https://www.youtube.com/embed/-fffb_CAU_U?si=CCEiibGe58oEiang
Reading: 206 pages
Hours in meetings: 7 hours
Two meaty meetings this week.
Monitoring and Operations Committee is the committee that monitors how well the Council is delivering its activities.
This month we had a fascinating presentation from Alison Dewe and John Burke. Pukekauri Farm owned by John and his brother has won awards for its approach to cleaning up the environment. This month the Burkes were awarded Cawthron 2024 Freshwater Champions. The video explains the difference they have made over decades.
We heard how dairy farming is significantly reduced in the region. Farming is more than milking the cows these days with farm plans a requirement. These plans have to meet regulations in National Environmental standards (set by Central Government) as well as Regional Plans (set by the Regional Council).
The big question is “What do landscapes have to look like in order to achieve good environmental outcomes?” and interestingly the Burkes found that retiring some marginal land into wetlands or slope protection planting actually increased profitability.
A second key subject of the meeting was the state of the Mount Air Shed. This is a “virtual shed” covering the airspace from Maunganui Road to the Port from the airport to the Mount itself.
The Council monitors air quality for airborne particulate matter and also fields enquiries about offensive odours. A BoP Public Health Report indicted that there are excess deaths resulting from poor air quality in the area. The Council had the Report checked to see if the document was robust enough to inform our planning. The result was that, in the main. The Public Health report was acceptable.
We also discussed odours in the area. Council, staff have been proactive in addressing the issue. Some smells are unavoidable for short periods and emitters are encouraged to inform the Council so that objections to the pollution hotline can be informed about whether the issue might be short term or is a bigger issue.
The Public Transport Committee received a presentation from Carole Gordon who asked us to “leave no one behind” in designing our PT system.
The Total Mobility scheme provides a subsidy to people with disabilities that impact their mobility. Twenty-six thousand trips were made in the last quarter by the five thousand people in the region who are registered to access the scheme.
The on-demand service running between Pyes Pa, the Lakes and the hospital is showing good results two months into the two-year trial.
In general PT patronage is up over 30% year on year. Drivers for this are likely increases in the cost of living including parking charges and vehicle running costs.
Two meaty meetings this week.
Monitoring and Operations Committee is the committee that monitors how well the Council is delivering its activities.
This month we had a fascinating presentation from Alison Dewe and John Burke. Pukekauri Farm owned by John and his brother has won awards for its approach to cleaning up the environment. This month the Burkes were awarded Cawthron 2024 Freshwater Champions. The video explains the difference they have made over decades.
You can read more about the award here: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/katikati-advertiser/western-bay-of-plenty-project-parore-burke-family-are-freshwater-champions/OKSGVTEYBFERRGBDTOVX22VNJA
We heard how dairy farming is significantly reduced in the region. Farming is more than milking the cows these days with farm plans a requirement. These plans have to meet regulations in National Environmental standards (set by Central Government) as well as Regional Plans (set by the Regional Council).
The big question is “What do landscapes have to look like in order to achieve good environmental outcomes?” and interestingly the Burkes found that retiring some marginal land into wetlands or slope protection planting actually increased profitability.
A second key subject of the meeting was the state of the Mount Air Shed. This is a “virtual shed” covering the airspace from Maunganui Road to the Port from the airport to the Mount itself.
The Council monitors air quality for airborne particulate matter and also fields enquiries about offensive odours. A BoP Public Health Report indicted that there are excess deaths resulting from poor air quality in the area. The Council had the Report checked to see if the document was robust enough to inform our planning. The result was that, in the main. The Public Health report was acceptable.
We also discussed odours in the area. Council, staff have been proactive in addressing the issue. Some smells are unavoidable for short periods and emitters are encouraged to inform the Council so that objections to the pollution hotline can be informed about whether the issue might be short term or is a bigger issue.
The Public Transport Committee received a presentation from Carole Gordon who asked us to “leave no one behind” in designing our PT system.
The Total Mobility scheme provides a subsidy to people with disabilities that impact their mobility. Twenty-six thousand trips were made in the last quarter by the five thousand people in the region who are registered to access the scheme.
The on-demand service running between Pyes Pa, the Lakes and the hospital is showing good results two months into the two-year trial. Find out more here: