your council handbook 2017 - waikato...the māori fisheries act 1989 and submarine cable and...

YOUR COUNCIL HANDBOOK 2017

TŌ KAUNIHERA – HE PUKA WHAKAMĀRAMA 2017

Contents

4INTRODUCTION | KUPU ARATAKI

5OUR REGION | TO TĀTOU ROHE

5Waikato regional boundaries

6Our environment

6Our people

7Our economy

8ABOUT WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCIL | MŌ TE KAUNIHERA - A ROHE O WAIKATO

8Why we're here

8Our role

9Our strategic direction

10What do we want the region's future to look like?

11Key statistics

12What we do and why

16HOW WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCIL WORKS | TE MAHI A TE KAUNIHERA Ā-ROHE O WAIKATO

16Meeting processes

16Planning and decision making

17Relationships with iwi partners

17Consultation

18Key strategy, policy and planning documents

19Co-management and co-governance

20Governance

33Organisation

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

2

36LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 2002 | TE TURE KĀWANATANGA Ā-ROHE 2002

38RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACT 1991 | TE TURE WHAKAHAERE RAWA TAIAO 1991

40OFFICIAL INFORMATION & MEETINGS ACT 1987 | TE TURE HUIHUINGA, PĀRONGO KĀWANATANGA Ā-ROHE 1987

42APPENDICES | TĀPIRITANGA

42Appendix I - Acronyms index

44Appendix II – Relevant legislation

CON

TEN

TS

3

INTRODUCTION | KUPU ARATAKITena koe, welcome to 'Your council handbook 2017 | Tō kaunihera – he puka whakamārama 2017 '. This handbook is your guide toWaikato Regional Council, incorporating information about the Local Governance Statement.

A local governance statement outlines the processes through which the council engages with residents in the Waikato region,how the council makes decisions and how people can influence these decisions.

We hope this resource is useful and contains all the information you need regarding our council and how you can get involved.

Tēnā rā koutou katoa.

How to contact us

Call our freephone 0800 800 401 anytime if you require further information or you wish to report:

unsafe water activities in or on a river, lake or harbour

an environmental incident (such as effluent or oil spills)

any activity that may affect our region's coastal, water, soil or air resources.

Or visit our website: waikatoregion.govt.nz

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

4

OUR REGION | TO TĀTOU ROHEWaikato regional boundariesThe Waikato region is the fourth largest region in New Zealand,covering most of the central North Island. It covers over35,000km² – approximately 25,000km² (2.5 million ha) of landand 10,000km² of coastal marine area.

The mainland area stretches from the Bombay Hills and PortWaikato in the north, south to Mokau on the west coast, andacross to the Coromandel Peninsula and the Kaimai Range inthe east. In the south, the region extends to the slopes ofMount Ruapehu.

The region is made up of distinct landforms generally foundwithin four areas: the Taupō volcanic zone, Waikato lowlandand Hauraki plains, western and central hill country and theeastern ranges. The Waikato region contains seven localauthority districts and parts of three other districts which crossregional boundaries, as well as one city council.

We share boundaries with Auckland, Bay of Plenty,Manawatu-Wanganui and Taranaki.

The Waikato region sits at the heart of the upper North Island,an area important to the national economy because of its scaleand contribution to New Zealand’s international connections.

A selection of key statistics about the upper North Island areincluded below.

(1)

52 per cent of New Zealand's total GDP

52 per cent of New Zealand's total employment

64 per cent of New Zealand’s port cargo by value

49 per cent of freight movements by weight

53 per cent of international tourism spend

71 per cent of international students.

Te Kuiti

Ōtorohanga

HAMILTON

Te Awamutu

Cambridge

PukekohePokeno

Tuakau

Papakura

Manukau

AUCKLAND

AUCKLAND

Ngāruawāhia

Huntly

Morrinsville

Thames

Turangi

Taupō

PutaruruRotorua

Tokoroa

Matamata

TAURANGA

TAURANGA

Te Aroha

PaeroaWaihi

Whangamata

Whitianga

WEST TO NEW PLYMOUTH

EAST TO HAWKES BAY

SOUTH TO WELLINGTON

Coas

tal M

arin

e A

rea

Coastal M

arine Area

1 Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment 2014, Deloitte et al 2014

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

5

Our environmentThe Waikato region has a diverse landscape including wetlands,mountain ranges, rivers, geothermal resources and coastalshorelines.

The region includes:

the Waikato River, at 425km it's the longest in New Zealand

Lake Taupō, the largest lake in Australasia at 623km²

internationally significant wetlands, such as Whangamarino

over 1200km of coastline

a total of 75 per cent of New Zealand’s geothermalresources

extensive native and exotic forests

Tongariro National Park.

The region has more than 100 lakes, including Lake Taupō,more than 20 rivers, including the Waikato, Waipā, Piako,Waihou and Mokau, and about 1420 streams. The WaikatoRiver effectively spans three regions, winding from theManawatu-Wanganui region, all the way into Auckland. Thereare more than 600 different soil types with many being highlyproductive and fundamental to supporting our economy.

The Waikato region has 1200km of diverse coastline, rangingfrom the white sands of the eastern Coromandel to the ruggedwest coast (from Port Waikato to Mokau) with its distinctiveblack sands and windswept shoreline. The marine area is fromhigh tide and extends 22km offshore, covering more than onemillion hectares (10,239km²) and approximately 30 per centof the region. Overall, 35.6 per cent of our harbours and opencoast are in public ownership and nine per cent of the coastlineis used for roads.

Within our coastal marine area is:

Cathedral Cove Marine Reserve

Hauraki Gulf Marine Park

431,278ha of marine mammal sanctuaries.

There are also areas of significant conservation value, such asWhaingaroa (Raglan) harbour and other forms of ‘protection’which include areas designated as local fishing grounds underthe Māori Fisheries Act 1989 and submarine cable and pipelinezones.

Offshore islands within the regional council boundary includeCuvier Island, Mercury Islands, Alderman Islands and SlipperIsland on the east coast, and Gannet Island on the west coast.

Our peopleWith 403,638

(2)people, the Waikato region has the fourth

largest population in New Zealand (after the Auckland,Canterbury and Wellington regions). The region’s populationincreased by about six per cent between 2006 and 2013, thesecond largest increase behind Auckland. The majority of thisgrowth was in and around Hamilton and northern Waikato.

Almost three quarters of the region's population live in ourvarious urban areas, the largest urban area being Hamilton.

(3)

The region is relatively youthful, with just 14.8 per cent of thepopulation aged 65+ years.

(4)

Approximately 84,000 Māori usually live in the Waikato, whichis approximately 14 per cent of the national Māori population,and ranks second in size out of the 16 regions in NewZealand.

(5) Eight rohe or tribal areas lie within the region –

Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Tahu, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Arawa, NgātiManiapoto, Waikato-Tainui, Hauraki and Ngāti Te Ata.

(6)

The median weekly household income in the Waikato grewfrom $1279 in 2012 to $1356 in 2015. This is lower than thenational figure of $1460. Household income was eighth highestof the 12 regions identified in New Zealand.

(7)

2 Statistics NZ 2013 census

3 Berl Report: http://berl.co.nz/in-focus/census-2013/population/not-all-the-population-growth-is-in-auckland/

4 Statistics NZ 2013 census

5 Statistics New Zealand: http://www.stats.govt.nz/Census/2013-census/profile-and-summary-reports/quickstats-about-a-place.aspx?request_value=13631&tabname=

6 Statistics New Zealand 2013. 2013 Census regional summary tables – parts 1 and 2.http://www.stats.govt.nz/Census/2013-census/data-tables/population-dwelling.aspx[accessed August 2014)

7 Statistics NZ: http://nzdotstat.stats.govt.nz/wbos/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=TABLECODE7464

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

6

http://www.stats.govt.nz/Census/2013-census/profile-and-summary-reports/quickstats-about-a-place.aspx?request_value=13631&tabname

Our economyThe Waikato region is a medium sized economy, contributingapproximately 8.9 per cent to New Zealand’s gross domesticproduct.

(8)

Waikato is an agricultural powerhouse and a key contributorto New Zealand’s dairy industry, as well as enjoying scale andbreadth in manufacturing and services.

The Waikato is New Zealand’s most important mineralproducing area. Coal, aggregates, iron and limestone areextracted, along with gold and silver.

The region is a major producer of energy, with about one-thirdof New Zealand’s installed generation capacity. We have onelarge thermal, nine geothermal and more than 10 hydro powerstations, along with a number of co-generation plants.

Waikato is at the heart of the ‘golden triangle’ connectingHamilton, Auckland and Tauranga, making it a convenientaccess point for freight and logistics. Waikato also enjoys asignificant array of educational opportunities from earlychildhood centres to institutes of technology and a highly-rateduniversity.

Waikato is home to popular and award-winning visitordestinations such as Hobbiton, the Waitomo Caves, HamiltonGardens, Coromandel, Raglan and Lake Taupō.

8 Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment report: www.mbie.govt.nz/info-services/business/business-growth-agenda/regions/published-report

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

7

ABOUT WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCIL| MŌ TE KAUNIHERA - A ROHE OWAIKATOWhy we're hereThe Local Government Act 2002 confers general powers onthe Waikato Regional Council to play a broad role in meetingthe current and future needs of their communities forgood-quality local infrastructure, local public services, andperformance of regulatory functions.

The role of a local authority involves performing the dutiesand exercising the rights conferred on it by the LocalGovernment Act or any other enactment. The purpose of localgovernment as defined in the Local Government Act:

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

to meet the current and future needs of communities forgood-quality local infrastructure, local public service; and

performance of regulatory functions in a way that is mostcost-effective for households and businesses.

Our roleLike all councils in New Zealand, our responsibilities andpowers are set down by legislation. The Local Government Act2002 is the overall empowering legislation that enablesdemocratic and local decision making for the Waikato region.Other legislation, like the Resource Management Act 1991,Biosecurity Act 1993, Land Transport Management Act 2003and the Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941, givespecific responsibilities to regional councils.

From this legislation and from consultation with ourcommunities, the Waikato Regional Council provides thefollowing activities as set out in the 2015-2025 Long Term Plan(LTP):

Community and services

Emergency management

Flood protection

Integrated catchment management

Public transport

Resource use

Science and strategy.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

8

Our strategic direction

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

9

What do we want the region's futureto look like?Waikato Regional Council’s work aims to achieve a number of long term outcomes over the upcoming decades that contributeto a sustainable future for our region.

These outcomes are connected to one another, so success in one area cannot be at the expense of another. As a result, WaikatoRegional Council seeks to make decisions that provide multiple benefits for the community now and in the future.

Outcome descriptorsPriority

• Land use is sustainableHealthyEnvironment

• It is safe to swim and take kai from all freshwater

• The Waikato has become predator free, in line with the New Zealand 2050 target without compromisingindigenous biodiversity

• The full range of ecosystem types, including land, water and coastal and marine ecosystems, is in ahealthy and functional state

• All soil quality indicators are trending positive.

