Local Government July 2012

Vol 48 No 07

July 2012 localgovernmentmag.co.nz

New Zealand Local Government

When governments collide: LG vs Central

Internal migration: opportunity or threat?

Placemaking: involving people in design

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present

6 – 8 November 2011 Quality Hotel PlymoutH international new PlymoutH taranaKi

'Utilising new and existing technology to achieve value for money'

AdvANce Notice & cAll for pApers

We are pleased to announce that the 12th Annual NZTA/NZIHT Utilising new and existing technology to achieve for 2011 Money conference will be held from 6-8 valUe November at the Quality Hotel, Plymouth International, New Plymouth, Taranaki.

This is a call for technical and policy papers and registrations of interest.

The papers will be refereed and selected by an independent and expert panel. Favourable consideration will be given to papers which challenge the current way of doing things and indicate how the industry can do things smarter, more efficiently and better to achieve “more value for money”.

We look forward to you joining us in New Plymouth Winner - Best Small City in the World Award Liveable Communities Awards, Nov 2008 Winner - Top Town in New Zealand North & South Magazine, Nov 2008

TOPIcs • • • • • • • • • • •

Innovations and value for money Surfacing & pavement design and maintenance Moving freight in New Zealand Procurement and contract models ITS and traveller information Safety Risk Assessment Asset Management Traffic Management with a customer focus Skid resistance and surfacing Do our specifications, standards, performance measures and contract conditions encourage our goal of always "value for money" - and if not, why not?

PAPER SUBMISSION - Abstracts must be 200 - 450 words and submitted electronically as PDF or Word attachment before the 31st July

COST - The cost of the conference will be $740.00 +gst per

2011 to jill@nziht.co.nz On your abstract please include the following:

delegate. This includes the catering, welcome function,

Title of Paper, Author(s) and/or the Presenter, Contact details for the

conference dinner and entertainment.

Author(s) and/or Presenter and a brief bio of Presenter.

for more information please contact Jill Warner, Conference Co-ordinator - NZ Institute of Highway Technology Ltd, Phone 06 759 7065 ext. 709 Email jill@nziht.co.nz

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND UPDATES VISIT www.nziht.co.nz/nzta2011

New zealand local government

AGENDA July 2012 NZLG INSIGHT

3A malgamations stymied

Kaikoura MP Colin King wants more amalgamations.

4 Questions over internal migration

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Assessing the plus and minus aspects of shifting populations.

6 LGNZ spelling it out

Lawrence Yule wants a serious talk with the Government

8N ew guidelines for paying the price

Infratrain launches a new certificate for tendering and procurement

9A procurement wake-up call Value for money starts with clever buying

10 G ains made from WDC’s IT spend

Wanganui buys a CommVault system and sees the benefits

PLACEMAKING IN 2012

12 Paihia’s master plan

Connecting town and sea in the winterless North

14 P lacemaking – a brief Q&A

A community-oriented process of creating places to live

onsultation key to planning 16 C

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Careful planning and consulting pays off in Hamilton

elson’s place in the sun 18 N

A dramatic sculpture anchors Nelson’s northern gateway

istoric wharf wins a reprieve 19 H

Tolaga Bay’s wooden wharf is restored for another 100 years

20 T aranaki’s call for a healthy lifestyle

Walkways are helping to get New Plymouth residents out and about Vol 48 No 07

July 2012

21 Partnering the community on leisure facilities

localgovernmentmag.co.nz

New ZealaNd local GoVerNmeNt

Horowhenua partners Transpower to provide places to play

WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

23 N Z conference focuses on scarce commodity

Will water become the world’s most scarce natural resource?

26 A dvantages of instrumentation and control

Getting technical about treatment plants and quality control

28 D riving a more efficient kind of flood control

Flood protection for a sizeable chunk of the South Island

29 A fter the weather bomb

Working to make the Coromandel safer when the skies open

uilding on shaky ground 30 B

Taupo District Council upgrades is water treatment infrastructure

NZLG FOCUS

33 Keeping the trucks in line

Primary industry growth around Gisborne impacts on the local roads

Blunt warning for councils on lG infrastructure

Quality water is high on the agenda in NZ

councillors under fire from ratepayers

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On the cover: New technology for water pipeline investigation -see page 31.

FROM THE EDITOR

When governments

collide ‘It’s all on for love or money’.

It’s a phrase that has always signalled conflict, aggression, anger and a declaration of imminent change because, often, people who use the phrase have just had enough.

Central government may have thought that its early 2012 white paper on ‘Better Local Government’ would produce a meek, accepting stance from the political and executive arms of this country’s second tier of governance, but that’s not happening.

Our lead story in this issue of New Zealand Local Government tells the story of how Nick Smith’s ‘white paper’ on how to rein-in the country’s councils (no doubt dictated by Steven Joyce, John Key, Bill English and Gerry Brownlie) has clearly irritated many councils and councillors around the country.

But there are other forces at work here, including a looming local government election, a public reaction over central government’s policy on SOE sales and discontent at the National-led coalition’s flinty-eyed attitude to cost-cutting and public service redundancies.

While some Mayors and councils have looked nervously over their shoulders since the release of Better Local Government and immediately launched district talks or investigations into possible amalgamations, other local bodies have restricted their responses to expressions of interest in increased opportunities for shared services.

The president of Local Government New Zealand recently appeared on national radio and asked for “an adult conversation” with central government on the ‘better local government’ issue and argued cogently and powerfully on the need for a reasoned bilateral approach to local government ‘reform’.

Should the Key government accede to that request – and it should, because frankly its record on helping to administer local government in the earthquake-ravaged city of Christchurch is looking distinctly dodgy and it needs to get some runs on the board with ratepayers around the country – there has to be a far more cooperative relationship with councils.

To be fair the Government has not talked about forcing various councils into amalgamation talks – quite the opposite in fact. How long will that situation last when it’s clear from reading Better Local Government that central government is impressed that local government reform in Auckland cut staff by 2000 with “no drop in service standards of levels of infrastructure investment and savings of $140 million in its first year”.

In recent times there have been some displays of irritation from central government at public criticism over cost-cutting and job cuts. Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce’s reaction to those who said job cuts at NIWA were unwise was a broadside in which he railed against “juvenile” comments from scientists.

If the Government is to continue its testy responses to push-backs on its various policies – including the increasingly confusing and complex responses to the Christchurch earthquakes’ rebuilding programme – it might need all the friends it can muster.

If our reading of a somewhat irritated response from within local government to the “Better Local Government” white paper is correct, the Beehive should perhaps try to mend some fences with councils around the country.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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NZLG INSIGHT

Amalgamations ‘stymied’ Second-term National Party MP for Kaikoura, Colin King, has expressed a desire to see council amalgamations in some parts of the country.

Writing a column for The Marlborough Express newspaper, Mr King said the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill will allow issues regarding amalgamation to be addressed.

“Some amalgamations simply haven’t happened because one area within a region has stymied the decision,” he wrote.

He said an area of reform in the Bill is the ‘streamlining’ of local government reorganisation procedures for the union, abolition and constitution of districts and regions and the creation of unitary authorities.

