Regional Policy Statement for Taranaki |
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| This page: | Part B Section 7 — Air and climate change | 7.1 Air quality |
| Other pages: | 7.2 Climate change | |
7. Air and climate change
This section identifies resource management issues of regional significance, which have their primary effect on Taranaki's air quality. These issues are grouped under the headings of:
- maintaining air quality
- responding to the effects of climate change.
7.1 Maintaining air quality
Background to the issue
Clean fresh air is an important and valued part of Taranaki's environment and quality of life.
Overall Taranaki has excellent air quality. This is because of Taranaki's windy and exposed nature, together with its dispersed and low population, its absence of heavy industry and its low number of vehicles. However, air quality in some localities is lost or reduced through activities resulting in point or diffuse source discharges of contaminants to air.
Diffuse (widespread) sources of emissions are the biggest contributors of emissions to air. Of the diffuse sources, natural sources (sea spray, vegetation, landcover and farm animals) emit far greater quantities than human sources such as industries, homes or motor vehicles.
Point sources of emissions such as from industry are more obvious than natural sources. Point source emissions in Taranaki come from a range of sources such as the petroleum industry, pig and poultry farming and abrasive blasting. Most of the point source emissions are located in the industrial parts of the region's urban centres, particularly New Plymouth and Hawera.
Emissions to air - in the form of odours, smoke, dusts or toxic contaminants as well as water vapour and hot air - may affect air quality. The effects of such emissions may range from visual distraction, offensive odours and nuisance effects to actual or potential effects on human and ecosystem health and adverse effects on roads, airports, aircraft while in the air and other infrastructure.
In some localities, 'reverse sensitivity' issues may be a problem. Reverse sensitivity refers to situations where lawfully established industries, that have addressed offsite effects as far as is practicable and reasonable, may become constrained by the emergence of new and often incompatible land uses in the neighbourhood. In Taranaki, reverse sensitivity issues are particularly associated with new residential subdivisions near existing piggery or poultry farms, which then become a target of complaints relating to odour and other air emissions. The inappropriate location of residential activities in rural areas can also constrain the availability of rural land for intensive animal farming purposes. However, other industries and land uses may also be affected from time to time.
The significant issues in relation to maintaining air quality are:
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Managing adverse effects on air quality arising from point sources of emissions.
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Managing reverse sensitivity issues in relation to air emissions and which are created by incompatible land uses establishing next to industries or rural production operations.
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Objective
AQU OBJECTIVE 1
To maintain the existing high standard of ambient air quality in the Taranaki region, to improve air quality in those instances or areas where air quality is adversely affected, and to avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse effects on people and the environment resulting from discharges to air.
Policies
Adverse effects of discharges to air
AQU POLICY 1 Discharges to air of contaminants should avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse effects by ensuring that: (a) any discharge to air of potentially hazardous, noxious, dangerous or toxic contaminants does not occur at a volume, concentration or rate or in such a manner that causes or is likely to cause a hazardous, noxious, dangerous or toxic effect on human or animal health, significant ecosystems or structures; (b) to the fullest extent practicable, any discharge to air of odorous contaminants does not create an offensive or objectionable effect beyond the boundary of the property of the discharger; and (c) any discharge to air of dust, smoke or hot air emissions and other particulate matter does not occur at a volume or rate or in a manner that causes or is likely to cause a hazardous, noxious, dangerous, offensive or objectionable effect beyond the boundary of the property of the discharger, including the significant restriction of visibility or the soiling of property.
Other matters to be considered
AQU POLICY 2 In considering policies or proposals in relation to discharges to air, matters to be considered will include: (a) recognition that some areas of the region have within them, uses or values that are more sensitive to the discharge of contaminants to air than other areas; (b) surrounding environmental conditions and the potential for adverse effects on other receiving environments; (c) the potential for cumulative effects; (d) measures to reduce the volume and toxicity of the contaminants; (e) measures to reduce the risk of unintended discharges of contaminants; (f) the requirement to discharge to air having regard to use of the best practicable option to prevent or minimise as far as practicable adverse effects on the environment from the discharge of contaminants to air; and (g) the nature of the source or sources.
Reverse sensitivity
AQU POLICY 3 Land use and subdivision should be managed to avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse effects on people and the environment from reverse sensitivity effects arising from the inappropriate location of sensitive activities in proximity to legitimate activities discharging contaminants to air.
Explanation of the policies
Policy 1 states that the discharge of particular types of contaminants will be avoided, remedied or mitigated. There are three parts to Policy 1, which focus on the different types of contaminants discharged to air. First, discharges of contaminants to air that may be hazardous, noxious, dangerous or toxic to people, significant ecosystems and buildings must be controlled or managed, taking into account volumes, concentrations and the rate of the discharge and the manner in which contaminants are discharged. Under Policy 1(a) the adverse effects of the discharge of contaminants are to be avoided, remedied or mitigated so that the discharge does not cause hazardous, noxious, dangerous or toxic effects on people, significant ecosystems or structures. Second, discharges of contaminants that are odorous must be controlled or managed in a practicable manner focusing on 'offensive' or 'objectionable' odours. What is offensive or objectionable will depend on the frequency of exposure, the intensity of odorous substances, the duration of exposure, the nature of the odour, appropriate land uses in the vicinity, and the sensitivity of the adjacent environment to the odour. Implementation of this part of the policy will generally be in accordance with national guidelines for odour and dust. Finally, discharges to air of smoke, dust and other particulate matter will be managed in a manner that focuses on offsite effects.