• By 2034 household median incomes are above the New Zealand averageStrong Economy

• By 2034 value added per capita will grow by 2.8% per annum so that the Waikato region is in the upperthird of regions in New Zealand for economic performance

• Economic growth ensures natural capital and ecosystem services are maintained

• The Waikato region is moving towards a low carbon economy

• We are achieving the best use of the region’s fresh water.

• New investment is attracted to the region through improved reputation and partnerships

• The Waikato economy benefits from having Auckland as our neighbour

• Our diverse communities feel like a valued part of the Waikato and take pride in the region. Vibrant

• Communities are empowered and supported to take action on agreed outcomes.Communities

• Communities are less vulnerable and more resilient to natural hazards, the effects of climate changeand changes to society and the economy

• People and communities are well connected to each other, to services (including health and otheressential services), and to opportunities including recreation, education and jobs

• There is increased benefit from the use and protection of our amenity and recreational features andvalues

• Significant reduction in boating fatalities and road related fatalities and serious injuries

• We support all parts of the Waikato being as successful as they can be

• Co-governance with iwi is meaningful and effective

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

10

Key statistics457 (full time equivalents)Regional council employees

199,380 propertiesRateable properties

109.698 billionTotal capital value of rating units

62.275 billionTotal land value of rating units

2,125,773haRateable hectares

10,178 consentsResource consents administered

1960 consentsResource consents processed annually

11 daysAnnual resource consent hearing days

572kmStopbanks

298,221haLand benefiting from flood protection improvements

226,238haLand benefiting from land drainage schemes

27,061haLand covered by soil conservation schemes

217,416haTotal hectares under priority possum control

1435 sitesData collection sites

All figures are as at 30 June 2016 unless otherwise specified.

The 1435 routine sites include:

21 intensity rainfall sites

31 daily read rainfall sites

45 surface water flow sites

6 coastal sites including water temperature, sea level, waveamplitude, wind speed, wind direction, wind gust andbarometric pressure

10 automatic groundwater level sites

1 climate site

15 lake level sites

10 air quality monitoring sites

33 coastal erosion profile sites

28 estuary water quality monitoring sites

15 estuary ecological monitoring sites

170 freshwater ecological monitoring sites

431 manual groundwater level sites

253 groundwater quality sites

123 surface water quality sites (including 12 bathing beachsites)

24 suspended sediment monitoring sites

15 soil monitoring sites

8 temporary/portable recorder water quality sites

14 clean streams sites

24 catchment environmental monitoring sites

14 lakes water quality sites

69 fisheries monitoring sites

75 geothermal sites.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

11

What we do and whyWaikato Regional Council carries out a number of activitiesthat are grouped into a strategic framework. Most of the workwe undertake is required by legislation, further informationon which can be found in Appendix II. Our current programmeof work can be found in our 2015–2025 Long Term Plan (LTP)available on our website.

Community and services

This group of activities includes:

governance

iwi partnerships

planning and reporting

community partnerships.

Governance

This activity supports the chairperson and councillors in theirroles and ensures council processes, such as triennial electionsand meetings, are run correctly and decision making processesare robust and transparent. This includes working inpartnerships and collaboratively by providing for iwi,community and key stakeholder representation on the council’sstanding subcommittees and councillor representation onother local government, key stakeholder and communitygroups. Maintaining the integrity of the council’s processes isalso supported by the provision of corporate legal advisoryservices and timely and appropriate responses to officialinformation requests and Ombudsmen’s office enquiries.

Iwi partnerships

Waikato Regional Council works with iwi and hapū at a politicaland operational level to ensure the traditional role of tangatawhenua as kaitiaki is respected and there are avenues availablefor tangata whenua and Māori communities to contribute tothe council’s decision making. The council is building itscapacity to deliver on co-management obligations arising fromTreaty of Waitangi settlements.

Planning and reporting

This activity includes development of statutory plans andreports to improve transparency and accountability to ourresidents and ratepayers. These include long term plans, annualplans and annual reports. Financial and service performanceis reported to the council quarterly and reported to the publicannually via an annual report. Regular monitoring andreporting is important as it assesses whether the council’spolicies and services achieve their intended objectives.

Community partnerships

This activity reflects the importance the council places oncollaboration, demonstrated by our mission of "working withothers to build a Waikato that has a healthy environment,strong economy and vibrant communities”. Work programmes

within this activity include Enviroschools, road safety, cleanheat incentives, waste minimisation, and corporate andbusiness sustainability. These programmes share a focus onmulti-agency relationships to bring about sustainable behaviourchange.

Emergency management


Civil Defence and Emergency Management (CDEM) Group

Waikato Regional Council emergency management

Resilient development.

Civil defence and emergency management

Under the CDEM Act 2002, CDEM is a function andresponsibility of regional, district and city councils.Consequently, all local authorities throughout New Zealandhave joined together on a regional basis to form CDEM groups.These groups, in partnership with emergency services andother organisations, are responsible for emergencymanagement locally.

The Waikato CDEM Group comprises the Waikato RegionalCouncil and 10 territorial authorities, in conjunction withemergency services, welfare agencies and utility providers. Ithas five emergency operating areas – South Waikato, Taupō,Western Waikato, Hamilton City and Waikato District. Theseprovide CDEM services at the local level. The Waikato CDEMGroup works closely with research institutions, utility operatorsand central government, which all have vested interests andresponsibilities to reduce risks and improve communityresilience.

The Waikato CDEM Group is responsible for delivering on the4 Rs (readiness, response, reduction and recovery) as outlinedin the CDEM Group Plan. This involves operational planningto ensure that CDEM organisations and the community havethe capacity and a capability to respond to an emergency. Itincludes community, organisational and business readinessand involves all activities required in the pre-emergency period.Specific readiness activities include maintaining the GroupEmergency Coordination Centre (GECC), public education andawareness, training and exercises, information management,liaison and community resilience/participation. In addition,the Group is responsible for coordinating efforts acrossterritorial authorities and other members in areas of reductionand recovery.

The Waikato Regional Council performs the statutory role ofadministering authority on behalf of the Waikato CDEM GroupJoint Committee and the Coordinating Executive Group (CEG)through a service level agreement. Waikato Regional Councilis also responsible for the CDEM Group EmergencyManagement Office (GEMO) which coordinates the day-to-dayplanning and project work on behalf of the group and CEG.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

12

Additionally, through a service level agreement, the GEMOprovides for the delivery of local CDEM service for HamiltonCity Council and Waikato District Council. The GEMO will belocated at a highly resilient facility design to withstand majorearthquakes and other catastrophic events from mid-2017. TheGECC will be based at the same facility and is activated whenthere is a need for a coordinated regional response to a local,regional or national emergency.

Waikato Regional Council emergency management

Waikato Regional Council provides facilities, staff, resourcesand information in support of the Waikato CDEM Group.

Under the Resource Management Act (RMA) 1991, the councilmust collate information on hazardous substances and respondto emergencies involving the accidental release of thesesubstances. Also required under the RMA is the round theclock monitoring and provision of flood event information tothe community as required.

The Maritime Transport Act 1994 requires the council to planfor and respond to certain marine oil spills within the region.Tier 1 (industry) and tier 2 (regional) marine oil spillcontingency plans are kept updated and approved by theWaikato Regional Council and Maritime New Zealandrespectively. Regional (tier 2) marine oil spill exercises withrelevant agencies are also undertaken annually.

Resilient development

This activity involves the collection and provision of strategicinformation and advice to district councils, the Waikato CDEMGroup and landowners on a range of hazards, on behalf of theregional community and stakeholders. The information is usedto help identify areas of the region most at risk from hazardevents, and to minimise risk and damage to people, homes,businesses and infrastructure. This ensures risks from hazardsare reduced over time and sound decisions are made aboutthe future development of hazard prone areas.

By better understanding natural hazard risks, communitiescan prepare for or avoid them. The council pulls together andanalyses a wide range of information to identify where homesand businesses are most at risk from floods, erosion and othernatural hazards, as well as building and maintaininginfrastructure to reduce identified risks. This work includescollaborating with district councils to ensure people avoidbuilding in hazardous areas into the future.

Flood protection and control works

This group of activities includes flood protection, land drainageand river management delivered geographically by zone. Thereare eight zones in the Waikato region. Each zone is representedby community members on a catchment committee.

Flood protection

Waikato Regional Council provides communities with an agreedlevel of protection from floods. The council is the primaryagency responsible for flood protection and assets, whichinclude stopbanks, floodgates, pump stations,

channels/streams and pumps. The flood protection servicesare focused on those specific geographic areas where schemeshave been agreed with communities. The services are closelyconnected to hazard, risk and land use management.

This activity also includes the Lake Taupō Foreshore Erosionand Flood Strategy and associated work programme. Thestrategy was developed jointly with Taupō District Council tomanage foreshore erosion around Lake Taupō. It isimplemented in conjunction with Taupō District Council,Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board, hydro power generators andproperty owners.

Land drainage

Waikato Regional Council manages a multi-million dollarsystem of natural and built infrastructure to keep productivepastoral land draining freely. There are over 90 individual landdrainage schemes. Each scheme is fully funded under its owntargeted rating.

River management

Waikato Regional Council manages rivers and streams toreduce effects on communities of bank erosion, channelinstability and blockages while also looking to enhance theenvironment. Programmes are based on priority and the levelof risk to people and property.

A guiding principle for the council is ‘integrated’ catchmentmanagement which seeks to promote the sustainablemanagement of the region’s natural resources. There are stronglinkages between the activities in this group and the IntegratedCatchment Management and Emergency Management groupsof activities.

Integrated catchment management


catchment planning and management

biosecurity

biodiversity

environmental farming systems.

Integrated catchment management brings together a rangeof the council’s functions to deliver services by catchment toachieve multiple benefits, such as soil stability and improvedwater quality. A ‘whole of catchment’ or integrated catchmentapproach allows us to direct funding and resources in a morestrategic and prioritised manner. There are eight catchments,known as zones, in the Waikato region.

A comprehensive catchment committee structure withregion-wide coverage underpins this approach. This enablesthe council to connect with communities more efficiently andhas resulted in a high level of community support for theprotection measures, programmes and management systemsin place.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

13

Catchment planning and management

This activity includes both maintenance of existing soilconservation schemes and new works projects according tothe priorities established within each zone. It also includesshallow lakes and harbour management.

New works projects include erosion protection, fencing andplanting, weed control, lake and wetland protection,enhancement and restoration, and bush fragment protection.New works projects are actively sought by landowners andare, in most cases, part funded by the council and part fundedby landowners via a targeted rate (usually on a 35:65 ratio).Funding is also available for maintenance of catchment worksunder previous land improvement agreements and morerecently, memoranda of encumbrance. Extensive andcomprehensive catchment retirement works are already inplace.

Sites owned and managed by the council (principally grazinglease land that is part of our various flood protection anddrainage schemes) are prioritised for ecological enhancementworks in partnership with local stakeholders and communitygroups. In particular, the lowland areas of the Waihou, Waipaand Waikato rivers lend themselves to development of wetlandsand habitats for native bird and fish species.