“Currently such reorganisations can proceed only if they are supported by more than 50 per cent of the votes cast in each affected district or region, and the

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reorganisation involves a long and complex process. The Bill will make it easier for communities and local authorities to apply for a local government reorganisation.

“But reorganisation applications will need significant community support before the commission can progress them.

“I don’t see a lot of amalgamations occurring across the country, but in Marlborough we all see the benefits in efficiency and implementation that have resulted from the creation of the Marlborough District Council,” he wrote.

“All councils must be accountable to the public and we only need to look at the Wairarapa to see where the current Act fails. There are three councils in the Wairarapa, yet the area covered by those councils is no bigger than Marlborough, which is well-managed by one council.

“New Zealand’s 78 local authorities deliver a wide range of critical regulatory functions and local public

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services that directly impact our lives every day. Local government is not about the creation of little fiefdoms, rather efficient and economically sound delivery of services and policy to the people it serves.

“The Bill will go a long way towards providing confidence and comfort to the public. After all, local government is the “biggest show in town”.

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NZLG INSIGHT

INTERNAL MIGRATION: opportunity or threat?

Numbers don’t always tell the full story – but dig deep enough and information as deceptively simple as census data can reveal compelling tales of the rise and fall of communities.

Population expert and .id (informed decisions) founder Ivan Motley certainly believes that’s the case with New Zealand’s population growth. Although the numbers show that overall the population is increasing, many areas in New Zealand have registered minimal growth or have decreased in size in recent years.

Twenty-seven territorial authorities (out of the 73 nationally) experienced a population decrease between the 1996 and 2006 Census.

Another 15 authorities grew less than half a per cent a year on average during that time. Yet, for those towns and cities with a static population count, this measure can mask significant changes that are occurring within a city or town, and in smaller suburbs. Motley says that often it’s not just the population count of a town or city that is being impacted, but the area’s demographic role and function that is changing. Internal migration patterns are a strong influence in these changes.

“New Zealand has a high level of population mobility, and it seems to be increasing. In the five year period ending March 2006 more Kiwis

Association of Local Government Information Management Inc

moved within New Zealand than stayed put (44.7 per cent shifted during the period compared to 37.1 per cent who did not). Compare this result with statistics from the 1991-1996 Census, which revealed lower levels of mobility, and you have a picture of a population that is increasingly on the move. But the effect of internal migration is not consistent across the population as some demographic groups are more mobile than others.”

The internal migration results reveal that New Zealanders can and will move according to their needs.

People move locations for many reasons, but the labour market is recognised as a leading influence, especially for moves further afield.

Motley says: “Most shifts are to improve economic prospects. This is clearly demonstrated by the present wave of young New Zealanders moving to Australia.

“For councils in New Zealand, particularly those experiencing a decline in population, that mobility can be seen as a threat or equally as an opportunity. Central and local government in New Zealand is

currently embroiled in discussions about the roles councils should take in the support of their communities, particularly that of economic development.

“In areas where population growth has stalled or is in decline, this often masks a disproportionate loss of younger people and families. It seems to me that the support of local economic development is a key policy role for councils. It is all about locals responding to local needs.

Who else is going to do it?”

Article by Penny Bloomberg, New Zealand representative for .id [informed decisions] an Australian firm of demographers and spatial planners.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

Every Interaction Counts!

RECRUITMENT

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Widespread social media presents employment challenges Attitudes towards social media use in the workplace are changing, with one in five employees approving of its use at work for personal activities, but concerns remain about the risks, especially in high-profile organisations like local governments.

The findings are part of the latest survey results from the Kelly Global Workforce Index (KGWI), an annual survey conducted by Kelly. Nearly 170,000 people in 30 countries participated in the survey, including more than 3,000 in New Zealand.

“For many employees, social media is becoming a regular part of their lives, it’s a vital tool for communications and is part of boosting their career chances, guiding decision making, and their search for jobs,” said Kelly Managing Director Debbie Grenfell.

The KGWI found that a full 32 per cent of workers are now more likely to use social media to search for a new job or career opportunity rather than traditional methods such as classified ads, newspapers, or online job boards.

“While more and more workers are embracing social media, this report points to the real risk that social media can present to employees and their employers.”

More than two-thirds (43 percent)

say social media has a negative impact on workplace productivity, and 53 percent say that mixing personal and professional connections through social media can cause problems in the workplace.

“As any number of embarrassed celebrities and public figures will tell you, social media use carries some real risks. Once a comment is made in the online space it can stay visible for years, which is a real worry for employees of very public and high profile institutions like local government,” said Debbie Grenfell.

Groups with high levels of social media use tended to be more willing to accept personal social media use at work.

Attitudes were noticeably more positive amongst workers with professional/technical skill sets, with 28 per cent saying it is acceptable to use social media for personal use when at work, compared to just 17 per cent of workers in other fields.

“What this data shows is that

attitudes towards personal social media use are far more positive in industries where social media tends to play a bigger role in the business.

Skilled workers in the professional and technical sectors are far more likely to be using the internet frequently, they are much more comfortable with the technology and see it as normal.”

This could have a real implication in the war for talent, as skilled workers were more likely to be attracted to businesses whose views on social media use are in line with their own.

“The reality is that the spread of social media in the workplace is occurring faster than any rules designed to manage it,” Debbie Grenfell said.

“As social media becomes more widespread and more employees begin to use it, employers need to be mindful of the risks and ensure their staff are well educated about how to use social media responsibly, especially at work.”

NeW ZeALAND LOCAL GOVeRNMeNT JuLY 2012

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NZLG INSIGHT

LGNZ spelling it out for the Beeh Local Government New Zealand president Lawrence Yule says he wants “a more adult conversation” with the Government over the amounts of money councils are being saddled with for big-ticket items such as water infrastructure.

Mr Yule told a National Radio audience there’s a massive tension between what has to be delivered by a council for its community according to community expectations and what can actually be afforded by ratepayers.

“Every council grapples with that every year,” he said.

Mr Yule contends councils have picked up many responsibilities which used to be the realm of central government and he highlights the lift in drinking water standards as a prime example.

“In our estimation the cost of it was $700 million across the country, of which the previous Labour government provided $150 million, so that left a hole of $550 million. Now those are the types of things that

councils have to grapple with in terms of water quality and plant upgrades.

Similarly in wastewater – community expectations, government policy and regional policies demand that standards should increase and plant should be upgraded. But those are key drivers for both rate increases and debt increases.

“We need to have a more adult conversation between local government and central government over how these levels are set and what is affordable. It’s very easy for central government to say these are the standards to be met and yet another entity ends up paying for them. That’s a very easy way of doing it but local government ends up picking up the cost of it.

“I don’t believe that in the current period of economic restraint, due cognisance has been paid to how some of these plans can be funded. I know councils whose debt profile will go up by $100 million in the next 10 years just to pay for water quality and waste water issues.

“That might be laudable but for a certain population, significant hardship will be caused.

"We need to be very clear as a country that our populations can afford some of the levels of work that the Government will impose on us through ideology. I’ve been heartened in talks with the Minister that we have to take a serious look at that.”