Policy 1 refers to avoiding, remedying or mitigating any adverse effects by ensuring that any discharges do not result in the particular effects described in the policy. The policy does not require discharge activities to have no adverse effects. The policy requires adverse effects to be avoided, remedied or mitigated to the extent or in the nature indicated and so some adverse effects from the discharge may still occur but the specific effects indicated will be required to be avoided, remedied or mitigated to acceptable levels. Some adverse effects will be so small or minor as to be insignificant or inconsequential and can be ignored. On the other hand, some effects will be so serious that the Council will regard them as being unacceptable.
The tests for whether adverse effects are or can be avoided, remedied or mitigated to acceptable levels are set out in paragraphs a) to c) of the policy. Paragraphs a) and c) refer to a discharge that 'is likely to' cause an adverse effect. This is a high level test of likelihood that sits above a mere possibility of something occurring. If a discharge is 'likely to' cause an adverse effect of the sort described in the policy, this means that there must be a serious or real and substantial risk that the stated consequences will happen, and it is under these circumstances that Policy a) and c) will apply.
Policy 2 recognises that there will be activities that require to discharge contaminants to air and sets out six matters pertinent to consideration of policies and proposals for air discharges. In relation to the first and second points, the policy recognises that the Taranaki environment is not uniform for the purposes of air quality management. Some areas are more sensitive than others due to differences in natural and physical resources, different community values placed on them and different types and levels of use of resources. The third point recognises that although individual discharges to air may have only minor adverse effects on their own, the cumulative effects of such discharges in combination with others may result in significant adverse effects on the environment. The fourth, fifth and sixth points consider measures that address the deliberate and unintended discharges of contaminants to air, including the use of the best practicable option to prevent or minimise adverse effects to the environment.
Policy 3 recognises that even if activities discharging to air give effect to policies 1 and 2 relating to the discharge itself, adverse effects may still arise if controls on subdivision or land use activities do not take sufficient account of the discharge activity. The intent of this Policy is not to manage the discharge activity itself, but rather to control the siting and establishment of sensitive or incompatible land uses in the vicinity of the discharging activity. Discharging activities to which Policy 3 relates include intensive poultry farming and industrial poultry activities and intensive pig farming operations.
Related policies
Policies 1, 2 and 3 of Section 5.3 [Hazardous substances and contaminated sites]; and all the policies relating to Section 7.2 [Climate change]; Policies 1 and 2 in Section 9.1 [Indigenous biodiversity]; all the policies relating to Section 10.3 [Amenity values]; Section 13 [Minerals]; and Section 16 [Issues of significance to iwi].
Methods of implementation
The Taranaki Regional Council will:
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Maintain a regional plan or plans with objectives, policies and methods of implementation addressing point and diffuse source discharges of contaminants to air, and reverse sensitivity effects arising from discharges of contaminants to air.
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Apply regional rules to allow, regulate or prohibit: (a) the discharge of contaminants to air from industrial and trade premises; (b) odour and other emissions from agricultural activities; (c) agrichemical spraying operations; (d) burning of vegetation and waste material; (e) piggeries and poultry farms; (f) waste management processes; and (g) other activities as appropriate.
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Require, when appropriate, applicants for permits to discharge contaminants to air, to adopt the best practicable option to minimise the adverse effects of the discharges on the environment.
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Provide advice and information, including guidelines, to landowners, resource users and the public: (a) to generally promote awareness of air quality issues; (b) to encourage the adoption of principles and practices that avoid or mitigate adverse effects on air quality; and (c) on systems, siting, design, installation, operation and maintenance procedures for industrial, domestic and agricultural activities that emit to air.
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Support and promote the preparation and adoption by sector groups of guidelines and certification programmes to avoid or mitigate adverse effects on air quality arising from: (a) farming activities that may generate significant odour such as piggeries, poultry farms and on-site land application of treated or untreated effluents or other contaminants; (b) agrichemical spraying operations; and (c) spray application of paint, fibreglass and similar activities.
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In conjunction with the territorial authorities, implement memoranda of understanding to promote effective integrated management of air quality issues.
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Apply and, where appropriate, contribute to the monitoring of national environmental standards relating to air quality.
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Territorial authorities may wish to consider the following method:
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Include in district plans or resource consents, provisions or conditions to control either or both: (a) the siting and establishment of land uses that discharge contaminants to air that have an adverse effect on the amenity and character values of the adjacent land uses; or (b) the siting and establishment of sensitive or incompatible land uses in the vicinity or neighbourhood of the discharging land use.
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Principal reasons for adopting the objective, policies and methods
The objective, policies and methods of implementation establish a policy framework for air quality issues in the Taranaki region. Their aim is to maintain Taranaki's overall excellent air quality and, in some localities, enhance air quality by addressing the effects of air emissions from point sources.
Some concerns exist about discharges to air at specific sites, primarily involving odour. Therefore the methods to implement the objective and policies focus on the control of significant point sources and the avoidance of reverse sensitivity issues through the resource consents process, including the adoption of the best practicable option, to reduce adverse effects on neighbours as far as is practicable.
While territorial authorities do not control discharges to air directly, provisions in district plans relating to the siting or establishment of land uses discharging to air or of other land uses in the vicinity of the discharging land use, can avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse effects of discharges to air and give effect to the objectives of the Regional Policy Statement.
Other methods such as information provision, guidelines, education and advocacy address adverse effects associated with diffuse source emissions and complement the regulatory approach for point sources. Together these methods have proven to be successful to date in terms of public acceptance and the achievement of desired environmental outcomes. The approaches for point and diffuse source discharges are considered to be the appropriate approaches having regard to their efficiency and effectiveness and their benefits and costs.
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Environmental results anticipated AQU ER 1 Maintenance of good to excellent general air quality according to accepted national standards. AQU ER 2 A reduction in offence and risk from individual point source discharges to air. |
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