Local Government August 2012

Smart thinking keeps WCC fleet on track Council employs GPS to effectively monitor its vehicle fleet PAGE 12

VOL 48 • AUGUST 2012 • $6.50

Reclaiming wetlands – councils strike back Shabby wetland areas are being transformed around the country PAGE 20

We are pleased to announce that the 13th Annual NZTA/NZIHT Conference will be held from 4-6 November 2012 at the Rutherford Hotel, Nelson.

The theme of this year’s conference is: “Can we change our current thinking to meet the challenge?”

The Challenge – “All over the world Road Agencies are finding it increasingly difficult to fund Road Maintenance and Operations on a flat-line budget or even a diminishing budget and still continue to provide acceptable and safe levels of service to their Customers”.

Following on from last year’s conference with the theme “Value for Money” this conference will go one step further and explore ways in which Industry can meet the above challenge through contractual, technical and management innovations. This challenge is in line with the Government Task Force set up to identify efficiencies in the delivery of road maintenance and renewals, and the Maintenance and Operations review for State Highways which is one of the Headway Projects.

PAPERS WILL BE PRESENTED FROM THE FOLLOWING LIST OF TOPICS.

» Efficiency improvements

» Adapting/new business models

» Surfacing and pavement specifications

» What is the optimum maintenance contract size?

» Safety

» Improved efficient cost effective traffic management

» Risk assessment

» Contract/Collaboration models

» Procurement (Smart buyer capability)

» “Just in Time” surfacing and Pavement Renewal intervention

» Economic and social value generated by a roading network

» Surfacing and pavement design innovations eg polymer modified Asphalts and Binders, Ultra Thin Asphalts etc

» Introduction of advanced asset management practices

» Do our specifications, standards, performance measures and contract conditions “Meet the Challenge?”

» Innovations and value for money

COST.

$750.00 + gst

» Skid resistance/Roughness/ Rutting Effects

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

AGENDA AUGUST 2012 FROM THE EDITOR 02 Standoff at the OK Corral NZLG INSIGHT News and current affairs from the New Zealand local government sector

03 Amalgamation a hot topic 04 HB roading project a finalist 06 Will the new Bill realise its goals?

07 Icy roads patrolled by Pateye 08 LGNZ riled by 'intervention' 09 Auckland Plan ‘issues’ 09 Landscaper heads for final

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SOLGM’S ANNUAL CONFERENCE Managers and chief executives from New Zealand councils gather to share ideas 10 SOLGM meets amid major change COUNCIL FLEET MANAGEMENT Keeping the council fleet rolling is becoming an increasingly scientific task

12 Vehicle fleet tracking well 16 Hybrid promises to be a quiet achiever 16 What is a workplace travel plan?

PAVEMENT TECHNOLOGY The place where the rubber meets the road is attracting new technologies

18 Engineer has it well covered 18 Bitumen price and availability

30

WETLAND MANAGEMENT Higher values are now being placed on wetland areas and big money is being spent

20 Community initiatives in wetland management 22 Hawke’s Bay rivers gain from waste treatment 24 Wetland adds nature’s balance to Lake Rotorua shoreline 24 Cultural ecology values in Waikato restoration 26 Attacking wetland weeds 27 Judges Bay reaches its true potential

Smart thinking keeps WCC fleet on track Council employs GPS to effectively monitor its vehicle fleet PAGE 12

Reclaiming wetlands – councils strike back Shabby wetland areas are being transformed around the country PAGE 20

Vol 48 • AUGUST 2012 • $6.50

CHRISTCHURCH REBUILD It’s going to be a long haul, but the rebuild of Christchurch city has begun

30 Quakes force rethink on building design 30 Team spirit amid the rubble 32 Digging deep to repair Canterbury’s foundations FOCUS Opinion and analysis from New Zealand’s local government sector

35 Councils should strategise on sport and recreation 36 Contract aggregation – is it favoured or not?

37 Many benefits flow from $25 million water project 38 What do you know about tax penalties and councils?

39 Procurement solutions: cutting time and cost 40 Readying for the roll-out – Infratrain is on the UFB job 41 Insurers pay earthquake billions

On the cover: Wellington City Council's fleet asset manager, David Jacobs -see page 12

FROM THE EDITOR

Standoff at the OK Corral Both the Key government and Local Government New Zealand are possibly being as positive as they can be about the Better Local Government policy statement and accompanying LGA 2002 Amendment Bill.