Mr Yule said earthquake strengthening of buildings is the next major problem to be dealt with.

He believes it makes obvious sense for the Government to set standards for the upgrade of these buildings across New Zealand and over a period of time that every council has to comply with.

“There are a number of things like that which can be achieved between local and central government that provide certainty and are achieved with an understanding of who is paying what share and in what timeframe.”

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NZLG INSIGHT

hive’s benefit significant assets by councils to offset debt . “Everyone is painting this big bogey of council debt. The debt per ratepayer is $3950. Take that amount and think what it means in your household. Most people have a mortgage and have spent a fortune on a section and everything that needs to go into the house. Their total indebtedness for everything that council provides for them is $3950.

Equally I would argue that every household in New Zealand spends $6 a day to pay for all the services it gets from a council. They would spend more than that on coffee. The value argument is the issue we are facing here. Councils have to pay for wastewater, potable water, stormwater assets, roading‌those are all very expensive items and people want and demand them. But there’s a constant push to say that these levels of spending need to be kept low. I believe we deliver excellent value for that $6 and the level of debt is not out of control at all.�

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Paving the way to better roads Roading New Zealand has teamed with Auckland University to run the 2012 MAIREPAV conference from August 28-30.

Described as the biggest international technical roading conference for ten years it will bring together the academic and industry sectors to promote innovation in the roading industry.

More than 150 papers have been submitted for MAIREPAV-7 from 28 countries. Topics focusing on pavements and materials will include: pavement materials and technologies including contracting; evaluation of pavement performance and performance models;

f ull-scale trials/accelerated pavement testing; dvanced trends in pavement a design, rehabilitation and preservation;

r ecycling and use of industrial by-products; management system / life cycle analysis; surface characteristics related to road safety; sustainable pavement systems.

Keynote speakers include Dr David Hutchinson, Downer EDI Works; Professor Susan Tighe, University of Waterloo, Canada; Prof Andre Molenaar, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands; and Dr Kim Jenkins, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.

Registrations: www.mairepav7.co.nz. Enquiries: mairepav@auckland.ac.nz.

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S P New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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NZLG INSIGHT

New guidelines for paying the price InfraTrain has launched a certificate recognising specialist skills and knowledge in tendering and procurement.

The New Zealand Certificate in Infrastructure Civil Engineering (procurement procedures) was developed in partnership with the NZ Transport Agency and is aligned to procurement procedures released

by NZTA, which aim to help councils and other approved organisations derive better value for money.

The New Zealand Certificate replaces the National Certificate in Asset Management (competitive pricing procedures) which was previously offered by InfraTrain. It is suitable for people working in a range of sectors within infrastructure civil engineering who are involved in

tender preparation and evaluation.

The qualification is especially relevant for teams working on activities valued at more than $200,000 which are funded under the Land Transport Programme. For these projects, NZTA now requires that at least one member of the proposal evaluation team is appropriately skilled and qualified.

The New Zealand Certificate covers key skills including initiating and managing all aspects of the procurement process, knowledge of contract conditions and ethical tender evaluation. Skills for preparation of tender documents, or preparation and negotiation of contracts, can also be covered, depending on the requirements of the individual.

The qualification is achieved on the job with no exams. Candidates are required to undertake a series of practical activities and to prepare a portfolio of evidence to demonstrate their skills and experience.

“A stronger focus on value for money means that the tendering and procurement environment is becoming increasingly competitive,” says InfraTrain chief executive, Philip Aldridge.

“This qualification meets industry needs by aligning skills to industry best practice. It is practical, relevant, and gives local authorities and other organisations confidence that their processes meet NZTA requirements.”

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

NZLG INSIGHT

A procurement wake-up call This year’s winner of the Hynds Pipes Paper of the Year, presented at the Ingenium conference, gave a new perspective on value for money in procurement processes among councils.

Called ‘Value for money starts with clever buying’, the paper exposed some significant areas for concern which are commonplace in tendering today.

The paper’s author Caroline Boot (Plan A) based her research on three areas: feedback from tender evaluators and public sector managers; interviews with tender respondents; and reviews of requests for tender (RFTs) issued in a wide range of government-procured industries.

She says some of the findings were ‘embarrassing’.

RFTs frequently include confusing or contradictory questions; demands for irrelevant information; poorly structured response templates; or information requirements that are misaligned to the evaluation methods. Examples include: explain how your product has been adapted to meet the needs of the visually disabled (in a parking meter contract) describe your procedures for working at heights (in a stormwater and drainage contract).

Ms Boot says it is quite common for an RFT to demand extensive contract-specific attribute information while employing lowest price conforming tender evaluation methods – essentially a price-based decision. The time involved in preparing this information may be considerable and yet it is generally only evaluated for the lowest-price bidder.

“It’s a frustrating, costly and pointless exercise to prepare extensive information that is not an important part of selecting the best value for money bidder,” she says.

“Some councils focus their evaluations solely on the price in the tender box, only to be hit with significant additional costs when contracts are mismanaged at the hands of the cowboys with the cheapest price. Effective selection of best-value bidders on most projects needs to consider the experience, skills and track record of the tenderers, to avoid false economies.

Interviews and workshops conducted with both evaluators and respondents revealed that both parties were concerned at the lack of skill, insight and thought put into developing requests for tender. Most councils have a separate administrative department assigned to this task, and little or no time is invested by managers or evaluators into checking RFT documents before they are released. The result is that often, several notices to

tenderers are needed to clarify the areas that are clearly inappropriate or of little use to selecting the best value-for-money supplier. Both bidders and evaluators complained that significant time is wasted in responding to and evaluating large amounts of irrelevant material.

Evaluators identified that there are times when clients (typically councillors who have to take responsibility for the expenditure incurred in letting a contract) are unhappy with the recommendations of the evaluator.

However the evaluators’ decisions are governed by the processes and weightings set by others who do not always understand the client’s or the project’s priorities well. As a result, evaluators have little control over the situation.

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NZLG INSIGHT

Region gains from WDC’s IT spending decisions Wanganui District Council is using specialised software to protect vital public records, provide its employees with uninterrupted access to operational data and also to help drive a Local Authorities Shared Services group to boost regional disaster recovery with three other councils.

The council runs a heavily virtualised VMware environment under an IT team of 14, including support staff, which serves approximately 400 users of critical applications including Microsoft Exchange, SQL Server and SharePoint; an Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS) for data retention; and a Geographic Information System (GIS) directly supporting local emergency services.

It is using CommVault Simpana 9 software to drive all its systems and to ensure compliance with New Zealand’s Public Records Act. CommVault currently has 14 council customers across New Zealand, ranging from the largest metropolitan authorities to regional districts like Rangitikei and New Plymouth.

Jason Simons, information services manager for Wanganui District Council, says the initial factor in the choice of software for the council was the need for consistent and reliable backup for all live systems.

“I come in here and with a quick analysis I can find a ‘state of the nation’. One thing that’s very important to me and the council is the reliability of our information infrastructure. You cannot afford to lose information. We might suffer power outages from time to time but to lose information as a result of an event like that is just not acceptable.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

“And so we were looking for a better system than had been installed here and that led us to look amongst providers such as CommVault. We saw the initial background information and heard a presentation, and we started exploring further into CommVault’s solution but what really tipped it for me was the fact it is an enterprise level solution and so it’s scaleable.

The previous system would start to have problems as we grew past 20 to 30 servers. We now have 120 servers and so scaleability is critical.”

Mr Simons says the factor that clinched the decision was the system’s performance in server and data back-ups. Recovery was a big strength. Not only can you back up your information, you can recover your systems in very short order. If you are looking at the issues of business continuity, especially in light of the Christchurch earthquakes, you need more than just data back-up, you need the systems the data feeds…in other words you need the server, the applications and the configuration of those applications to access the stored information. Just having a copy of the D Drive is not going to get you there in terms of business continuity.”

He says an added advantage “the icing on the cake” is that an archiving and search and discovery facility is part of the package.

“And so literally with the one implementation and the one system that we use, we can tick off half a dozen critical aspects of our information management task here at Wanganui.”

With security being paramount, and given the power and sophistication of the CommVault

system, Wanganui District has had to implement a permission-based security system.

“As soon as you implement search and discovery options within an enterprise, security becomes paramount. In the past, systems were secure in the sense that it was difficult or impossible to find certain types of information. Now they have the ability to search for everything and anything, and so the permission-based security steps we have implemented mean that general users of the system have pre-set parameters for the types of information they can discover.”

Mr Simons says the system has now been in place for 18 months and there was a two-month timeframe to get everything in place.

“We worked on staff training subsequent to implementation but we had CommVault staff with us to help steer us through the initial process and they provided us with absolutely excellent documentation on how to get the best results.”

The power of the CommVault software is being used in a Local Authorities Shared Services (LASS) client services group that is specifically driving increased efficiency for regional disaster recovery capabilities.

“Three other councils in our LASS are using CommVault and now we have a remote disaster recovery site, other councils are able to use that site too so that we are not doubling up on basics within the group.”

The LASS group delivers a collaborative central archive domain and disaster recovery centre bas on the Simpana software to the other three neighbouring districts, delivering a team approach and also increasing the efficiency of all four councils’ IT spend.

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Planning and Place – what’s the differ

Contacts:

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Auckland

Manukau

Wellington

Ph: 09 379 9350

Ph: 09 262 2145

Ph: 04 499 9824

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

Auckland

Wellington

Melinda Dickey Andrew Green Linda O’Reilly John Young

Andrew Cameron

PLACEMAKING

emaking rence?

Well, the terms aren’t interchangeable but there’s always been a feeling that perhaps planners at times have been too proscriptive in creating places for humans to live, work and play.

Placemaking tries to include people in the spacecreating process and while there’s no suggestion that traditional planning processes cannot produce great places, there’s no doubt people want to be involved in the process these days.

The ‘design it and they will come’ school of thought is a dangerous path to follow in 2012.

We look at a number of projects in the placemaking realm and we offer a local interpretation on what constitutes placemaking and what the process means for communities and councils.

Paihia’s master plan to connect town and sea The best design solutions are those which evolve from a joint venture between users, inhabitants and planners where urban design is enhanced by local knowledge of a community’s specific needs.

Stephenson & Turner NZ have been privileged to work on a truly collaborative project with Paihia, a bustling little seaside town in the Bay of Islands with a rich history and flourishing tourist economy. The goal was to create a new plan with a focus on delivering a unique sense of place for the town with a contemporary maritime feeling and enhanced connection between the land and sea.

Currently the town centre of Paihia is dominated by traffic infrastructure. A State Highway runs along the sea front and large sections of the foreland is dedicated

to car parking, marginalising pedestrians.

This unique and exciting project also provided the opportunity for a design retreat in the Bay of Islands for our architectural team. Seven designers spent a weekend gathering data, developing ideas and discussing plans with community leaders to further hone concepts for the plan. Overall there was a high degree of commonality in the solutions developed by the team. The process itself was enjoyable and involved full engagement and communication between designers and client.

Feedback from this workshop was then worked into a presentation which was opened up to the community for comment. With an overwhelmingly positive response from the Paihia public the plan was

launched. It has three stages (5, 10 and 15+ year plans) providing stepping stones toward a transformational outcome.

The Master Plan provides a future ‘look and feel’ for Paihia; however, as with all good long-term planning, the staged design retains flexibility to meet the changing needs of the growing community.

One major aspect is the protection of the Paihia sea front to sea-level rise by introducing soft engineered artificial islands. In visual harmony with the bay, these islands will work as breakwaters as well as enriching coastal estuaries.

We continue working with the Focus Paihia group. The next step is the development of Design Guidelines for Paihia, offering pathways to upgrade the existing features and surfaces to a new level.

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PLACEMAKING

‘Placemaking’ – a brief Q&A What is placemaking?

Placemaking is a bottom-up approach to creating spaces for communities, helping to reframe the challenges and devising smarter, cost-effective solutions by engaging with the community. In essence, placemaking is making places for people but it is more about the process and involving people as the place is being created.

How is placemaking different to a more traditional approach?

It puts the community at its core and uses specialised knowledge to create desirable outcomes for both the community and the local authority. Placemaking engages communities with their built environment far better than a traditional approach.

What are the benefits of placemaking?

Placemaking can be a catalyst for positive change in the community, with a greater sense of ownership and belonging, contributing to community-focused outcomes required by local councils. This can lead to enduring solutions greater than just improving the physical urban fabric by building stronger and more connected communities. The outcomes are often very cost-effective.

Moulding ideas into workable places With an integrated network of more than 6500 bright, enthusiastic designers, engineers and environmental artisans, GHD can help shape innovation and sustainability into your project To see how we can help you create your next masterpiece, visit www.ghd.com

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GHD_NZPlacemakingAd-130x187mm.indd 1 New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

6/07/2012 11:03:13 AM

PLACEMAKING What challenges come with placemaking and how do you apply it?

There are numerous challenges when applying a placemaking approach from a local government perspective. The first is how to initiate a bottom-up approach from a top-down organisation. Where the norm would be to find a solution and communicate it to the community, the way the problem is viewed must be reframed, rather than proposing a preconceived solution.

Engaging the community is important but doesn’t forego all decision-making power. The best model for understanding this is from the International Association of Public Participation (IAP2). The key to making the process meaningful and engaging is to be open and honest about what decisions the community or council are responsible for.

What are the implications of this process for organisations?

Firstly, it is about understanding the opportunities and challenges of the place and community from different viewpoints. It is useful to gain perspective from an appropriate professional place-maker. Next is to gather information from inside the local authority, as there are often a lot of things going on in different parts of the organisation. Most importantly, the community should be asked the value, opportunities and challenges of the place. This requires specialist community engagement.

The outcome of this combined information sharing should be an agreed picture of the future vision. This should follow a robust process so that people are taken

on the journey and understand why the proposed solutions are being carried out. This doesn’t mean that everyone will agree but at least they will understand.

Final prioritising should be based on a cost/benefit analysis. The community needs to be aware of what funding is available to keep expectations realistic. This part of the process is about working with the community so that there is joint ownership and understanding.

How do organisations get involved in placemaking?

Placemaking New Zealand is an organisation ‘dedicated to making sure people love the public spaces that surround them’. It was created by a group of people passionate about providing an open forum for placemakers around the country to engage and share their knowledge. There are lots of ways to get involved. Our members come from a diverse range of backgrounds, from local authorities, professionals working in the field, business organisations and community groups. We are planning to hold a forum to bring people together later this year. We are always looking for new energy and ideas for the executive and also have a ‘Friends of Placemaking New Zealand’ for companies. Anyone interested is more than welcome, so get involved and make a difference.

Melissa Clark is a board member for Placemaking New Zealand, and leads the spatial design team at GHD. Her background is in urban design and landscape architecture and she is IAP2 trained in community engagement).

R

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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PLACEMAKING

Onewa never looked better

Transport Shelters Covered Walkways

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

Consultation key Changing how people make their way to and from a major shopping centre in Hamilton has won praise from both businesses and the general public.

With 800 bus movements every day, the Lynden Court Bus Interchange by the Westfield mall in Chartwell is the second busiest public transport hub in the city.

It allows passengers convenient access to shops, cafes, and other activities, along with an excellent interchange for seven different services.

“We opted for a two-way interchange which makes it much simpler for patrons to connect with other services,” says passenger transport engineer Kirsty Horridge.

“But it’s more than just a bus shelter. We installed extra-wide footpaths that would allow wheelchairs to pass, there were crossing points and then the actual customised shelter, as well as additional features like bike racks and improved timetables and signage. Overall it’s a great improvement on the street environment for bus use; one that is pleasant to look at, comfortable and functional to use.

Phil Prior, from Community Asset Management (CAM), who supplied the shelter, said the installation of the actual shelter was a smooth operation.

“It’s a 12.5-metre-long cantilevered shelter, not unlike the one we installed by the stadium in Wellington for the cruise-liner passenger walkway. It’s light and unobtrusive and it has a graffiti film that we’ve used before in areas of high vandalism. We put local scenes onto the panels and that also tends to reduce vandalism.

PLACEMAKING

The Onewa Interchange on Auckland’s North Shore has undergone extensive roading improvements sparked by the construction of the award-winning and successful Northern Busway transport system between Auckland City and the North Shore. The landscape design, says Opus International Consultants, dealt sustainably with the challenging estuarine conditions and enhanced the existing environment for the local bird and plant life and road users.

The new interchange includes two overbridges to replace the original overbridge, and a new dedicated bus lane and bridge. The interchange is located on the edge of Shoal Bay, on the flats of reclaimed land and at the junction of three key elements: cliffs, flats and water. The planting scheme has adopted these basic elements in the selection of pohutukawa and coastal flaxes of the embankments (cliff), the salt meadow planting (flats) and the wetland pond and swale planting (water).

Although the new bridge structures are low with sweeping visual lines, the arrangements are visually complex. To reduce this effect, the strong simple

hierarchy of planting creates a visual cohesion to the complicated arrangement of off ramps, on ramps and overbridges.

Planting palettes have been kept simple and clear to relate to either embankments or flats. The planting patterns, in association with the creation of wetlands and ponds, also soften the previously hard interface between the land and water and instead acknowledge and embrace the coastal edge, the water and specific location on Shoal Bay. The views from Onewa Road entering the interchange towards Shoal Bay, Auckland City and Takapuna are recognised as some of the best vistas on the motorway. New planting species have been selected and plants have been located to minimise and avoid disruption of these views. The embankment planting scheme features low planting on the road edges to retain views, medium planting of coastal flax to clothe most of the surface and taller pohutukawa on the lower slopes. The salt meadows feature native estuarine planting of oioi within the interchange to replicate coastal flats. The ponds within the interchange are edged with native saline tolerant sedges, wiwi and cabbage tree with oioi beyond.

y to planning “The feedback from the community has been very positive from businesses and the general public,” he said.

One of the big pluses from the project for Hamilton City was the level of community consultation that took place. While the area is classed as residential there are two shopping malls, giving a split of 56 businesses and 200 private residences in the immediate area. The council also worked with bus services provider Waikato Regional Council during the consultation phase and throughout the project. Because creating an accessible area for people with disabilities can make a big difference to their day-to-day lives, CCS Waikato and the Royal New Zealand Foundation for the Blind were also consulted. Westfield was consulted via face-to-face meetings, while other businesses affected were contacted by letter and a series of on-site meetings.

“Most people were behind the project, but some businesses were worried about losing parking,” says Kirsty Horridge. “In the end we widened the road to make sure they didn’t lose parking bays. The feedback from residents was valuable, as it made it clear to us that they knew the area better than we did – for example pointing out at what point people tended to cross the road.

“Now we are looking at other hubs. We want more people to see public transport as a viable option for Hamilton and the council will continue to invest in public transport facilities to improve the journey for patrons.”

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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PLACEMAKING

Nelson's place in the sun

Around 100 people gathered at Miyazu Park before dawn recently to celebrate the installation of a major sculpture at Nelson’s northern gateway.

The dramatic steel piece created by Spanish artist Juan Jose Novella faces east west and its filigree design will capture the shadows of both the rising and setting sun, while at night the piece will be floodlit. Novella was on hand for a moving ceremony and spoke of his feelings behind the sculpture’s design.

The name Nau Mai Ki Toku A huru Mo wai (Welcome to my safe home, to my sheltered haven) was chosen by the chair of the council’s Iwi Art Panel, Ropata Taylor.

Novella says the idea of shelter is very present in his work and it also alludes to Nelson’s relationship with the sea. The curved shape draws inspiration from the marine plant formations.

A plaque and information panel were unveiled as part of the dawn blessing. The event was timed to mark the lead up to Matariki (Maori New Year) celebrations and featured a haunting call by Richard Nunns before the blessing by Council Kaumatua, Archdeacon Andy Joseph.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

PLACEMAKING

Historic wharf wins reprieve from wreckers The Tolaga Bay wharf, believed to be the longest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, was built in the late 1920s.

However, the passing years and the wharf’s exposure to the elements had taken its toll and the structure was under threat of being demolished.

However, the Save The Wharf Charitable Trust has put Tolaga Bay on the tourist map, attracted donations from all over the world and to date has raised a significant fighting fund.

For years a popular fishing place, the wharf is now one of the most popular tourist attractions on the East Coast. With support from Gisborne District Council the wharf has been restored and the Solar Bright company was able to show its support by way of manufacturing and installing a double solar light at the end of the wharf, two single solar lights and three solar bollards in the nearby reserve area.

The lights provide a safe environment for residents to enjoy the wharf and take in the wonderful bay.

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PLACEMAKING

Taranaki’s call to action on a fit and healthy lifestyle Two new walkways are the latest additions in an effort to get more New Plymouth residents out of their cars.

The Waiwhakaiho and Mangaotuku walkways were opened with community picnics in April. Both run alongside significant waterways and enable people to travel from the suburbs to schools and shops without being on a road.

These are the latest developments in a joint New Plymouth District Council/NZ Transport Agency initiative called Let’s Go, which aims to get more people travelling by bus, bicycle or walking.

“The programme involves major infrastructure development, such as shared pathways, as well as education and skills training, such as scooter and bicycle skills in schools,” says the manager of Let’s Go, Carl Whittleston.

“These two latest walkways give

another transport route for residents in our eastern and western suburbs.

They’re also great for leisure and exploring some of our reserves that haven’t been easily accessible before now.”

The 1.5km Mangaotuku Walkway takes the public through an area that used to be a rough grass track and inaccessible boggy horse paddocks with lovely large trees.

The 1.8km Waiwhakaiho Walkway has widened and improved a previous gravel and dirt track.

Both walkways have a surface that bicycles, mobility scooters and wheelchairs can use with ease.

“Walkways such as these are great for encouraging the able-bodied as well as the less-able to get active and see parts of the city they haven’t had a chance to access before,” says Carl.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

In 2010 New Plymouth and Hastings were named Model Walking and Cycling Communities by the NZ Transport Agency, with funding to help develop walking and cycling initiatives.

New Plymouth has since extended its award-winning Coastal Walkway another 3km to connect the large suburb of Bell Block to the city via the off-road route, and improved its major Te Henui and Huatoki walkways which connect the city’s southern boundary to the coast.

“By expanding and improving our network of off-road shared paths, we’re giving people more opportunities for leisure activity and active transport.

“New Plymouth is a city of river valleys and it’s fantastic that locals and visitors can explore them through these walkways,” says Carl.

PLACEMAKING

Partnering the community

to deliver leisure facilities Horowhenua District Council boasts more than 80 parks and reserves within its area, ranging from adventure play parks, scenic coastal and river reserves, to top-class sports fields.

However, to meet the growing demand for more and better leisure facilities, we have looked to community partnerships to help facilitate projects and, as a result, have a number of exciting developments underway.

Waitarere

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Most recently a three-year partnership was signed with Transpower who will contribute $100,000 towards a Waitarere Beach Walkway project, as part of a three-year partnership, which could see the already popular holiday and walking destination become a regional attraction.

The planned walkway development from the beach, following the Wairarawa stream through council reserves and into the Waitarere Forest, will include viewing platforms, a footbridge, seating, signage and native tree planting. The second part of the project will be the restoration of the Wairarawa Stream.

The Walkway is one of four projects chosen by Transpower to help launch its new community environmental programme, Greenline. The Greenline Horowhenua programme will see

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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PLACEMAKING Transpower working with all project stakeholders, including Horowhenua District Council, Horizons Regional Council, DOC, local iwi, Waitarere Beach Residents Association, local contractors and farmers.

Queen Street Pathway The need for a safe walking, jogging and cycling pathway, linking Levin to the Tararua foothills saw the Levin Rotary Club working closely with council to get the 2.2km pathway project started.

Council kick-started the funding which has been supported by Transpower (Community Care fund), the Endeavour Trust and the Eastern and Central Community Trust. Stage two of the project will include seating and native tree planting along the route later this year.

Foxton The Ministry of Social Development’s ‘Task Force Green’ programme has provided huge benefits to the Horowhenua township of Foxton, by providing short-term employment and up-skilling of local people. The work has included upgrading several

local gardens, restoration work on local reserves, and a stock route regularly used by joggers, walkers and horse riders.

Playford Sporting facilities are always under the spotlight, and the district has already hosted a number of regional and national tournaments. Our latest project to develop one of our well-used sports ground into a multi-sports complex catering for a wider range of sporting codes. The $1.5 million upgrade will include new amenity facilities, reconditioned sports turf, and new floodlighting.

The Playford Park multi-sport development is a community partnership, working with representatives from rugby, league, touch, softball, the referees association and the adjacent Waiopehu College.

A memorandum of understanding was signed last year between council, the college and the sports groups, which saw the various groups working closely to promote this project which will see increased, all-year-round usage and enable the

community to host major sporting events. Sports groups have already taken the responsibility of raising one-fifth of the project cost.

In summary, partnerships around community sports and leisure projects in Horowhenua allow to spread the cost, share resources and, above all, get traction on projects which would otherwise fall outside council budgets. With the joint approach, the public also benefit from a long-term commitment to the future viability and maintenance of these top class facilities in the district.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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water infrastructure

NZ conference focuses on SCARCE COMMODITY The question’s been asked – will the next big war be fought over the availability of water?

A book called Water: The Epic Struggle for Wealth, Power and Civilization, puts the case that water is surpassing oil as the world’s scarcest critical resource. It puts forward an argument that only 2.5 per cent of the planet’s water supply is fresh, and much of that is locked away in glaciers at a time when world water use in the past century grew twice as fast as the world’s population.

A conference in Wellington this month might not be discussing topics as heavy as that, but delegates to the 2nd Water Infrastructure Investment & Planning Conference will be talking of the rapidly increasing need for better water security and supply – not only for improved useability now, but for environmental preservation in the future.

Key speakers will be Brian Hallinan from the Treasury, Murray Gibb, CEO of Water New Zealand, Andrew Curtis, CEO of Irrigation NZ and Ian Mackenzie,

spokesman for Water and the Environment, Federated Farmers.

As context for the conference, the Government released the National Infrastructure Plan in July 2011 and is soon to report on progress, including embedding infrastructure as a key theme in the business growth agenda, updates on key sectors and relationships between central and local government. This session aims to put water infrastructure, both urban and rural, in this context, including: increasing reporting accuracy of asset performance across the sectors demand management and pricing signals, and central and local government ongoing investment in infrastructure and performance, including irrigation.

A panel discussion will look at the opportunities for funding large infrastructure projects. Sources include central government, local government and private investors, and the panel will discuss funding options and capabilities from different perspectives.

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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water infrastructure

Another successful floating wastewater treatment project CLIENT: Rangitikei

District Council

PROJECT: Hunterville

WwTP wastewater upgrade

On day two of the conference, a number of highly topical and complex aspects of water infrastructure planning and control will be discussed, with papers delivered by a range of experts from councils, contractors, planners and infrastructure advisors.

Water security and resilience: working together to achieve the best outcome An increasing number of natural disaster events have shown that there is a need to strengthen and protect infrastructure. How can stakeholders work together to ensure that the future use of water is secure and resilient? Discuss how various infrastructure options can aid the adaptive capacity of systems for future preparedness.

Asset management and maintenance Future demands of systems Developing resiliency in infrastructure Mark Christison, Manager City Water and Waste, Christchurch City Council

Planning allocation in the Waikato Region Variation number 6 in the Waikato Regional Plan details how much water can be allocated in the region, and who gets priority. Hear how they went through the hearing process and an overview of the variation.

Setting rules on allocation totals and consenting regimes Giving domestic and municipal users priority Maintaining supply for hydro dams and other large existing users Bruce Mcauliffe, Senior Policy Advisor, Waikato Regional Council

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

The Hurunui Water Project applied for consent for four water storage dams on the Waitohi river, with a potential to include hydro electricity to offset costs. This new scheme was developed by HWP in response to the community approach to water management.

What changed for HWP so that the new scheme could be considered?

How can the higher costs be managed by the landowners and are these costs reasonable?

How is the project dealing with the risks around water management?

Amanda Loeffen, CEO, AL Resources

Roundtable: Irrigation scheme: unity and structure Schemes need to be well governed business units to ensure success. Cover scheme management options and how to create a good communication structure.

Amanda Loeffen, CEO, AL Resources

Roundtable: Urban reticulation and creating resilient systems Pipes often need maintenance and the aftermath of natural disaster shows we need to build better systems to ensure longevity and save money in the long term.

How can we build smarter?

Grant Lovell, Director Christchurch Group Manager, Tonkin & Taylor

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Improving the water permit transfer process Section 136 of the RMA enables the transfer of water from site to site. While permanent transfers are common, the process is not nimble enough to encourage optimum use of the water over the shorter term. Explore how the existing allocation from a given water resource can be used more effectively.

Limitations of the current transfer process Mechanisms for circumventing the transfer process (water user groups and aggregate consent entities) The role of Regional Plans in improving the transfer process Andrew Barton, Resource Management Planner, Beca

Environmental costs vs the benefits of water infrastructure Modifying the natural area to build water infrastructure invariably has negative effects on the environment, but these are balanced by the necessity of developing water solutions. Considering ecological and environmental impacts is crucial, so how can we account for these changes when designing infrastructure?

Opuha water scheme example Preserving and restoring as much of the natural environment as possible The ecological role of instream flows and effects of changing flow regimes on environmental values Ton Snelder, Principal Scientist, NIWA

Debating consents - economic value vs downstream effects Numerous stakeholders in water including iwi, DOC and local government have different interests and the debate between environmental preservation and the possible negative effects of land use intensification often complicates the consent process.

Collaborative processes and involving stakeholders Prioritising environmental care and offsetting downstream effects Advocating for the positive impacts of land use intensification Rob Enright, Partner, DLA Phillips Fox

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water infrastructure

Advantages of instrumentation and control A drinking water supplier is ultimately responsible for providing safe drinking water to the public.

For the majority of New Zealanders, this responsibility lies with the local authority or water utility. And so understanding how a water treatment plant is operating is highly important for operators, local authorities, and the public. Knowing the constituents of the water entering and leaving the plant and having the ability to rapidly respond to deterioration in the water quality is also extremely important for protecting public health. Having the appropriate level of instrumentation and control (I&C) is necessary to achieve this.

Instrumentation basically refers to the measuring devices

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

being used to monitor certain parameters and collect information about how the plant is operating, and control is the process of using what’s being measured to change a process variable such as flow rate, chemical dose concentration, UV intensity etc. All WTPs have some level of instrumentation and control. This varies significantly across different plants, where small plants typically have basic technology and other larger ones may have comprehensive water quality monitoring and fully automated control.

The level of I&C at WTPs around New Zealand must statutorily comply with the drinking water standards for New Zealand (DWSNZ 2005 – Revised 2008). This is typically related to: the population being served hence the size of the plant; the source water quality being abstracted – is the source a lake or river? Is the catchment protected?; and the required treated water quality – does the chlorine concentration need to be tightly controlled?

The majority of water treatment plants in this country have basic continuous monitoring of only some parameters such as chlorine and turbidity (the cloudiness of the water) and basic control of pumps and other process equipment. Most small-to-medium sized plants do not have the ability to control the amount of chemicals being dosed or the pace at which a plant can process treated water.

Investing in improved levels of I&C at WTPs can pay dividends in the long run for a local authority. Provided the investment is not cost prohibitive, the following advantages can be realised from increasing the level of I&C: improved treated water quality; improved compliance with DWSNZ; reduction in operator time for manual control and time required to take grab samples; reduction in costs for chemicals and energy consumption.

A few examples of areas where improvements can be made are: continuous monitoring of source water quality to immediately identify changes in the environment – e.g. an oil spill in a water source would be immediately detected if a plant has sufficient instrumentation on the source water. A UV spectrophotometer could be a useful device to detect pollutants entering the system. An exceedence in the limits of certain pollutants can trigger an alarm, shut the plant down and allow the operators to immediately respond to the incident;

water infrastructure

i mproved I&C for chemical dose control – up to 15 per cent savings in chemical volume can be made by controlling the dose of chemicals to optimum levels. This will ensure the right amount of chemical is dosed at the right time, as opposed to dosing excess chemical all the time; sequencing the use of different pumps to minimise energy use and wear and tear; labour savings can be achieved by automating time consuming tasks, such as filter backwashes, or manual sampling; novel web based data management systems such as H2know-how can provide remote monitoring of WTPs which can save operators valuable time and allow access to critical information so long as the operator has a

smart phone or tablet and internet connection.

The above examples obviously require that appropriate instrumentation is selected and that the operations team have the skills and discipline to calibrate and maintain the instrumentation so as to ensure accurate data for control and the savings to be realised. It is also important to consider the magnitude of the potential savings against the cost to implement any I&C, i.e. the cost should not out weigh the benefits. A trial for controlling chemical dosing of coagulant was carried at the Hamilton WTP. It was found that the Com::pass coagulant control predicted a noticeable reduction in coagulant consumption.

Further information Colin Giles, TDC special projects manager, tel 07 376 0797.

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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water infrastructure

Driving a more efficient kind of flood protection Environment Canterbury is now two years into the Waimakariri Flood Protection Project physical works programme.

This is a ten-year project that will increase the level of flood protection afforded to the Waimakariri District, Selwyn District and Christchurch City. Having successfully gained resource consents without appeal, and secured funding for the project, the past two years have been focused on delivering the works programme in the most cost effective and efficient manner possible.

Works to date have involved “filling the gaps” in the secondary stopbank line between the State Highway One Bridge and McLeans Island. There is now a continuous secondary stopbank/terrace along this stretch to protect Christchurch from a breach of the primary stopbank in this area. Environment Canterbury has also undertaken strengthening of critical lifelines – the road and rail bridges over the Waimakariri River –by placing rock armouring around the bridge abutments on both sides.

This required significant development work at Environment Canterbury’s rock quarry at View Hill, including amendment of the site’s resource consent to allow increased production, and improved stormwater and overburden management. To date, 1050m of new stopbank has been constructed,

2000m of stopbank has been upgraded and 35,000 tonnes of rock has been placed.

The Canterbury earthquakes caused significant damage to the Waimakariri and Kaiapoi River stopbanks downstream of the Northern Motorway. Approximately 9km of this 22km stopbank length needed repair. This repair work requirement combined with general earthquake related complications had the potential to delay progress with the project. However, thanks to the hard work of the Operations Group and contractors, the earthquake repairs were able to be completed in conjunction with the project work.

To date, the project has been delivered on time, under budget and without complaints, despite construction being through urban, recreational and highly trafficked areas. This has been achieved by a dedicated project team involving in-house staff, contractors and consultants working in a collaborative manner. Standard project processes have been established from survey standards, 12D design and draughting standards and technical specifications and contract administration procedures. This ensures that all work packages are able to be delivered to a similar quality whether design and delivered in-house by Environment

Canterbury or by the team of external consultants including GEM Consulting (project advisory, design and documentation, procurement and contract delivery, consent compliance), CPG Ltd (survey), Property Advisory Group (land negotiations) and Adderley Head (legal).

Continuity between the consenting team and implementation team has meant that consent compliance – made up of more than 100 consent conditions – has been achieved, and relationships with landowners established during the consultation phase have enabled entry agreements and land improvement agreements to be easily negotiated.

A project specific procurement process, including standardised contract documentation and specifications was developed by the project’s consultants, GEM Consulting. As a result, Environment Canterbury now has a team of pre-qualified contractors familiar with the project requirements.

With two years down, the project team is looking forward to delivering the remainder of the project in a similar manner.

Article by Annette Sweeney, principal environmental engineer, Good Earth Matters, Ian Heslop, principal engineer, Environment Canterbury.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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water infrastructure

After the weather bomb Ten years ago the 2002 weather bomb severely rocked Coromandel communities, including the settlement of Te Puru, but newly completed flood mitigation works by Waikato Regional Council will help to protect the township for the future.

Te Puru is the last of five big flood mitigation projects undertaken by the council on the Thames Coast. All of them resulted from the weather bomb, at a combined total cost of around $6.5 million.

The work has involved co-operation and funding from Thames-Coromandel District Council, the Department of Conservation, the New Zealand Transport Agency, central Government, the regional council and local communities and ratepayers.

Coromandel zone manager Julie Beaufill says Te Puru suffered significant damage to properties and infrastructure during the weather bomb, and has a history of the local stream flooding and severe damage impacts. The work completed included

stopbanks and floodwalls to retain floodwaters in the stream channel, replacing a bridge, and stream bank erosion protection and maintenance. “The flood mitigation works we have carried out at a total cost of around $2.4 million, mean a far greater standard of protection for around 160 at-risk properties in the township, and many more will benefit indirectly,” she says.

Residents will make a direct contribution by way of a targeted rate from July 1 next year.

The Te Puru flood mitigation works have been constructed to a 100-year event design standard. This means that there will be protection for the community from the smaller, more frequent flood events as well as the more significant events, which might occur once every 100 years on average.

This protection will mean reduced flooding of homes and properties, surety of access to essential services in an emergency and support for infrastructure.

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water infrastructure

Building on shaky ground

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

water infrastructure

Fulton Hogan was recently awarded the contract to upgrade the existing Taupo water treatment intake pump station and dosing plant.

This project is part of a plan by Taupo District Council to upgrade the district’s water reticulation and treatment facilities and requires demolition of the existing pump station building, a mechanical and electrical upgrade,

installation of new pipes, and construction of new buildings.

Given that the site is situated on Lake Taupo’s foreshore and just merely two metres above the lake’s water level, a critical element is the design and construction of foundations which would protect new infrastructure from any liquefaction, settlement and instability in any seismic event.

Pipeline condition assessment through Zero excavation.

New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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water infrastructure

During the early design phase, project designers CH2M Beca identified deep soil mixing (DSM) as a suitable ground improvement and foundation option and after following the discussion with Hiway Geotechnical, DSM was incorporated in the foundation design.

The project was tendered for, by selected contractors, with Fulton Hogan being awarded head contractor. Hiway Geotechnical’s design and build option was selected and they were engaged as the subcontractor for foundation works. The foundation design was based on the use of Turbojet deep-soil mixing with 800mm diameter columns constructed to depths of up to 12 metres. More than 300 DSM columns are required for the project, with a layout of 2.5m grid-spacing beneath the building footprint.

A 70m high-strength shear key is incorporated on the south side of the site along the lake front and also on the northern perimeter of the site located at the base of a recently excavated 10m-high cliff-face. The

shear keys use two and three rows of DSM columns at close spacing.

To date HGT has completed stage-one works requiring installation of approximately 150 DSM columns. Stage two will be constructed in December 2012.

Deep soil mixing (DSM) is a ground improvement technique used to treat soils in-situ. Typical practice is to use a single or multiple mixing shafts to form stabilised columns.

The installation of DSM columns on this project was challenging from the outset due to an extremely tight construction programme. In addition to completing the detailed design, HGT was responsible for completing site investigations. Other challenges of the project include limited working areas, multiple underground live pipes and services, staged demolition works, reclaimed

fill requiring excavation, and the requirement to target a zone of low strength silts using increased grout pressure and cement injection.

Graeme Quickfall, general manager HGT says “this has been a very challenging project from the start, but we have demonstrated how effective collaboration and interaction between the specialist contractor, head contractor, designer and client can lead to true-value engineering and a successful project outcome. Fulton Hogan has provided very efficient project management and facilitation between all parties. This project demonstrates the versatility of DSM design and engineering to achieve ground improvements and increase foundation performance. We now look forward to completing stage two.”

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One of the latest video capture technology cameras installed at key road intersections in Gisborne over a three month monitoring period.

One of the numerous 44T B-Train vehicles using the state highway network in Gisborne.

Keeping the trucks in line In today’s difficult economic times, primary industry growth around Gisborne — including the forestry sector — provides welcome relief from a picture dominated by global and local recession.

But while the predicted doubling of logging haulage volumes on Gisborne’s roads by 2020 is good news for local employment and the local economy, it impacts on other road users, communities and the local road network.

Dave Hadfield, Gisborne District Council land transport manager says having the port in the centre of the city means considerable heavy vehicle traffic through residential areas and on key access routes.

“This is already a major concern for council and the community. It is essential that we understand the implications of further growth on the network to determine what action is required to maintain a safe, sustainable and efficient road network while also improving local amenity.”

The council approached engineering and environmental consultants MWH and public health specialists Quigley and Watts and senior transportation engineer Gavin O’Connor is managing MWH’s commission.

“Our brief is to complete a transport study that defines and safeguards the network and ensures its resilience to accommodate the significant increases in haulage traffic projected by 2020.” MWH installed new traffic-counting cameras at 26 key intersections across the log-hauling network to record the number, type and movements of vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists at each intersection.

“We collected this data on new video-capture equipment which allowed a huge amount of classified traffic data to be processed quickly and costeffectively,” says Gavin.

“Existing traffic flow data was then combined with information captured from the cameras to construct a model which provides a vital tool in the decision-making process and enables the council to adopt a strategic view of the road network essential for identifying future road improvements,” says Jamie Povall, MWH technical lead for the project.

“For the first time the council can clearly see where operational issues exist and test potential solutions. This approach allow council not only to target any needed traffic management improvements to the most critical

areas, but also to implement them at the most appropriate time, thereby ensuring optimal use of constrained budgets. Information accessed on pedestrian and cycling movements will also provide valuable insights into ways to achieve a more sustainable transport network.”

Further information, Gavin O’Connor, senior transport engineer based at MWH, Hastings; 06 873 8946 or gavin.a.oconnor@mwhglobal.com.

When the unimaginable strikes, asset and civil defence managers need to quickly engage the right people on the right tasks. A comprehensive resilience and recovery plan, supported by robust and complete asset data and decision systems, can ensure an efficient and effective recovery. MWH experts can help Councils become as resilient as possible through experience gained on some of the world’s most significant natural disasters.

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New ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT July 2012

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