Biosecurity

The biosecurity programme delivers animal and plant pestmanagement through the provision of information and advice,surveillance, monitoring and inspections, direct control,pathway management, working with people on communitybased initiatives and research. The council funds pest controlwork through a region wide rate based on capital value.

The council sets objectives, methods and rules through theWaikato Regional Pest Management Plan (RPMP). This detailswhich plants and animals are declared pests in the Waikatoregion. It explains why they are pests and outlines how eachpest will be managed over a 10 year period. The current RPMPwas made operative in August 2014. Implementing the newregional pest management plan, with new pests, new rulesand new approaches for some pests will remain a high priorityfor the life of the long term plan.

Under the RPMP, land occupiers are required to takeresponsibility for pests on their land and, for some pests, tocarry out control measures. Failure to comply may give rise toenforcement action including prosecution. An operational planis prepared annually outlining the nature and scope of activitiesthe council intends to undertake in implementing the RPMPfor that financial year.

Biodiversity

The biodiversity programme focuses on supporting landownersand communities to protect and enhance the region's naturalheritage. Waikato contains numerous natural areas that providehabitats for native plant and animal species, and provideecosystem services to the region. Priorities for this programme

include significant natural areas that are rare and/or containthreatened species. Other projects include Hamilton Halo,Project Echo and pest plant control at geothermal sites.

This activity also manages the council’s relationships withcommunity groups involved in ecological protection andrestoration, such as the Waikato Biodiversity Forum andBeachcare. Through the Natural Heritage PartnershipProgramme (NHPP), the council provides contestable grantfunding for environmental projects ranging from landpurchases to protect special places of ecological significanceto small scale community grants. The NHPP is funded througha targeted rate on all rateable properties. This fund alsosupports the Maungatautari Ecological Island project.

Environmental farming systems

This activity includes a number of projects aimed at educatingand raising awareness of agricultural sustainability issues andpromoting best practice. The projects include sustainableagriculture, industry education, farmer education, andintegrated catchment management.

These projects currently support a broad variety of work in theregion, including:

drystock and dairy liaison groups

Ballance Farm Environment Awards

Landcare group coordination

dairy effluent initiatives such as the pond storage calculator,the Effluent Expo, development of the dairy effluent codeof practice, development of the effluent compliancechecklist and presence at numerous field days with DairyNZon effluent rules and other sustainability issues

delivery of integrated farm plans and nutrient managementadvice

other nutrient management extension through developmentof a code of practice and training of fertiliser companyrepresentatives

drystock industry initiatives, such as resource productionand the promotion of self management tools

support to the Effluent on Maize trial and research

afforestation projects, such as the afforestation grantscheme, and the Honda Tree Fund.

Public transport

Waikato Regional Council provides public transport serviceswithin the Hamilton urban area and to some key rural centresaround the region. It also provides other services in the regionto serve local needs, and seasonal services to meet strongsummer demand. In addition, the council provides TotalMobility services in three urban areas in the region.

Resource use

This group of activities includes three activities:

consent processing and compliance monitoring

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

14

investigations and incident response

maritime services.

Consent processing and compliance monitoring

The consent processing activity provides consenting andcompliance monitoring for all Resource Management Actrelated activities and Building Act responsibilities. Compliancewith resource consents is monitored on a prioritised basis.Council proactively monitors compliance with two of the 73permitted activities in the Waikato Regional Plan, namely farmanimal effluent and soil disturbance.

Investigations and incident response

This activity involves responding to notifications from membersof the public about environmental incidents, investigatingserious breaches of environmental or maritime regulation andcoordinating any subsequent enforcement action.

The council runs a 24 hour, 7 day a week response service toensure the environment, people or property are not seriouslyaffected on an ongoing basis by pollution incidents or thenon-compliant activities of resource users. Where significantnon-compliance has been found to occur, the councilinvestigates an incident to enable decisions to be made onappropriate enforcement actions.

Maritime services

This activity is split into three primary workstreams – namelypolicy and procedures, compliance with and education of thenavigation safety bylaw, and operations. Operations includescompliance activities, debris removal, and inspecting andmaintaining the region’s network of navigation aids.

The navigational safety bylaw covers all navigable waterwaysin the Waikato region (with the exception of Lake Taupō) andis aimed at ensuring the safety of users on these waterways.It sets out safe practices for people using the lakes, rivers andharbours for water skiing, swimming, boating, kayaking orother water activities safely, by seeking to reduce the conflictsbetween different activities.

The reviewed bylaw was adopted by council in May 2013, withthe key change of compulsory wearing of lifejackets in vessels6 meters long or less.

The bylaw is scheduled to be formally internally reviewed in2018 which may prompt a full review involving publicconsultation.

Science and strategy


environmental monitoring

environmental information

social and economic information

regional strategy and development

integration and infrastructure

resource management policy.

Environmental monitoringEnvironmental informationSocial and economic information

These three activities support evidence based planning anddecision making through gathering, analysing and documentingenvironmental, social, cultural and economic information. Theinformation is used to:

meet the council’s legislated responsibilities

inform the development, implementation and review ofcouncil policies

assess resource consents

monitor the state and trends of the environment

track progress towards the council’s strategic direction.

Regional strategy and development

This activity involves leading the Waikato region towardsbecoming more strategic and forward thinking. The councilundertakes strategic thinking with key regional stakeholdersincluding scanning and research, development of non-statutoryregional strategies and plans, economic and spatial plans andcollaborative management of regional issues.

Integration and infrastructure

This activity ensures there is a connector between the deliveryof science, strategy and policy, and the community. It ensureskey stakeholders throughout the region are aware of currentscience, strategy and policy projects and processes and areable to contribute effectively to these. This activity also focuseson the development and delivery of infrastructure andtransport policy for the region.

Resource management policy

This activity develops and reviews policy for the Waikato thatmeets statutory requirements. The Resource Management Act1991 requires the council to produce a regional policy statementand review it every 10 years. The council is also required tomaintain and review the effectiveness of the regional plan andregional coastal plan.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

15

HOW WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCILWORKS | TE MAHI A TE KAUNIHERAĀ-ROHE O WAIKATOWaikato Regional Council works for its regional community. The council ensures the community has the ability to access andengage with us and our elected members as this is central to the organisation's success.

Meeting processesCouncillors meet monthly (or as required) in committees andsubcommittees to look closely at environmental, economicand community issues and make decisions on orrecommendations to the council.

The full council generally meets on the last Thursday of eachmonth to consider recommendations and make decisions ona wide variety of activities and policies.

Meetings are publicly notified in accordance with the LocalGovernment Official Information and Meetings Act 1987; andconducted in accordance with the Local Government Act, in

particular Schedule 7. Waikato Regional Council has alsoadopted the NZS 9202:2003 Standing Orders – the proceduresfor the conduct of meetings and debate for the council and itscommittees.

Waikato Regional Council’s Code of Conduct for ElectedMembers has information on elected members’ attendance atmeetings. To find out about this month’s meetings or to viewcouncil and committee agendas and minutes for previousmeetings, please see our website.

Planning and decision makingThe Local Government Act 2002 and the Resource ManagementAct 1991 represent two significant pieces of legislation whereplanning and decision making are fundamental to the WaikatoRegional Council’s effective function. Refer to the followingsection for more information.

The Local Government Act 2002

Part 6 of the Local Government Act is central in outliningcouncil’s obligations in respect of planning and decisionmaking. Among other things, Part 6 identifies:

council’s obligations in relation to decision making

council’s obligations in relation to consultation with Māoriin decision making processes

council’s obligations for consultation with interested oraffected persons

the nature and use of the special consultative procedure.

Decision making

The Local Government Act sets out the requirements fordecision making that every local authority must follow. Insummary, when making a decision, the Waikato RegionalCouncil must:

involve consideration of all reasonably practicable optionsincluding the costs and benefits of each of those options,the extent to which they achieve community outcomes andtheir impact on the capacity of the local authority to meetits statutory responsibilities now and in the future

involve consideration of the views and preferences ofpersons likely to be affected by or have an interest in thematter

consider the interests of future as well as currentgenerations and the impact of the decision on eachcommunity wellbeing

identify and explain any significant inconsistency betweenthe decision and any policy or plan adopted by the localauthority

provide opportunities for Māori to contribute to the decisionmaking processes

promote compliance with the principles of consultation.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

16

Relationships with iwi partnersThe six largest iwi collectives in the Waikato region areWaikato-Tainui, Hauraki, Raukawa, Maniapoto, Tūwharetoaand Te Arawa.

Waikato Regional Council acknowledges the special positionof tāngata whenua as kaitiaki and the Māori community. Thecouncil encourages staff to work with iwi, hapū and marae atan operational level.

As part of the partnership approach between council and iwi,relationships have been formalised through Joint ManagementAgreements (JMAs). The Waikato Regional Council has JMAsin place with Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board, RaukawaSettlement Trust, Waikato Maniapoto Maori Trust Board,Waikato Raupatu River Trust and Te Arawa River Iwi Trust.

Waikato Regional Council has also supported the completionof iwi environmental management plans (IEMP) by TūwharetoaMāori Trust Board, Hauraki Māori Trust Board, ManiapotoMāori Trust Board, Te Arawa River Iwi Trust, Waikato-Tainuiand Raukawa Charitable Trust. The council has in place systemsand processes to receive and integrate these iwi planningdocuments.

Waikato Regional Council seeks to establish workingrelationships with iwi partners based on principles such as:

to forge and strengthen partnerships to achieve positiveoutcomes for the region (this is one of the seven flagshipgoals in the council’s strategic direction)

to acknowledge the special position of iwi as settlementsand agreements with the Crown are finalised and enacted

to promote opportunities that are mutually beneficial andfacilitate council contribution to mana motuhake objectivesfor iwi and iwi contribution to the council’s strategicdirection

To express the Waikato Regional Council’s commitment totake into account the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi

to acknowledge tāonga and kaitiakitanga responsibilitiesare significant to iwi, ensure council processes areimplemented to facilitate participation of iwi Māori incouncil business.

In addition to developing JMAs, there is iwi Māori membershipon the Regional Land Transport Committee, tāngata whenuarepresentation on the Catchment Liaison Sub-committees (8),and two iwi Māori councillor seats. A collaborative stakeholderprocess has been developed in conjunction with the councilsriver iwi partners for the proposed Plan Change 1 Waikato andWaipā River catchments (Healthy Rivers).

ConsultationConsultation is a process between a local authority and itscommunity whereby information is exchanged around anydecision, issue or other matter. The outcomes of theconsultative process do not bind a local authority in any way.Rather, the information gathered through this process is usedas a source of information in any subsequent decision makingprocess.

Consultation is fundamental to ensuring that good decisionsare arrived at during the development of policies and plansand the Waikato Regional Council is committed to ensuringeffective consultation is undertaken with the regionalcommunity. The Local Government Act sets out six keyprinciples for consultation that the Waikato Regional Councilapplies throughout its consultative processes. In summary, thecouncil must:

provide people who may be affected by a decision withappropriate information

encourage people to present their views

ensure people have clear information on the purpose of theconsultation and the scope of the decisions the council willhave to take

ensure people have a reasonable timeframe and opportunityto present their views in a manner appropriate to theirneeds

have an open mind to views presented and give them dueconsideration when making decisions

give information back to presenters on the decisions madeand the reasons.