Central government says it doesn’t want to force amalgamations on anyone, and the organisation working for all 78 councils says there are some desirable outcomes that could flow from the changes proposed.

But underneath those mollifying statements is a central government desire to rein councils in on just about everything important, and a local government desire to firstly, retain responsibility for the four well-beings and now point to many proposals in the Bill that suffer from "a severe lack of analysis".

Standing behind LGNZ are some very angry councillors from around the country who are unreservedly negative about the proposal to take the four well-beings off the local government agenda. LGNZ has reflected this stance by saying to Government ‘if it’s not broken, don’t fix it”.

Additionally, it’s clear that many councillors around the country would feel robbed of an important sense of purpose if they were told by central government to stick to rates, rubbish and wastewater. Local government could lose some very good councillors and quite probably some very good staff if councils are instructed to leave people’s wellbeing to the denizens of the Beehive and Parliament.

Will local body election turnouts ever drag themselves to a healthy percentage of the population if councils are restricted to decision-making on infrastructure and refuse disposal?

Sure there’s an interesting aspect to the legislation now before the House, which will see mayors given more power – a move that’s amusingly been dubbed “the Boss Hogg clause” by a Hamilton City councillor, a reference to the old American TV show, the Dukes of Hazzard, featuring the cigar-smoking, white-suited, unethical commissioner of Hazzard County who wore a white cowboy hat and generally acted in a way that was just like “a cowboy”.

Putting that aside, it’s hard to imagine an easy or comfortable outcome to what seems like a looming stalemate over the contents of the 2002 Amendment Bill. The Government will likely press on with dispensing with councils’ wellbeing activities and will no doubt stonewall in the same way it has faced down the sticks and stones from opponents to the sale of New Zealand’s SOE power companies.

LGNZ is now staring down the Government over the terms of the Amendment Bill, saying in its submission to the Parliamentary committee handling the Bill that it proposes a number of changes that would “undermine the democratic accountability of elected members to their communities”. It says some of the proposals have the potential to introduce significant cost and uncertainty into the local government sector and some proposed changes could have a chilling impact on the sector’s infrastructure investment programme.

As we report elsewhere in this issue,LGNZ says its chief concern with the Bill’s regime is that the benchmarks are tied to the new Ministerial intervention regime. By linking benchmarks to the intervention regime they become in effect triggers for intervention, not benchmarks.

All in all, it’s not an encouraging situation. A Government bent on making major changes through Parliamentary legislation and councils setting out to defend themselves against that legislation using indignation and a sense of injustice. It seems an unequal contest.

With this issue of New Zealand Local Government magazine, we welcome delegates to two upcoming Auckland conferences – SOLGM or the Society of Local Government Managers from September 9-11, at The Langham Hotel, Auckland and the 7th International Conference on Maintenance and Rehabilitation of Pavements from August 28-30 at the University of Auckland’s Business School, in the Owen G Glenn building, Grafton Road.

The SOLGM conference will draw chief executives, senior managers and emerging managers from all sectors of local government. The conference offers unique professional development opportunities along with the time and space for attendees to discuss issues with their peers.

The Pavement conference – New Zealand’s largest international technical conference on pavements and materials for years, will look at technical issues and will draw together transport infrastructure ‘industry professionals and research academics’ from around the world.

We wish delegates the best for each conference.

2

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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NZLG INSIGHT

Amalgamation

a hot topic As president of Local Government New Zealand, Lawrence Yule is deeply involved in working with councils and the Beehive on Government’s Better Local Government initiative and what it means to the possible reorganisation of councils. But as Mayor of Hastings District he is also enmeshed in the issues surrounding amalgamation. The topic is running hot in the local newspaper, Hawke’s Bay Today and after numerous articles and letters to the editor, Mr Yule decided it was time to lay out his views in an article headed The Past or the Future.

Lawrence Yule

So, as the Mayor of Hastings I have put my head above the parapet. I have suggested that Hawke’s Bay needs to look at how we do things.

Are we doing the right things to make us prosperous, family focused and the location of choice for lifestyle, business and to visit? Can we save money and make ourselves more productive? They seem like simple enough questions to me.

Many of those who have resisted such an approach have vested interests as political leaders, staff, or are just parochial. Many privately tell me things are wrong and they support some change, but publically defend the status quo, in the hope somehow this will all go away. It won’t, and those who think it will are failing you.

I have at least been crystal clear in my view that the region would achieve better results with a single governance structure which incorporates the Napier City

stream. Hastings District Council also looks after a greater land area with a larger asset base – one that provides jobs for many Napier residents. Hastings also has hundreds of kilometres of extra roads and bridges that service the heart of our rural economy.

Hastings debt is well-managed and completely under control. What counts is the bottom line cost of debt to ratepayers. Despite the difference in debt between the two cities, the average rates per resident varies by just $5. In other words, as documented by the Department of Internal Affairs, rates charged in each area are almost identical.

I do, however understand Napier residents’ concern about taking on somebody else’s debt and I agree that this is a genuine worry.

Residents experienced the same issue in 1989 when Hastings City merged with the Hawke’s Bay continued on page 4

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Council, Hastings District Council and Hawke's Bay Regional Council.

In doing so, I have always said a new governance structure must be fair, transparent and give our region a competitive lift. If it’s not, it won’t be enduring and will offer no value to ratepayers. I also acknowledge that not everybody agrees with me.

There are two things that seem to worry certain people, particularly in Napier – debt and identity.

Debt is an emotive subject.

Hastings has more substantial debt ($61 million) than Napier ($4 million) for understandable reasons that have nothing to do with ‘mismanagement’, as detractors misrepresent.

Historically, the difference between the two cities’ debt stems from the fact that Napier inherited a lot of land courtesy of the 1931 earthquake, and has enjoyed sale or lease income ever since. Hastings has never had such an income

Auckland, Wellington, Wanganui and Napier councils now share their regional demographic and spatial planning information with their stakeholders and community in an online internet application developed by population experts .id.

The story of these regions - right down to the neighbourhood level - is brought to life in a visual, intuitive and compelling application .idprofileÂŽ. .idprofileÂŽ shows how towns are changing, so that councils and the community can make informed and confident decisions about where to invest effort, shaping plans and actions.

Census data is an essential and profound information platform for planning decisions.

Make sure you talk to the .id team at SOLGM’s Auckland conference to see how your organisation can benefit from .idprofileŽ.

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

3

NZLG INSIGHT

HB roading project a finalist The project which created a new and exciting design for the Havelock Road transport corridor has been named as a finalist in the 2012 Roading Excellence awards.

The Havelock Road Corridor development was entered into the Roading New Zealand awards by the Hastings District Council on behalf of partners Downer New Zealand and Opus International.

Downer NZ was responsible for the construction of the pathway, while Opus International handled the design work. The Havelock Road Corridor Development is one of four finalists in the Excellence Award for Minor Road Projects category.

The other finalists are: the Kopane Bridge Replacement in Manawatu the Kitchener Street South upgrade in Auckland City State Highway 26/27 Tatuanui roundabout and passing lane in the Waikato.

The corridor development project aimed to find solutions to the anticipated traffic congestion on Havelock Road over the next 30 years while providing a safe pathway for cyclists and walkers.

