment supporting increased physical activity through sport and active recreation.

	Participation opportunities	Regional sporting success	Spaces and places	Workforce excellence	Strategic investment
Objective	Ensure everyone has access to a range of formal and informal participation opportunities and is encouraged to participate	Develop, support and recognise sporting excellence across the region	Develop a coordinated approach to providing an accessible, fit-for-purpose network of regional, spaces and places that support and encourage sport and active recreation	Support the development of a strong and enterprising sector through building people capability (paid and volunteer workforce)	Align investment with regional and local priorities for sport and active recreation and grow the funding pool
Outcome	More people participating in sport and/or active recreation and meeting the Ministry of Health’s physical activity guidelines	More athletes on the talent pathway and more regional sporting success (teams and individuals) nationally and internationally.	Integrated network of local and regional places and spaces that provide more people in the region with better places to participate.	A high-performing workforce delivering quality sport and active recreation opportunities to the region	Sufficient, sustainable and targeted investment supporting increased physical activity through sport and active recreation
Priority focus areas	· Low participation groups · Young people · Provision of a broad range of quality sport and active recreation participation opportunities · Removing/minimising barriers to participation to make it easier to access sport and active recreation opportunities i.e. cost, accessibility	· Athlete development (including access to talent development pathways and athlete services) · Developing strategic partnerships – tertiary, HPSNZ, franchise sports, funders · Celebrating regional sporting success	· Identifying and developing a regional facilities network to enable community participation · Facility partnerships · Sportsville and sports hub development · Regional and community events planning	· Workforce development - paid staff - volunteer planning and development - leadership development · Knowledge building through research and insights	· Establishing a coordinated approach to funding sport and active recreation across the region and aligning with regional projects and local priorities · Growing the funding pool
Success indicators	Growth in regular participation in current low participant groups and overall More people meeting Ministry of Health physical activity guidelines	Performance of regional teams and individuals Performance hubs established and operational Joint performance development projects initiated Annual sports awards held	Regional facilities plan developed and operational Facility partnerships increase Increase in the number and range of events hosted across the region	Integrated training and development opportunities Engagement and retention of the workforce including growth in volunteering – (numbers of volunteers and hours contributed) Positive customer experiences, retention and growth in participation Improved planning and decision-making in relation to sport and active recreation	Increased investment in regional sport and active recreation activity
Measures	tbc
Regional Project Opportunities	Engagement with low participation groups · Women and girls 13 years and older · Older people · People from low socio-economic areas of our region · Different ethnic communities, in particular Chinese and Indian people · People with disabilities · People with health-related problems	Regional Talent Plan – including performance hub establishment and athlete services provision	Regional Facilities Plan to identify priority projects and funding process Schools/Councils Partnerships as a means of maximising existing facilities for both school and community use. Regional Events Plan	Regional Workforce Development Plan Regional Volunteer Planning	Regional Investors’ Network