Another important consultative requirement for the council isthe adoption of a Significance and Engagement Policy (SEP).The SEP is a device that advises the public what decisions ormatters the council and the community consider to beparticularly important, how the council will go about assessingthe importance of matters, and how and when the communitycan expect to be consulted on both.

For a copy of the SEP, please see our websitewaikatoregion.govt.nz.

The SEP will be updated in 2017 prior to the 2018-2028 LTPand made available on our website.

Communication and consultation methods

All communication and consultation activities are guided bythe International Association for Public Participation spectrum(IAP2).

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

17

Special consultative procedure

The Local Government Act describes a special consultativeprocedure – a statutory minimum procedure that localauthorities must follow when making particular decisions. Thisprocedure must be used, for example, for the adoption of aLong Term Plan. The steps involved include:

preparation of a statement of proposal and a summary

providing adequate time for the community to consider theproposal

providing the opportunity for submitters to present theirviews to elected representatives

deliberation in an open meeting of the council.

More information

The Department of Internal Affairs oversees theimplementation of the Local Government Act. For moreinformation on decision making and consultationprocesses and getting involved with your council, visittheir website: www.dia.govt.nz.

Key strategy, policy and planningdocumentsWaikato Regional Council has a large number and wide varietyof policies, strategies and plans, both statutory andnon-statutory. The objectives and actions within the strategiesand plans determine the work programmes and projectsincluded in the Long Term Plan.

The council’s strategies and plans are at various stages in theirlifecycle. The key public policy lifecycles stages are planning,development, consultation, adoption, implementation andreview or evaluation.

Key strategies, plans and documents include:

2015-2025 Long Term Plan

Air Quality Strategy

Annual Report 2015/16

Asset Management Plan

Brand Strategy

Communications Strategy and Digital Strategy

Customer Engagement Strategy

Enforcement Policy

Feedback and Complaints Policy and Process

Financial Strategy

Flood Warning Procedures Manual

Health and Safety Strategy

High Flow Management Plan

Infrastructure Strategy

Interim Contaminated Land Operational Plan 2013-23

Joint Management Agreements

Māori Partnership Approach

Navigational Safety Bylaw 2013

Organisational Emergency Response Framework

Our Strategic Direction 2016-2019

People Strategy

Regional Coastal Plan

Regional Flood Response Management Plan

Regional Land Transport Plan

Regional Pest Management Plan

Regional Plan

Regional Policy Statement

Regional Public Transport Plan

Regional Walking and Cycling Strategy

Road Safety Strategy

Significance and Engagement Policy

Spatial Information Strategy Refresh 2016 – 2019

Stakeholder Management Strategy

Stock Truck Effluent Strategy

Strategic Information Services Plan

Upper North Island Strategic Alliance Agreement

Waikato Civil Defence Emergency Management Group Plan2016-2020

Waikato Economic Development Strategy

Waikato Region Marine Oil Spill Contingency Plan

Waikato Region Shallow Lakes Management Plan

Waikato Regional Plan

Waikato Regional Policy Statement

Waikato Triennial Agreement

Waikato Waipa River Restoration Strategy

Zone Management Plans

These plans are important as they are driving change to thecouncil’s business over the life of the LTP. The list of strategiesand plans will be reviewed in 2017 prior to the 2018-2028 LTP.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

18

Co-management and co-governanceThe Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) SettlementAct 2010 introduced new co-governance and co-managementframeworks for the Waikato River and its catchment areaspecifically for Waikato-Tainui.

Following this, the Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te ArawaRiver Iwi Waikato River Act 2010 and Nga Wai o Maniapoto(Waipa River) Act 2012 were introduced recognising the manawhakahaere interests of river iwi in the middle and upperWaikato and upper Waipa catchment areas. As a result, similarco-governance and co-management arrangements wereestablished with Raukawa, Te Arawa, Tūwharetoa andManiapoto.

The primary instruments for co-governance andco-management are the Iwi-Crown Ministerial Accords,Iwi-Ministerial appointments to the Waikato River Authority,Iwi-Council co-governance committees and Joint ManagementAgreements (JMAs).

Plan Change 1 Waikato and Waipa River catchments (HealthyRivers) is the primary document focusing on protecting andrestoring the health of the river. The purpose of the WaikatoRiver Authority is to set direction, through the Plan Change toachieve the restoration and protection of the health andwellbeing of the Waikato River for present and futuregenerations and to promote an integrated, holistic andcoordinated approach to the implementation of the vision andstrategy and the management of the Waikato River.

As part of the Waikato-Tainui treaty settlement, the Crownestablished the Waikato River Clean-Up Trust and hascommitted to provide $210 million over 30 years for clean-upinitiatives. A further $10 million contribution to the trust hasbeen introduced through the Ngā Wai o Maniapoto (WaipāRiver) Act 2012. Any member of the public is entitled to applyfor funding to resource clean-up initiatives that achieve thepurpose of the Act. The Waikato River Authority acts as trusteeand administrator.

In most cases, the Waikato Regional Council is required todevelop JMAs with each river iwi within an 18 month timeframestarting from the time settlement legislation has been fullyenacted.

JMAs developed to date are operational tools to give expressionto the mana whakahaere for each iwi (or authority of the tribe)to exercise control and management of the river and includeprovisions for iwi to become involved in:

river-related resource consent processing

monitoring and enforcement of river-related resourceconsents

state of the environment, permitted activity and policyeffectiveness monitoring

preparation, review, change or variation of RMA planningdocuments in relation to the Vision and Strategy

customary activities; by way of exempting river iwi fromconsent requirements for activities fundamental to theirrelationship with the river.

Co-governance committees have been established betweenthe Waikato Regional Council and river iwi to oversee thedetails of JMAs. JMAs have been signed with RaukawaCharitable Trust, Te Arawa River Iwi Trust, Waikato-Tainui, theManiapoto Māori Trust Board and Tuwharetoa Māori TrustBoard.

Waikato Regional Council and Waikato-Tainui have formed aco-management agreement in relation to sites of significanceand flood control scheme managed lands transferred toWaikato-Tainui from Crown ownership as part of thesettlement.

Treaty settlements and claims

A number of iwi in the Waikato region received statutoryacknowledgements through the Treaty Settlement legislation.They include Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, Te Arawa and theiraffiliated iwi and hapū. Pouakani and Maraeroa blocks A andB have also been statutorily acknowledged.

Further iwi are at different stages of progressing theircomprehensive treaty settlements and these include NgātiKorokī-Kahukura, the Hauraki Iwi Collective, Ngāti Maniapoto,Ngāti Hauā and Ngāi Tūhoe. Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Te Ata,Ngāti Tamaoho and Ngāti Hinerangi are currently engaged innegotiations with the Office of Treaty Settlements. We expectdiscussions will include recognition of respective iwi interests,particularly in the Waikato, Waihou and Piako river catchmentareas.

A number of outstanding Treaty claims are yet to be completedby the Waitangi Tribunal. These include claims seeking redressfrom the Crown for Treaty breaches along the west coast areasof the region and Te Rohe Potae.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

19

GovernanceElectoral system

The Local Electoral Act 2001 allows the council to use one oftwo electoral (voting) systems for their triennial elections.

• First Past the Post (FPP).

• Single Transferable Voting (STV).

Under the Local Electoral Act (LEA), the process for a localauthority to change their electoral system is either as a resultof a resolution (which is subject to the right for five per centof electors to demand a poll to countermand that resolution)or a poll (either demanded by five per cent of electors or as aresult of a resolution). If the electoral system changes as aresult of a poll, or if a poll rejects a change, that decision willapply for the next triennial general election and will continueuntil a further council resolution or a poll demand. If there isa change as a result of a resolution, that decision will applyfor the next triennial general election and continues in effectuntil a further resolution or poll. Local authorities are requiredto give public notice of their chosen electoral (voting) systemtwo years before the date of the next triennial election.

Waikato Regional Council used the FPP electoral system forthe 2016 local elections where electors voted by indicatingtheir preferred candidate(s). The candidate(s) who receivedthe highest number of votes were declared elected. Thisdecision was made by resolution of council in July 2014. Thecouncil did not receive any requests from residents orratepayers to hold a poll to change this decision. Council isrequired to determine the voting system for the 2019 electionsby 12 September 2017.

Māori representation

Under the LEA, the process for a local authority to establishMāori constituencies is either as a result of a resolution (whichis subject to the right for five per cent of electors to demanda poll to countermand that resolution) or a poll (eitherdemanded by five per cent of electors or as a result of aresolution). If Māori constituencies are established as a resultof a poll, or if a poll rejects a change, that decision will applyfor a minimum of two triennial general elections and willcontinue until a further council resolution or a poll demand. If Māori constituencies are established as a result of aresolution, that decision will apply for the next triennial generalelection and continues in effect until a further resolution orpoll. Local authorities are also required to give public notice,advising of the decision to establish Māori constituencies, andthe right for five percent of electors to demand a poll on theresolution.

In accordance with s19Z of the Local Electoral Act, WaikatoRegional Council considered the question of Māorirepresentation in 2011 and the decision to establish Māoriconstituencies was made by resolution of the council inOctober 2011. The council did not receive a valid demand fora poll to change this decision and therefore, Māoriconstituencies formed part of the 2015 RepresentationArrangements Review in preparation for the 2016 triennialelections and will continue in effect until a further resolutionor poll.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

20

Membership and constituencies

The council currently has 14 councillors elected from six general and two Māori constituencies, as illustrated in the maps below.

The LEA requires all local authorities to carry out a representation arrangements review at least once every six years. A reviewfor the Waikato Regional Council was undertaken in 2012. The council must undertake a representation review in 2018.

The legislative requirements for council in determining its representation arrangements are set out in the LEA. Constituencyboundaries and their resulting representation are now based on population for each constituency, with the criteria being setout in Section 19V (2) of the Act. The criteria for determining the number of elected members for each constituency was asfollows:

“The constituency population divided by the number of its elected members must be no more than 10 per cent greater or smaller thanthe population of the region divided by the total number of elected members.”

Once the population requirement had been met, factors such as effective representation and regional communities of interestare then taken into account.

Roles and conduct

Elected council members are responsible for:

representing the interests of the residents and ratepayers of the Waikato region

the development and adoption of council policy

monitoring the performance of the council against its stated objectives and policies

the appropriate and efficient allocation and use of council resources

the employment of the chief executive.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

21

Any individual member (including the chairperson) has no authority to act on behalf of the council unless the council hasexpressly delegated such authority.

The Code of Conduct for Elected Members describes the roles, the relationship and the agreed standards of behaviour electedmembers have with each other, the chief executive, council staff, the community and the media. The code’s appendix sets outhow legislative requirements affect elected members’ duties and conduct.

Members' contact details

Hamilton general constituency

Simcock, BobRimmington, RussQuayle, BarryHennebry, Jane

021 991 [email protected]




Waikato general constituency

Lichtwark, FredHayman, Jennie



Waihou general constituency

Vercoe, HughHusband, Stuart



Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

22

Thames-Coromandel general constituencyTaupō-Rotorua general constituency

Minogue, DalWhite, Kathy

021 729 870 or 07 866 [email protected]


Waipā-King Country general constituency

Livingston, Alan (Chairperson)Kneebone, Stuart Thomas (Stu)



Ngā Tai ki Uta Māori constituencyNgā Hau e Whā Māori constituency

Hodge, KatarainaMahuta, Tipa (Deputy Chair)



Governance structures and processes

The elected council delegates hold responsibility for various functions for standing committees. These committees deal withspecific functional areas with the full council meeting approximately once a month to review their work. Committee structurescan be reviewed by the council at any time during the triennium.

Committee membership currently consists of a chair and appointed councillors with a director assigned to each standingcommittee to provide specialist advice. Councillors can also be appointed to a variety of subcommittees, joint committees andexternal appointments.

The following tables outline the objective, council members and frequency of each committee meeting. Further information isavailable on our website.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

23

Committees required by statute

Waikato Civil Defence Emergency Management Group

To provide governance and oversight of all planning, co-ordination and delivery ofCivil Defence Emergency Management within the Waikato Region Civil DefenceEmergency Management Group area.

Objective

Councillor Hugh Vercoe (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Stu Husband (alternate - if representative not available to attend)

Quarterly or as requiredFrequency of meetings

Regional Transport Committee

To undertake the functions as prescribed in the Land Transport Management Act2003 (LTMA), and to provide a regional forum for the consideration of regionallysignificant transport matters. To monitor the implementation of the Regional PublicTransport Plan outside of Hamilton City.

Objective

Councillor Hugh Vercoe (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Russ Rimmington (deputy)

Quarterly or as required.Frequency of meetings

Hauraki Gulf Forum

Purpose 1. To integrate the management and, where appropriate, to promote the conservationand management in a sustainable manner, of the natural, historic and physical

(Section 15, Hauraki Gulf Marine ParkAct)

resources of the Hauraki Gulf, its islands and catchments, for the benefit andenjoyment of the people and communities of the Gulf and New Zealand.

2. To facilitate communication, co-operation and co-ordination on matters relatingto the statutory functions of the constituent parties in relation to the Hauraki Gulf,its islands and catchments and the Forum.

3. To recognise the historic, traditional, cultural and spiritual relationship of tangatawhenua with the Hauraki Gulf, its islands and where appropriate, its catchments.

Councillor Dal MinogueWaikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Jennie Hayman (alternate - if representative not available to attend)

3-4 times per annum (or as required).Frequency of meetings

Lake Taupō Protection Project Joint Committee

Establish the Lake Taupō Protection Trust to implement the Lake Taupō ProtectionProject in accordance with the Trust Deed.

Objective

Provide governance to the Lake Taupō Protection Trust in accordance with the LocalGovernment Act 2002 and The Lake Taupō Protection Project Agreement.

Councillor Kathy WhiteWaikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Kataraina Hodge

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

24

Quarterly or as required by the chair or by the Joint Committee (clause 9.1, ProjectAgreement).

Frequency of meetings

Ngā Wai o Waipā Co-Governance Forum

To give effect to the governance provisions outlined in Clause 15 of the JointManagement Agreement between the organisations.

Objective

Councillor Alan Livingston (co-chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Stu Kneebone (alternate - if representative not available to attend)

Annually (or more frequently if agreed).Frequency of meetings

Raukawa Charitable Trust and Waikato Regional Council Co-Governance Committee

To give effect to the guardianship provisions as provided for pursuant to clause 8 ofthe Joint Management Agreement between the organisations.

Objective


Councillor Kataraina Hodge (deputy)

Councillor Stu Kneebone

Councillor Hugh Vercoe

Annually (or more frequently if agreed).Frequency of meetings

Te Arawa River Iwi Trust and Waikato Regional Council Co-Governance Committee

To give effect to the guardianship provisions as provided for pursuant to clause 12 ofthe Joint Management Agreement between the organisations.

Objective


Councillor Kathy White (deputy)


Councillor Tipa Mahuta

Annually (or more often if agreed).Frequency of meetings

Tūwharetoa Maori Trust Board and Waikato Regional Council Co-Governance Committee

To commence the process for finalising a Joint Management Agreement between theTrust and the Council.

Objective


Councillor Kathy White (deputy)



No less than once a year.Frequency of meetings

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

25

Waikato Raupatu River Trust and Waikato Regional Council Co-Governance Committee

To give effect to the meetings between the parties’ provisions (clause 9) as providedfor in the Joint Management Agreement between the organisations.

Objective


Councillor Tipa Mahuta (deputy)

Councillor Jenny Hayman

Councillor Fred Lichtwark

Annually (or more often if agreed).Frequency of meetings

Standing committees

Strategy and Policy Committee

To set council’s strategic direction and policy responses, signal regional issues, respondto external agency statutory planning processes via advocacy submissions, advise

Objective

the council in respect of thought leadership across matters of regional significance,establish strategic priorities for organisational direction and policy setting.

Councillor Bob Simcock (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members


Councillor Jane Hennebry

Councillor Alan Livingston

Councillor Russ Rimmington

Councillor Kathy White



Councillor Stu Husband


Councillor Jennie Hayman


Councillor Dal Minogue

Councillor Barry Quayle

Six weekly or as required.Frequency of meetings

Environmental and Services Performance Committee

To monitor and report on the effectiveness of and compliance with council’s resourcemanagement responsibilities.

Objective

To be informed about emerging and significant environmental issues, monitorperformance trends, and to review policy in relation to the emerging issues andtrends.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

26

Councillor Kathy White (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Kataraina Hodge (deputy)





Chair or Deputy Chair of Council ex-officio


Integrated Catchment Management Committee

To set objectives, priorities and levels of service for catchment management andmonitor achievement levels through the outcomes.

Objective

Councillor Stu Husband (joint-chair north)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Stu Kneebone (joint-chair south)







Two monthly or as required.Frequency of meetings

Healthy Rivers - Wai Ora Committee

To provide co-governance functions with respect to Plan Change 1 and the Waikatoand Waipa Rivers, including a focus on implementation, plan effectiveness monitoring

Objective

and providing direction on the possible next steps post notification of Plan Change1 including the co-design of the project framework for subsequent planning processesthat focus on the allocation of contaminant discharges to replace the existing “holdthe line” approach.

Councillor Stu Kneebone (co-chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Kataraina Hodge (dep co-chair)


Councillor Bob Simcock




Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

27

Finance Committee

To monitor the council’s financial and non-financial activities against its LTP andAnnual Plan.

Objective

To monitor the performance of the council’s Investment Fund against the Statementof Investment Policy and Objectives and compliance with the Treasury Policy.

Councillor Jane Hennebry (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Hugh Vercoe (deputy chair)





Five times per year (to align with key financial reporting periods) or as required.Frequency of meetings

Audit and Risk Committee

To promote and enhance the effectiveness of the council’s Audit processes by theprovision of independent expertise and to strengthen the monitoring of the council’srisk, control and compliance framework.

Objective

Hamish Stevens (chair)*Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Jane Hennebry (deputy )

Graham Naylor*



*Chair or Deputy Chair of Council ex-officio

Independent appointee's

Four times per year or as otherwise required.Frequency of meetings

CE Employment and Remuneration Committee (CEERC)

To act for and advise the council on matters pertaining to the employment of theCouncil’s Chief Executive [CE], senior staff succession, strategic HR policy and statutorycompliance.

Objective

Councillor Alan Livingston (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members





As required.Frequency of meetings

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

28

Joint committees

Hamilton Public Transport Joint Committee

To oversee the implementation and monitoring of the Regional Public Transport Planin Hamilton. To consider and recommend on matters relevant to the implementationand monitoring of the Regional Public Transport Plan as it affects Hamilton City.

Objective

Councillor Russ Rimmington (co-chair)Waikato Regional Council Members


Quarterly as required.Frequency of meetings

Waikato Plan Joint Committee

To govern, lead and resource the development and recommendation to adopt theWaikato Spatial Plan to councils within the Waikato region. The primary objective ofthe Waikato Spatial Plan is “to contribute to the Waikato’s social, economic,environmental and cultural well-being through a comprehensive and effectivelong-term (30 year) strategy for Waikato’s growth and development.

Objective

Councillor Alan LivingstonWaikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Bob Simcock (alternate - if representative not available to attend)

Bi-monthly.Frequency of meetings

Future Proof Implementation Committee (Hamilton Sub-Regional Growth Strategy Joint Committee)

To oversee the development and implementation of the Hamilton Sub Regional GrowthStrategy.

Objective



Bi-monthly or as required.Frequency of meetings

Subcommittees

Contracts Subcommittee

To consider all multi-year contracts as described below.Objective

1. To approve all contracts with a value greater than $500,000 that have a term ofgreater than one year.

2. The Contacts Subcommittee delegation be limited to multi-year contracts wherethe average annual spend is less than $2.5m per annum, or where the contractvalue exceeds the long term plan budget provision by less than $500,000 perannum or $2.5m in total.

Councillor Jane Hennebry (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Hugh Vercoe (deputy)

Councillor Alan Livingston

Relevant chair of committee

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

29

As required on referral from the Tenders Board.Frequency of meetings

Hearings Appointment Subcommittee

To establish case specific resource consent and statutory policy process HearingCommittees and appoint members to the Hearing Committee including HearingCommissioners.

Objective

Councillor Alan Livingston (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members



Councillor Jenny Hayman


Catchment Committees

To provide advice to the Integrated Catchment Committee and support catchmentmanagement activities.

Objective

Councillor Kathy WhiteWaikato Regional Council Members







Three to four meetings per annum (including field inspections).Frequency of meetings

NorthCatchment Committees

Waihou Piako Catchment Committee

Coromandel Catchment Committee

Lower Waikato Catchment Committee

South

Central Waikato Catchment Committee

Lake Taupō Catchment Committee

Upper Waikato Catchment Committee

Waipa Catchment Committee

West Coast Catchments Committee

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

30

Drainage Advisory Subcommittees

To provide advice to the Integrated Catchment Committee and support drainagemanagement activities.

Objective

Councillor Jennie HaymanWaikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Russ Rimmington


Aka Aka Otaua MonthlyFrequency of meetings

Thames Valley Quarterly

Franklin Waikato Annually

Waikato Central Quarterly

NorthDrainage Advisory Subcommittees

Aka Aka Otaua

Franklin Waikato

Thames Valley

South

Waikato Central

Catchment Committees Community Representative/s Appointment Process Nomination Panel

To select appropriate persons as community representatives on CatchmentCommittees.

Objective




Clare Crickett

As required to complete the community representatives’ selection process.Frequency of meetings

Regional Public Transport Plan Development Subcommittee

By 31 October 2017, prepare and recommend to the Waikato Regional Council forpublic consultation a draft 2018-2028 Regional Public Transport Plan that has beenprepared in accordance with and complies with the requirements of the LTMA 2003.