The two-lane road currently carries around 18,000 vehicles a day and that is expected to increase to 26,000 by the year 2045.

A 2.1 kilometre, three-metre-wide pathway was recently opened on the north side of the Havelock Road and is one of four arterials which make up the iWay walking and cycling network around Hastings.

The Roading Excellence Awards accept entries from all organisations involved in the delivery of roading projects in New Zealand.The category winners and the supreme award winner will be announced at a dinner on August 27th 2012 in Auckland.

Association of Local Government Information Management Inc

continued from page 3 County and Havelock North. Hastings then had $42 million dollars worth of debt and the County $2 million. I didn’t think it fair that County residents should pay for this and that was the main issue which began my interest in local government politics. This was resolved and the debt was ring-fenced and paid for by the former authorities.

Therefore I have always supported the ring-fencing of debt. Each area should be responsible for its own debt. Equally, former authority income streams should be protected. End of argument.

The second issue relates to identity. We have two proud cities surrounded by very successful suburbs.

Does anybody seriously think that since Taradale has merged with Napier and Havelock North with Hastings that some sort of identity has been lost or the world has stopped spinning? Do the rural people feel they have lost anything by not being part of the former Hawke’s Bay County? The answer is no. So I for one don’t buy the argument that progression means the demise of representation. It is simply how you arrange for this to occur. Let’s work out how this can be best achieved rather than saying it can’t be done.

So despite the scare-mongering tactics of ladderclimbing politicians like Bill Dalton and Stuart Nash, I am resolute in my view that the status quo must be calmly but seriously challenged. I am also happy for any change to be tested by a poll. The case needs to be compelling to the majority of the residents in Hawke's Bay. If it’s not, it won’t happen.

The future demands we do better. If Hawke’s Bay was a business, you would have all sorts of people looking at ways to improve our performance, because at this stage we are struggling to be competitive. I am looking forward to the release of the recently commissioned Prosperity study.

Hopefully, this independent review will clearly portray the challenges. I am not a betting man, but I would be happy to hazard a guess that it will call upon us to re-think how we organise to face the future.

Lawrence Yule, Mayor, Hastings District Council

2012 ALGIM Annual Conference 11-14 November 2012 Bayview Wairakei Resort, Taupo

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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Executive recruitment remains key focus for public and private sector Throughout the recession, and recovery, one workforce sector has remained a challenge for organisations to recruit in. Finding professionals with specialist skills, particularly those in the IT field, remains highly competitive.

That trend is reflected worldwide and in many industries according to Kelly general manager Executive and Permanent Recruitment Mark Knoff-Thomas.

Mr Knoff-Thomas, whose company is present in over 30 countries, says in the ‘war for talent’ highly skilled professionals have a clear advantage.

“Although the global economy has been on a roller coaster ride, demand around the world for highly skilled professionals, and especially those with key IT experience, has remained constant,” says Mark Knoff-Thomas.

“In many cases too, it is the Government sector that has been supporting demand for professional skills as they undertake major developments in services, communication and community engagement projects.”

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To become an employer of choice, Mark Knoff-Thomas recommends organisations look very closely at how they present themselves to the public.

“When you are recruiting people

for leadership positions in your organisation or who will perform highly specialised skills, the employment process is very much a two-way street. They are as likely – and expected – to do as much research on you as an employer as you would on them.”

Mr Knoff-Thomas says part of Kelly’s work in providing specialist executive recruitment is in supporting the development of an organisation’s employer brand.

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Kelly takes an end-to-end approach for executive recruitment, working with organisations from the role specification, to selection and comprehensive testing and evaluation.

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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NZLG INSIGHT

Will the new Bill realise its goals?

What will the change to the purpose of local government in the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill achieve? Possibly very little.

While the impact of the amendments to the purpose statement in the Bill remains uncertain until litigated, the Bill is unlikely to achieve what the Government has said it will. It may be a matter of form over substance.

At the recent AGM of Local Government New Zealand, members unanimously rejected parts of the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill, which seeks to amend the purpose of local government. Yet, following, the Prime Minister delivered a speech affirming this aspect of the proposed changes.

So will the Bill achieve what it sets out to? Probably not. The current purpose of local government (section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002) is: to enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and to promote the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of communities, in the present and for the future.

This statutory purpose is important because the role of a local authority encompasses giving effect to this purpose (section 11). The authority is empowered only to perform its role (section 12). So, if an activity falls outside the purpose, a local

authority has no authority to engage in it.

It is commonly accepted that little falls outside the current purpose of promoting the four ‘well-beings’.

Indeed, granting broader powers to local authorities was a core purpose of the original 2002 Act. Ten years later, Government is unhappy with some activities in which local authorities have been engaged.

At the Local Government New Zealand conference, Prime Minister John Key said reforms were intended to provide clarity around the role of councils. Whether the Bill will in fact promote this clarity is doubtful.

If enacted, the Bill will redefine the purpose of local government: “…to meet the current and future needs of communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses.” The Bill defines ‘good quality’ as efficient, effective and appropriate to present and anticipated future circumstances.

The question for council officers, elected members, lawyers and (probably) judges will be: what is and what is not included in the concepts of ‘local infrastructure’ and ‘local public services’ that are both (a) efficient, effective and appropriate to present and anticipated future circumstances; and (b) most cost effective for households and businesses?

Tick Reclaiming wetlands – councils Vol 47 No 4 strike back 2011 ShabbyApril wetland areas www.localgovernmentmag.co.nz are being transformed toer effectively monitor Oc tob around the country its vehicle fleet Smart thinking keeps WCC

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By CRAIG STEVENS, partner; ADAM HOLLOWAY and SAMANTHA GAIN, senior associates, DLA Phillips Fox

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NZ Local Government

The existing definitions of community infrastructure and network infrastructure suggest that virtually anything physical providing a public amenity (not services) qualifies as ‘infrastructure’. Similarly, the ordinary meaning of ‘public services’ could encompass any type of service provided for the community.

There are, however, likely to be legal challenges over determining whether a service or infrastructure is ‘efficient, effective and appropriate’ and ‘most cost-effective’. Views on cost-effectiveness, and the time scale for its assessment, differ.

Judicial reviews could thus occur on the basis that local government decisions are not efficient or cost effective.

So is the Bill a deliberate example of form over substance? Or is it merely poorly drafted, a by-product of the speed of legislative change in modern governments? In contrast, the Local Government Act 2002 underwent six months of consultation before its introduction to the House. A year later it was enacted.

The uncertainty as to the scope of the purpose of local government created from enacting this Bill as drafted is undesirable. Subsequent litigation will be needed to achieve the clarity the Prime Minister is seeking. We await the outcome.

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NZLG INSIGHT

Icy roads patrolled

by Pateye Wintry Dunedin has been the site of a trial of a new ice sensor device which is designed to flash blue whenever roads become covered in ice.

Part of North Rd in Northeast Valley and Main South Rd at Sunnyvale have been used for the trial, as they are roads prone to icing. However, it was the need to find a way of lowering the high number of winter-time vehicle crashes on Dunedin’s Three Mill Hill Rd that sparked the development of the Pateye raised pavement marker.

Believed to be a world first, about 20 of the solar-powered markers have been trialled by Solar Bright, the Christchurch company which manufactures the units.

The origins of the technology can be traced back to the decision of Dunedin City Council to ask its road marking contractor Fulton Hogan for ideas to help warn motorists of ice on Three Mill Hill Rd. Fulton Hogan had worked with Solar Bright previously and the result of the

collaboration was the Pateye.

Invented by Pat Martin, the Pateye (Protection Against Temperature EYE) had been patented and in addition to the road trials, it was also undergoing verification testing in Fulton Hogan’s laboratory in Dunedin. The markers incorporate a sensor which tracks the ground temperature. When it drops to a certain level, the blue LED lights start flashing. The lights switch off again if the temperature rises.

