Draft action plan for inlet

Reducing sediment contamination and increasing the saltmarsh area in the Waimea Inlet are two of a number of targets in a draft action plan for the internationally significant estuary near Nelson.

At 3455ha, with an internal coastline of 65km, the Waimea Inlet is the largest enclosed estuary in the South Island. It is of international significance for migratory bird species and of national significance for other endangered or threatened species.

The draft Waimea Inlet Action Plan 2018 to 2021 is the result of collaborative work by a wide range of organisations, groups and individuals.

It is designed to be a living document that gives effect to the Waimea Inlet Management Strategy 2010, whose signatories are Tasman District Council, Nelson City Council, the Department of Conservation and Fish & Game.

Te Tau Ihu iwi have an open invitation to become signatories and to participate in the development, implementation, review and monitoring of the draft plan.

Tasman District Council’s environment and planning committee on Thursday received the draft plan and instructed staff to prepare a report with recommendations on the specific targets it should ‘‘sign up to’’ as either lead or supporting agency.

Council policy adviser Anna Gerraty told councillors the 2010 management strategy was high-level and ‘‘doesn’t go into any detail about how we’re going to achieve it, so the groups decided that we would like to work together and try to come up with specific actions and . . . hopefully get outside funding’’.

Feedback from iwi and other interested parties and individuals was sought on an earlier version of the draft plan, and a workshop in March attracted about 50 people.

A lot of work is already being carried out at the inlet, especially by community groups.

Resource scientist Trevor James said a lot of the issues around the ecological health of the inlet were known.

‘‘Sedimentation is one of the big issues. It’s the thorny one, but we are working towards getting on to that,’’ he said.

‘‘In terms of habitat, the 30 per cent loss of saltmarsh in the Waimea Inlet, if you want to turn the tide on that and restore some of that, there are some real opportunities there. We know how to do it, it’s just we do need that investment.’’

Saltmarsh includes estuarine shrubs, tussock, reeds, grasses, herbs, sedges and other herbaceous saline vegetation. The target in the draft action plan is to increase the area of saltmarsh by 5 per cent by 2030.

Other targets to reach by 2030 include increasing the area of naturally vegetated dune land on Rabbit and Rough islands by 10 per cent, and increasing the area of naturally vegetated estuary margin by 10km.

A review of water quality in contributing waterways with required remedial action documented by July 31, 2019 is also a target.

Another seeks a 10 per cent reduction of catchment nutrient, sediment, faecal and other contaminants to the inlet tributaries by 2023. Nelson Tasman has a new kid on the block making a power play for a share of the retail electricity market.

Energyclubnz, which is a joint venture with Stuff, launched in the region on Monday, offering a different electricity model for Network Tasman and Nelson Electricity customers.

Chief executive and founder David Goadby said it would bring more competition to the region, which meant consumers could be in for better deals.

He said traditional electricity retailers were often more focused on attracting new customers, so existing customers didn’t always get the best deal.

Energyclubnz launched in October last year and has been establishing itself on networks across New Zealand. Goadby said it now had the ability to service 85 per cent of the country’s residential smart meters.

The energyclubnz system takes automated readings from customers’ smart meters at the end of each day, with bills sent out weekly.

Goadby said customers could see their energy usage over the last week, up until the night before they received their weekly bill.

‘‘One of the areas where energyclubnz is different because we don’t make any money off the electricity that we supply,’’ he said. Customers were billed based on actual usage, charged at cost without a mark-up on the rate. ‘‘We do charge a weekly club fee on top of that.’’