Objective

Councillor Russ Rimmington (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members

Councillor Hugh Vercoe (deputy)

Monthly or as required.Frequency of meetings

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

31

Submissions Subcommittee

To approve submissions on statutory documents, consistent with council policy wheredeadlines cannot be met within the existing Strategy and Policy Committee meetingschedule.

Objective

Councillor Bob Simcock (chair)Waikato Regional Council Members







Other groups Waikato Regional Council appoints to

2020 Taupo-nui-a-tia Action Plan Joint Management Group

Taupō-nui-a-tia Management Board

Farm Environment Award Trust

Maungatautari Reserve Management Committee

Mighty River Domain and Karapiro Reserves Committee

Regional (Road Safety) Speed Management Governance Group

Rotokauri Lake Management Committee

Aquaculture Forum

Water Users Liaison Forum

Forestry Liaison Group

TBFree Waikato Committee

SH3 Working Group

SH1/29 East Coast Main Trunk Line Working Group

(Three) Waters Governance Group

Waikato District Lakes and Wetlands Governance Group

Animal Ethics Committee (Ruakura)

Waikato River Authority

Rotorua Lakes Council Spatial Plan Advisory Group

Rotorua Geothermal Forum Liaison Group

Local Government New Zealand – Zone 2

Local Government New Zealand – Regional Sector Group

Mayoral (Triennial) Forum

Upper North Island Strategic Alliance (UNISA)

Martha Trust

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

32

Organisation

Management structure and relationships

The council’s chief executive is Vaughan Payne. The chief executive is the only employee of the council. All the staff are employedby the chief executive. The management structure is below.

Vaughan PayneChief Executive o�cer

[email protected]

Neville WilliamsDirector

Community and [email protected]

Clare CrickettDirector

Integrated Catchment [email protected]

Chris McLayDirector

Resource [email protected]

Tracey MayDirector

Science and [email protected]

Karen BennetManager CE O�ce

[email protected]

Mike GarrettChief Financial O�cer

[email protected]

MANAGEMENTSTRUCTURE

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

33

Council controlled organisations

Council controlled organisations (CCOs) are organisations inwhich one or more councils control 50 per cent or more of thevoting rights, or have the right to appoint half or more of thedirectors. The council currently has three CCOs and a jointventure trust.

Waikato Local Authority Shared Services

Lake Taupō Protection Trust

Regional Software Holdings Ltd

The Martha Trust

Waikato Local Authority Shared Service (LASS) is a CCO byway of a company incorporated in December 2005, jointlyowned by the 12 local authorities in the Waikato Region. Thiscompany is used as an umbrella for future development ofshared services throughout the region with the local authoritiesof the Waikato region work together on mutually beneficialjoint projects.

Waikato LASS currently has the following activities:

procurement focusing on shared procurement opportunitiesacross the TAs

insurance where under a combined broker arrangement wehave collective insurance contracts for material damageand infrastructure and other insurance policies are marketedas a collective

energy management/efficiency projects

Shared Valuation Services (SVDS) which provides ratingvaluation property information to all TAs and is used byWaikato Regional Council to populate our rating systemproperty name and address details

Road Asset Technical Accord (RATA) aims to achieve bestpractice in road asset management by improving capability,capacity and outcomes through effective collaboration

Waikato Regional Transport Model (WRTM) which providesaccurate information to councils and external users (for acharge) for their transport modelling requirements.

Waikato Regional Council provides accounting services to theLASS on a cost recovery basis.

Lake Taupō Protection Trust CCO was settled on 9 February2007 to administer a $72.4 million public fund over 14 years.The trust is jointly administered by four organisations: WaikatoRegional Council, Taupō District Council, Tuwharetoa TrustBoard, and the Crown to protect Lake Taupō’s water qualityby reducing manageable nitrogen leaching into the lake.

Regional Software Holdings Limited (RSHL) was formed inOctober 2012 by Northland, Taranaki, Horizons, West Coastand Waikato regional councils and Environment Southland.The purpose of the CCO is to provide a framework for

collaboration and to support the procurement or developmentof shared software products and services that are relevant toregional councils and that achieves:

shared best practice through standardisation

economies of scale – doing more together than we can doalone

continuity of supply & risk reduction

influence and control of the destiny of regional councilsector specific software

The core software solution owned by RSHL is the IntegratedRegional Information Software (IRIS), and this is enhancedthrough ongoing development and through integration withthird party software products.

The Martha Trust was established in 2007 by a joint ventureknown as the Waihi Gold Company. The purpose of the trustis to take the title of land currently part of the Martha Mineoperation following completion of mining and closure of thesite and to monitor and maintain that land so it can be usedfor recreational purposes by the general public. The trust willnot actually become an operative entity until such time as theclosure and rehabilitation conditions are finalised in the future.The Martha Trust was exempt from being a CCO by resolutionof the council in May 2007, the exemption was reconfirmedby the council in May 2015.

Remuneration and employment policy

At the 29 January 2014 council meeting, councillors approvedthe following objectives and principles for Waikato RegionalCouncil’s Remuneration and Performance Policy.

Policy objective: To provide an effective and efficient localgovernment workforce for the Waikato region that isappropriate to the present and anticipated futurecircumstances.

Principles:

pay structures and other conditions must be demonstratedas necessary to support our business and workforceobjectives

remuneration and performance framework – Council willuse a robust and systematic mechanism to size, price andpay jobs and reward its employees which has establishedexternal moderation processes

the cost of all adjustment to remuneration and conditions,must be considered when setting the financial envelope forremuneration

remuneration adjustments must be affordable andsustainable within total budgets

full time equivalent metrics will be reported in the AnnualPlan.

An internal remuneration policy was reviewed in 2016 and itsprinciples reflect the remuneration and employment policy.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

34

Equal employment opportunities

To provide a positive workplace culture that supports ourpeople to be positive, engaged and capable. This will be donethrough the provision of opportunities for growth anddevelopment, safe systems of work, facilities, activities andservices that support the wellbeing and satisfaction of existingand potential employees. This will enable the council to meetour legislative requirements to be a good employer under the

Local Government Act 2002 as well as our equal employmentopportunity (EEO) responsibilities under various pieces of NewZealand legislation.

Waikato Regional Council is committed to the principle of EEOin recruiting, developing and growing employees. We willcontinue to ensure our people related activities are designedand delivered to eliminate discrimination from our workplace.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

35

LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 2002 | TETURE KĀWANATANGA Ā-ROHE 2002Like all councils in New Zealand, our responsibilities andpowers are set down by legislation. The Local Government Act2002 is the overall empowering legislation that enablesdemocratic and local decision making for the Waikato region.

The purpose of local government as defined in the LocalGovernment Act:

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

to meet the current and future needs of communities forgood-quality local infrastructure, local public service; and

performance of regulatory functions in a way that is mostcost-effective for households and businesses.

Planning and reporting process

The council produces the following documents as part of theplanning and reporting process:

A Long Term Plan (LTP) is a strategic planning documentdescribing the activities a local authority will fund andprovide to achieve desired community outcomes over a 10year period. It is reviewed and prepared every three yearsfollowing public consultation. It may be amended at anytime, provided the full consultative process described inthe Local Government Act 2002 is used. Read more aboutconsultation below.

An Annual Plan is prepared in the years between a longterm plan. It sets out the budget and sources of funding forthe year. Recent legislative changes mean that, whilecouncils are still required to adopt an annual plan each year,the requirement to consult has been removed, unless thedifferences from the current long term plan are material orsignificant.

An Annual Report is the key accountability documentprepared and adopted at the end of each financial year. Itprovides the public with information on the actual financialand service performance of the local authority during thatyear.

Consultation

Consultation is a process between a local authority and itscommunity whereby information is exchanged around anydecision, issue or other matter. The outcomes of theconsultative process do not bind a local authority in any way.Rather, the information gathered through this process is usedas a source of information in any subsequent decision makingprocess.

Consultation is fundamental to ensuring that good decisionsare arrived at during the development of policies and plansand the Waikato Regional Council is committed to ensuring

effective consultation is undertaken with the regionalcommunity. The Local Government Act sets out six keyprinciples for consultation that the Waikato Regional Councilapplies throughout its consultative processes. In summary, thecouncil must:

provide people who may be affected by a decision withappropriate information

encourage people to present their views

ensure people have clear information on the purpose of theconsultation and the scope of the decisions the council willhave to take

ensure people have a reasonable timeframe and opportunityto present their views in a manner appropriate to theirneeds

have an open mind to views presented and give them dueconsideration when making decisions

give information back to presenters on the decisions madeand the reasons.

Special consultative procedure

The Local Government Act describes a special consultativeprocedure – a statutory minimum procedure that localauthorities must follow when making particular decisions. Thisprocedure must be used, for example, for the adoption of aLong Term Plan. The steps involved include:

preparation of a statement of proposal and a summary

providing adequate time for the community to consider theproposal

providing the opportunity for submitters to present theirviews to elected representatives

deliberation in an open meeting of the council.

Local Government Act changes in August 2014 now mean weonly consult on any significant changes we make to our LTP.The legislative changes are intended to make an annual planan exceptions-based document focussed on changes betweenthe LTP and the proposed annual plan. Any consultationundertaken on an annual plan is no longer required to be aspecial consultative procedure and instead can be conductedby methods chosen by individual councils.

Significance and Engagement Policy

Another important consultative requirement for the council isthe adoption of a Significance and Engagement Policy (SEP).The SEP is a device that advises the public what decisions ormatters the council and the community consider to beparticularly important, how the council will go about assessingthe importance of matters, and how and when the communitycan expect to be consulted on both.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

36

Decision making

Part 6 of the Local Government Act is central in outliningcouncil’s obligations in respect of planning and decisionmaking. Among other things, Part 6 identifies:

council’s obligations in relation to decision making

council’s obligations in relation to consultation with Māoriin decision making processes

council’s obligations for consultation with interested oraffected persons

the nature and use of the special consultative procedure.

The Local Government Act sets out the requirements fordecision making that every local authority must follow. Insummary, when making a decision, the Waikato RegionalCouncil must:

involve consideration of all reasonably practicable optionsincluding the costs and benefits of each of those options,the extent to which they achieve community outcomes andtheir impact on the capacity of the local authority to meetits statutory responsibilities now and in the future

involve consideration of the views and preferences ofpersons likely to be affected by or have an interest in thematter

consider the interests of future as well as currentgenerations and the impact of the decision on eachcommunity wellbeing

identify and explain any significant inconsistency betweenthe decision and any policy or plan adopted by the localauthority

provide opportunities for Māori to contribute to the decisionmaking processes

promote compliance with the principles of consultation.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

37

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACT 1991 |TE TURE WHAKAHAERE RAWA TAIAO1991Policy and plan development

As part of the functions set out in the Resource ManagementAct 1991, the Waikato Regional Council prepares policydocuments under the first schedule of the act. Thesedocuments contain objectives and policies to address resourcemanagement issues in the region. In the case of regional plans,rules are also included to allocate natural resources. Thedevelopment of these policies and plans goes through variousphases that ensures public input. For most policy and plandocuments, the level of legal effect they have increases as theymove through the decision making process. For example,provisions in proposed plans have legal status whenconsidering resource consent applications.