Solar Bright spokeswoman Nicola Martin said it was a simple, yet effective solution, believed to be a world-first, that could have a positive effect on road safety. It is hoped information gleaned from the Dunedin trials will show that people slowed down when they saw the

blue flashing lights, she said. If successful, the technology would be marketed to other countries with similar road conditions.

“It could potentially save somebody’s life.”

Dunedin City Council will examine the results of the trial and if the units prove effective, the city council might look at installing the Pateyes on high-volume, high-crash-rate roads.

If successful, Pateyes will also undergo a formal trial with the New Zealand Transport Agency. The NZTA says with 130 fatal and serious crashes because of ice and snow in the past five years, and almost half of them in the Otago/Southland area, it will be interested in the results of the trial.

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NZLG INSIGHT

LGNZ riled by ‘intervention’ Local Government New Zealand’s main concern with the LGA 2002 Amendment Bill due to be pushed through Parliament soon, is the way benchmarks are being tied to a new Ministerial intervention regime.

LGNZ, which represents all New Zealand councils, has told Parliament’s Local Government and Environment select committee that by linking benchmarks to the intervention regime they become in effect – ‘triggers’ for intervention not benchmarks.

LGNZ submitted that this interrelationship with the intervention regime will result in ‘soft caps’ being set which may have serious implications for the way that local authorities operate.

“In particular, this could easily lead to councils under-investing in their infrastructure spend in order to stay

within thresholds. If so, a risk presents itself that over time an infrastructure deficit for the future will be created – the very thing that the Government’s National Infrastructure Plan seeks to avoid.”

LGNZ said if a regulatory approach is pursued then local authorities’ primary obligation should be to report against the proposed benchmarks (in their Annual Plans). The reporting process must include the ability for local authorities to explain how or why a particular benchmark has not been achieved, and to allow some flexibility in terms of the consequences of that ‘failure’ to reach a benchmark.

“If a local authority can reasonably explain why a benchmark has not been achieved, then that ‘failure’ to achieve should not constitute a problem worthy of ministerial intervention.”

LGNZ said it believes that ministerial intervention should be the exception not the rule.

“LGNZ does not agree that the Crown manager option should be retained as this is too draconian a measure with limited constraints on its use by the minister.

“The only real test for the appointment of a Crown manager is that the minister believes on ‘reasonable grounds’ that a significant problem (as defined in new section 254) exists and is such that the local authority is unlikely to effectively address the problem. At a minimum, a greater sense of the possible widespread, long-term, or irreversible effects of the problem should be imported into the test for the appointment of a Crown manager.

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NZLG INSIGHT

Auckland Plan ‘issues’ Local Government Minister David Carter says there are ‘issues’ to be addressed which flow from the Auckland Council’s first Auckland Plan.

He says a number of key proposals featured in the plan are broadly aligned with the Government’s priorities, but there are still some areas of concern, even though the Minister said the Plan as a whole had moved towards greater alignment with the Government’s priorities.

Senior ministers met recently with the Auckland Mayor and councillors to discuss a range of issues, including the Government’s response to the Plan.

“Auckland Council’s adoption of the Plan is a significant milestone and sets out the council’s vision for the region over the next 30 years,” says Mr Carter.

“Over that time, Auckland will accommodate 60 per cent of the country’s population growth. The importance of good effective planning for the region cannot be underestimated.

“The Government supports the Plan’s approach in several areas such as economic development, arts, culture and heritage, Maori development, and recreation and sport. “However, some concerns were expressed about the effectiveness and affordability of the transport strategy, the proposals to address quality affordable housing in Auckland and the alignment with the Better Public Services result areas.

“The Government will continue to work with Auckland Council to address these issues and achieve better alignment between our priorities and the council’s targets,” Mr Carter said.