Discussion documents (sometimes also called issues andoptions documents) set out the background to an issue,propose targets and discuss options for how council mightachieve these. They are generally used as a tool in theconsultative process to generate public discussion andfeedback. These documents have no legal effect and anysubmission process for these documents is informal.

Draft documents generally have no legal effect, although theymay be taken into account or when making funding decisions.They are generally used as a tool in the consultative processto show people what could be in the proposed document andgive people something more specific to respond to. Draftdocuments can also be formed using a collaborative processwith stakeholders. Any submission process for these documentsis informal.

Proposed documents are prepared under the first scheduleof the Resource Management Act (RMA) and are formallyadvertised or publicly notified. When documents are notified,people are invited to make a written submission on thedocument. Submissions have formal legal status in the policystatement and plan preparation processes and can eithersupport what is in the document or oppose it and ask councilto change the document. The council then holds hearings andmakes decisions on each of the requests for changes withineach submission.

Proposed documents move through the following phases:

Notified – submissions called for but not yet considered bythe council. Further submissions (allowing comment onsubmissions received) are then invited from stakeholdershaving an interest wider than the general public.

Decisions – the council makes decisions on the submissionsand further submissions which may change the notifieddocument. For documents prepared under the Resource

Management Act and the Biosecurity Act 1993, submittersmay appeal the decisions that council has made if they thinkcouncil has got it wrong.

Appeals – the council’s decisions have been appealed tothe Environment Court. The Environment Court isresponsible for determining whether the council has madea right decision and may direct the council to negotiate withthose people who have appealed the decisions to try toreach a resolution before going to another hearing. Fromtime to time, the Environment Court will order the councilto change the plan as appeals are resolved. If there are noappeals made on parts of the document, then these partsare considered to be beyond challenge and becomeeffectively ‘operative’. Appellants may appeal EnvironmentCourt decisions to the High Court and then the SupremeCourt on matters of law.

Judicial Reviews – at any stage of the process, any partymay seek a High Court judicial review of process. Judicialreviews examine the process to determine if any party mayhave been prejudiced or process was not correctly followed.

Operative documents are documents that have beencompleted. This means there is no more opportunity for councilor the public to make changes to the document until it isreviewed, re-notified and the whole process gone throughagain. The council approves a Regional Plan to becomeoperative, while the Minister of Conservation approves aRegional Coastal Plan.

RMA plans must be reviewed every 10 years while most otherplans must be reviewed every three or five years.

To change provisions in proposed documents, the council cannotify a ‘variation’ to the proposed plan. To change provisionsin an operative plan, the council can notify a ‘change’ to thedocument. This happens when the council thinks that certainparts of the plans need changing or adding to, maybe to dealwith a new issue that has come up. ‘Variations’ and ‘changes’go through the same consultation process of notification,submissions, hearings, decisions and appeals as describedabove.

It is appropriate to note that central government has proposedreforms that will change the decision making process describedabove, to include the option of what is being called a'collaborative process for water management'. The proposalis for this to limit appeals to the Environment Court to mattersof law and not substance.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

38

Councils may also opt to voluntarily undertake a collaborativeprocess for non-water issues. In these cases, stakeholdersretain the full rights of appeal under the normal plan changeprocess.

Resource consents

The Waikato Regional Plan and Regional Coastal Plan all containrules and guidelines to manage the natural and physicalresources of the Waikato region. Some activities requireresource consents, while others are ‘permitted’ and do notneed a consent as long as the activity meets certain conditions.

What are consents?

Resource consents are permits that allow you to use or takewater, land or coastal resources. They also allow the dischargeof water or wastes into air, water or onto land.

Resource consents and permitted activities in plans includespecial conditions to protect the environment. Consentedactivities are monitored to make sure that the conditions arebeing met. There are four types of resource consents theWaikato Regional Council can issue:

land use consents

water consents

discharge consents

coastal consents.

Why do we have consents?

The Resource Management Act gives the Waikato RegionalCouncil responsibility for sustainable management of ourregion’s natural resources.

The Resource Management Act and our regional policies andplans provide rules and guidelines for sustainable resourcemanagement. We use these rules to control and monitor theuse of our coasts, water, soil and air. The Waikato RegionalCouncil also takes into account the principles of the Treaty ofWaitangi and the special relationship tāngata whenua has withthe land when considering consent applications for variousactivities.

The consent application process

During the consent application process, Waikato RegionalCouncil staff will assess the likely and possible effects of aproposed activity on the surrounding environment and onother people. Staff will also determine what measures needto be taken to avoid, mitigate or remedy any adverse effects.At the end of this decision making process, the council caneither grant or decline the application, with the exception ofa "controlled activity consent" (where the consent applicationmust be granted) and "prohibited activities" (where no consentis able to be applied for).

Consent application notifications

Some consents need to be notified so that people who maybe affected by the activity can have their say. A consentapplication may need to be notified if:

a proposed activity is likely to significantly affect theenvironment

those persons who the Waikato Regional Council thinks maybe adversely affected have not given their written approvalfor the proposal.

A regional plan may specify that a consent need not be notified.Public notification means that the council will put anadvertisement with details of the application in the localnewspaper and a sign on the proposed site involved. In thiscase, anybody can make a submission for or against theproposed activity. Limited notification means that the councilwill send a letter to parties we consider may be potentiallyaffected by your proposal. In this case, only those peoplecontacted can make a submission for or against the proposedactivity.

More information

The Ministry for the Environment oversees theimplementation of the RMA. For more information aboutpolicy formation under the act, check outwww.mfe.govt.nz.

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

39

OFFICIAL INFORMATION & MEETINGSACT 1987 | TE TURE HUIHUINGA,PĀRONGO KĀWANATANGA Ā-ROHE1987Requests for official information

Waikato Regional Council is bound by the Local GovernmentOfficial Information and Meetings Act 1987 and the PrivacyAct 1993.

The key purposes of the Local Government Official Informationand Meetings Act (LGOIMA) are to:

progressively increase the availability of official informationheld by agencies, and promote the open and publictransaction of business at meetings

protect official information and the deliberations of localauthorities to the extent consistent with the public interestand the preservation of personal privacy.

The Privacy Act controls how council collects, uses, discloses,stores and gives access to 'personal information'.

What information is covered?

Official information is any information held by council. It isnot limited to documentary material, and includes materialheld in any format such as:

written documents, reports, memoranda, letters, notes,emails and draft documents

non-written documentary information, such as materialstored on or generated by computers, including databases,video or tape recordings

information which is known to an agency, but which hasnot yet been recorded in writing or otherwise (includingknowledge of a particular matter held by an officer,employee or member of an agency in their official capacity).

Personal information is any information about identifiable,living people.

Making a request

Anyone can make a request for information held by council,including:

documents and manuals which set out the policies,principles, rules or guidelines for decision making;

(9)

a statement of reasons for any decisions that have beenmade about a person.

(10)

any aspect of the council’s activities information aboutthemselves.

(11)

There is no set way in which a request must be made. Inparticular, a request can be made in any form andcommunicated by any means, including orally, and therequester does not need to refer to the LGOIMA. If a requestis made orally, we can ask for it to be put in writing if that is‘reasonably necessary’ to clarify the request.

(12)

To be a valid request, the information sought must be ‘specifiedwith due particularity’.

(13) This means that we must be able to

identify what information is being requested. If we are unableto identify what information is being requested, then we havea duty to give assistance to the requester to reword the requestin such a way that we do understand the request.

We can’t insist that requesters tell us why they want theinformation, however, we can ask them to clarify to helpestablish what information they want and determine if thereare any reasons for withholding it.

Key timeframes

Under LGOIMA, there are time limits on:

requesting clarification of the request (within 7 workingdays if the revised request is to replace the original one)

transferring the request if we are not the appropriate agencyto respond (“promptly” and within 10 working days)

making a decision on the request and communicating it tothe requester (as soon as reasonably practicable, and within20 working days)

extending the maximum time limit to make a decision onthe request (within 20 working days

providing the information (without ‘undue delay').

9 See section 21 LGOIMA

10 See section 22 LGOIMA

11 See Principle 6 and Part 5 of the Privacy Act. See also section 10(1A) LGOIMA

12 See section 10(4) LGOIMA


Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

40

A requester may ask that a request be treated as urgent, andif so must give the reasons for seeking the informationurgently.

(14) We will consider any request for urgency, and

assess whether it would be reasonable to give the requestpriority.

Decisions on requests

The key principle of LGOIMA is that official information mustbe made available unless there is good reason to withhold it.Requests can only be refused for one of the reasons set out inparticular sections of the Act, namely:

administrative reasons, such as where the information doesnot exist or cannot be found, or will soon be made publiclyavailable (section 17)

conclusive reasons, such as maintenance of the law (section6)

good reasons, such as privacy, confidentiality or legalprivilege (section 7)

neither confirming nor denying the existence ornon-existence of information (section 8).

Charges for the supply of information

Reasonable costs may be charged for requests for officialinformation.

Regard will be given to the amount actually incurred inresponding to the request, including cost of the labour andmaterials involved in making the information available.

(15)

The first hour will not be charged, after which time staff willcontact the requester to discuss charging for any further workrequired. The council reserves the right to waive all or someof the charges.

Complaints to the Ombudsman

If a requester is unhappy with a decision made under the act,they can ask the Ombudsman to investigate and review thedecision.

How to contact us

Official information requests should be addressed to the chiefexecutive at:Waikato Regional CouncilPrivate Bag 3038Waikato Mail CentreHamilton 3240New ZealandCall: 0800 800 401Email: [email protected]



Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

41

mailto:[email protected]

APPENDICES | TĀPIRITANGAAppendix I - Acronyms index

Annual PlanAP

Annual ReportAR

Capital expenditureCAPEX

Community and ServicesCAS

Council controlled organisationCCO

Civil defence emergency managementCDEM

Civil Defence Emergency ManagementGroup

CDEMG

Department of Internal AffairsDIA

Energy Efficiency and ConservationAuthority

EECA

Executive Leadership TeamELT

First past the postFPP

Gross domestic productGDP

Geographic information systemGIS

Health and safetyH&S

Hamilton City CouncilHCC

Hauraki District CouncilHDC

Hauraki Māori Trust BoardHMTB

Integrated Catchment ManagementICM

Local Electoral ActLEA

Local Government New ZealandLGNZ

Local Government Official Informationand Meetings Act

LGOIMA

Long Term PlanLTP

Ministry of Business InnovationMBIE

Ministry of Economic DevelopmentMED

Ministry for the EnvironmentMFE

Ministry of Research Science andTechnology

MORST

Ministry of TransportMOT

Memorandum of understandingMOU

Matamata-Piako District CouncilMPDC

Ministry for Primary IndustriesMPI

Ministry of Social DevelopmentMSD

Non government organisationNGO

New Zealand Transport AgencyNZTA

New Zealand Trade and EnterpriseNZTE

Office of the Auditor GeneralOAG

Otorohanga District CouncilODC

Parliamentary Commissioner for theEnvironment

PCE

Passenger Transport PlanPTP

Regional councilRC

Regional Coastal PlanRCP

Regional Land Transport CommitteeRLTC

Regional Land Transport StrategyRLTS

Resource Management ActRMA

Regional Public Transport PlanRPTP

Regional Land Transport PlanRLTP

Regional Pest Management PlanRPMP

Regional Policy StatementRPS

Resource UseRU

Science and StrategySAS

Significance and Engagement PolicySEP

Society of Local Government ManagersSOLGM

Standard operating procedureSOP

Strategic planners’ networkSPN

Single transferable voteSTV

South Waikato District CouncilSWDC

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

42

Territorial authorityTA

Thames-Coromandel District CouncilTCDC

Taupō District CouncilTDC

Tūwharetoa Maori Trust BoardTMTB

Terms of referenceTOR

Te Puni KokiriTPK

Waikato District Health Board (DHB)WDHB

Waikato District CouncilWkDC

Waipa District CouncilWpDC

Waitomo District CouncilWtDC

Waikato Regional CouncilWRC

Waikato Regional PlanWRP

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

43

Appendix II – Relevant legislationThis appendix contains summaries of relevant legislative actsthat have some bearing on the duties and conduct of electedmembers.

Local Government Official Information andMeetings Act 1987 (LGOIMA)

The purposes of LGOIMA are to:

a. Progressively increase the availability to the public of officialinformation held by local authorities, and to promote theopen and public transaction of business at meetings of localauthorities, in order to:

i. enable more effective participation by the public in theactions and decisions of local authorities; and

ii. promote the accountability of local authority membersand officials, and thereby to enhance respect for the lawand to promote good local government in New Zealand;

b. to provide for proper access by each person to officialinformation relating to that person;

c. to protect official information and the deliberations of localauthorities to the extent consistent with the public interestand the preservation of personal privacy.

Availability of information

The overriding principle of LGOIMA is that information is tobe made available unless there is a good reason to withholdit. In this regard, the act specifies:

a. conclusive reasons for withholding information, if itsavailability would be likely to prejudice the maintenance ofthe law or endanger the safety of any person; and

b. other good reasons for withholding information, which areto:

i) protect personal privacy;

ii) avoid disclosing a trade secret or unreasonable prejudiceto a commercial position;

iii) avoid serious offence to tikanga Māori, or to avoiddisclosure of the location of waahi tapu (relates to informationunder the Resource Management Act 1991);

iv) protect an obligation of confidence (qualified by the act insome detail);

v) avoid prejudice to public health or safety;

vi) avoid prejudice to measures to mitigate material publicloss;

vii) maintain free and frank expression of opinions by, orbetween members, officers and others;

viii) protect members and officers from improper pressure orharassment;

ix) maintain legal professional privilege;

x) avoid prejudice or disadvantage to the authority’scommercial activities or negotiations; and

xi) prevent the use of official information for improper gainor advantage.

Additional to its right to withhold information for the statedreasons, the authority may, for the same reasons, “neitherconfirm nor deny” the existence of the information requested.

Meeting procedures

LGOIMA also contains a list of meetings procedures andrequirements that apply to local authorities and local andcommunity boards. These are additional to those contained inSchedule 7 of the Local Government Act 2002 and include therequirement to publicly notify meetings and provide agendas,reports and minutes, and the provision for the admission ofthe public to meetings and the right to exclude the public frommeetings.

Of particular importance for the roles and conduct of electedmembers is the fact that the Chairperson has the responsibilityto maintain order at meetings, but all elected members shouldaccept a personal responsibility to maintain acceptablestandards of address and debate. No elected member should:

create a disturbance or a distraction while another electedmember is speaking

be disrespectful when they refer to each other or otherpeople

use offensive language about the council, other electedmembers, any employee of the council or any member ofthe public.

More detail is contained in the Standing Orders.

Local Authorities (Members’ Interest) Act 1968

The Local Authorities (Members’ Interests) Act 1968 (LAMIA)provides rules about members discussing and voting onmatters in which they have a pecuniary interest and aboutcontracts between members and the council. LAMIA has twomain rules.

1. The contracting rule prevents an elected member fromhaving interests in contracts with the local authority thatare worth more than $25,000 in a year, unless theAuditor-General approves the contracts. Breach of the ruleresults in automatic disqualification from office (s.3 LAMIA).

2. The participation rule prevents an elected member fromparticipating in a decision in which they have a financial

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

44

interest, other than an interest in common with the public.The Auditor-General can approve participation in limitedcircumstances. Breach of the rule is a criminal offence andconviction results in automatic disqualification from office(s.6 LAMIA).

More guidance can be found in the Elected Members’ Conflictof Interest Guidelines and Office of the Controller andAuditor-General publications: “Guidance for members localauthorities about the Local Authorities (Members’ Interests)Act 1968” [2010] and “Managing conflict of interest: Guidancefor Public entities” [2007].

Crimes Act 1961

Under this Act it is unlawful for an elected member to:

Accept or obtain, or agree or offer to accept or attempt toobtain, any bribe for himself or herself or any other personin respect of any act done or omitted, or to be done oromitted, in their official capacity. The definition of bribeincludes any money, valuable consideration, office, oremployment, or any benefit, whether direct or indirect.

Corruptly use or disclose any information acquired in theirofficial capacity, to obtain, directly or indirectly, anadvantage or a pecuniary gain for himself or herself or anyother person.

These offences are punishable by a term not exceeding sevenyears. Elected members convicted of these offences will alsobe automatically ousted from office.

Secret Commissions Act 1910

The Secret Commissions Act 1910 sets out corruption typeoffences associated with either giving or receiving gifts orother consideration by elected members (deemed agents ofthe council) to act in a certain way in relation to councilbusiness.

The definition of “agent” includes the agent’s family andpartners or employees. The scope of the act also extendsto a child of a spouse or a civil union partner or a de factopartner of an elected member.

“Consideration” means valuable consideration of any kind.The nature of the consideration not only includes discounts,commissions, payment of money but also postponing orrefraining from demanding the repayment of any moneyor valuable thing owed.

The Act also addresses the duty of elected members to discloseany pecuniary interest which the council may have in themaking of a contract. Such disclosure must be at the time ofmaking the contract or as soon as possible thereafter.

Under this Act it is unlawful for an elected member (or officer)to advise anyone to enter into a contract with a third personand receive a gift or reward from that third person as a result,or to present false receipts to council.

If convicted of any offence under this Act a person can beimprisoned for a term not exceeding seven years. Electedmembers convicted of these offences will also be automaticallyousted from office.

Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013

The main purpose of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013(FMC Act) is to promote and facilitate the development of fair,efficient and transparent financial markets, and to promotethe confident and informed participation of businesses,investors and consumers.

Additional purposes relate to the provision of information toinvestors, appropriate governance arrangements, effectivemonitoring, avoidance of unnecessary compliance costs andthe promotion of innovation and flexibility in financial markets.

The FMC Act governs how financial products are created,promoted and sold, and the ongoing responsibilities of thosewho offer, deal and trade them. It also regulates the provisionof some financial services.

Trustee Act 1956

The Trustee Act 1956 establishes guiding principles of trustees,defines what constitutes a trust, and what the powers of thetrust and trustees are. It is relevant to elected members intheir role as trustees of council’s investment fund whichcurrently has a value of $93 million (October 2016).

The main focus of trustee responsibility and liability under thisAct is in regard to prudent standards of care and therequirement that trustees be able to assess the suitability ofinvestments, investment managers and investment strategies.Trustees are required to have a basic understanding ofinvestment risk and the way in which risk and return interactto provide income. They are also obliged to:

understand enough of the fundamentals of investmentmanagement to be able to choose between the capabilitiesand investment styles of different investment managers;and

monitor performance of investment managers over time toensure manager remain well positioned to provide adequateperformance.

Key local government legislation

Accident Compensation Act 2001

Aquaculture Reform (Repeals and Transitional Provisions)Act 2004

Biosecurity Act 1993

Building Act 2004

Child Support Act 1991

Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002

Commerce Act 1986

Construction Contracts Act 2002

Copyright Act 1994

Criminal Disclosure Act 2008

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

45

Criminal Records (Clean Slate) Act 2004

Defamation Act 1992

Electricity Act 1992 [& Safety Regs 2010] - General Questions

Electronic Transactions Act 2002

Employment Relations Act 2000

Fire Safety and Evacuation of Buildings Regulations 2006

Fire Service Act 1975

Gas Act 1992 & Safety Regs 2010

Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 & Tax Administration Act1994

Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996

Health and Safety in Employment (Prescribed Matters)Regulations 2003 [revoked 4/4/2016]

Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment,Cranes, and Passenger Ropeways) Regs 1999

Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 [repealed4/4/2016]

Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1995 HolidaysAct 2003

Human Rights Act 1993

Immigration Act 2009

Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007

Income Tax Act 2007

KiwiSaver Act 2006

Land Drainage Act 1908

Land Transport Act 1998

Land Transport Management Act 2003

Local Authorities (Members' Interests) Act 1968

Local Electoral Act 2001 & Local Electoral Regulations 2001

Local Government (Financial Reporting and Prudence)Regulations 2014

Local Government (Rating) Act 2002

Local Government Act 1974

Local Government Act 2002

Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act1987

Machinery Act 1950 [repealed 4/4/2016]

Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004

Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 &Ownership of Structures Regulations 2015

Maritime Transport Act 1994 and Part 130C MarineProtection Rules

Minimum Wage Act 1983

National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Matauranga oAotearoa) Act 2003

Navigational Safety Bylaw

New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 [BORA]

New Zealand Geographic Board (Nga Pou Taunaha oAotearoa) Act 2008

Nga Wai o Maniapoto (Waipa River) Act 2012

Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi WaikatoRiver Act 2010

Occupiers' Liability Act 1962

Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987

Patents Act 2013

Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 2006

Privacy Act 1993

Protected Disclosures Act 2000

Public Audit Act 2001

Public Records Act 2005

Public Works Act 1981

Rating Valuations Act 1998

Resource Management (Measurement and Reporting ofWater Takes) Regulations 2010

Resource Management (National Environmental Standardsfor Air Quality) Regulations 2004

Resource Management Act 1991

Search and Surveillance Act 2012

Smoke-free Environments Act 1990

Social Security Act 1964

Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941

Student Loan Scheme Act 2011

Tax Administration Act 1994

Te Arawa, Pouakani, Maraeroa and Raukawa ClaimsSettlement Legislation

Trade Marks Act 2002

Treaty River Legislation

Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007

Wages Protection Act 1983

Waikato Regional Council Standing Orders.

Wai

kato

Reg

iona

l Cou

ncil

Your

cou

ncil

hand

book

20

17Tō

kau

nihe

ra –

he

puka

wha

kam

āram

a 20

17

46

Private Bag 3038Waikato Mail Centre

Hamilton 3240New Zealand

0800 800 401waikatoregion.govt.nz

HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT

STRONG ECONOMY

VIBRANT COMMUNIT IES

HE TAIAO MAURIORA

HE ŌHANGA PAKARI

HE HAPORI HIHIRI

May 2017 JOB 5496

your council handbook 2017 - waikato...the māori fisheries act 1989 and submarine cable and...

Documents