Landscaper heads for final Andrew Rae, of Cromwell, is this year’s City Parks Services Young Landscaper of the Year. Twentyseven-year-old Andrew competed against five other landscapers from around the country at the competition held at Wintec, Hamilton.

The Young Landscaper of the Year award (for landscapers under the age of 30) is an annual event, held this year in conjunction with Landscaping New Zealand’s Landscapes of Distinction awards.

Competitors took part in practical activities including paving, planting and pruning, along with desk-based tasks such as quoting and public speaking.

Winning the Young Landscaper of the Year means Andrew is eligible to participate in the grand final of the Young Horticulturist of the Year in Auckland in November. The competition brings together the winners for six sectors of the horticulture industry.

In the meantime, Andrew, who is employed by Southern Landmarx, Queenstown, is keen to continue to do the spade work. He has a very practical approach to landscaping, citing construction work as his favourite part of the job.

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SOLGM

SOLGM meets amid major change within LG sector As SOLGM or the Society of Local Government Managers approaches its annual conference in Auckland it finds itself facing one of the most unexpected yet far-reaching changes to the LG sector New Zealand has seen.

The recent series of four ‘Better Local Government Summits’ delivered throughout the country

by SOLGM and Local Government New Zealand attracted 200 LG professionals and according to SOLGM’s principal advisor Raymond Horan, the headline message is clear, change is coming quickly and the sector needs to be ready for it.

“The summits gave people the opportunity to look at the bigger picture, deconstruct elements of the legislation, and have a discussion about different views that people have on these issues.”

The participants in the summits

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

were a mix of council officers and elected members.

“This is one of the few opportunities where we see officers and elected members from different councils get together and have a robust discussion on the reforms,” Horan said.

Incoming SOLGM president Ross McLeod says as the society heads towards its annual conference a new vision is proposed — one that is able to clearly articulate what it stands for as an organisation and the impacts that it aims to have not just within the local government sector, but within the wider community it serves.

The proposed new vision for SOLGM is described as ‘professional local

government management, leading staff and enabling communities to shape their future’.

“We believe that professional and highly capable managers and staff who are responsible for advising our elected members and running the day-to-day operations of councils are important in delivering efficient and effective services that meet the needs of every community in the country.”

With the new vision also comes with new strategic priorities for the coming year.

“Given that we are in a year of change and transformation, it is just fitting that SOLGM continues to maintain a focus on securing ongoing financial stability for the organisation.

We are also working towards increasing our membership base by offering exclusive opportunities to members. We will be working closely with other organisations, including a major focus on strengthening our relationship with Local Government New Zealand so local government, as a sector, can have a strong collective voice in the national scene.”

Outgoing president and chief executive of Rangitikei District Council, Clare Hadley, recently said that in a future of fewer local authorities, it would be hard to justify SOLGM and LGNZ being two separate organisations and that “the challenge will be to ensure there is a guardian for two equally important but differing points of views.

Clare Hadley said she believes all SOLGM members strive to do things better, and that the proposed Better Local Government reforms will not

SOLGM

necessarily deliver as intended. She has no doubt that new president Ross McLeod will guide SOLGM through the proposals, and accept the challenge of continuing the capacity building in the sector.

The SOLGM annual conference is the only local government conference that brings together local government chief executives, senior managers and emerging managers from all work areas in local government and conference delegates will be given an update on the Better Local Government reform programme, as Parliament moves towards passing legislation that will have a significant impact on the sector.

A range of guest speakers including Australia-based architect Phillip Daffara, UK author Philip Monaghan, a Kiwi expat in the United States Claudia Batten, the chief executive of Longreach Regional Council in Australia, Michelle McFadyen, and business commentator Andrew Patterson are on the agenda.

Conference organisers say that while change is on the horizon with the Better Local Government reform already progressing through the legislative process, one thing remains

the same — that local government will still affect the everyday lives of all New Zealanders.

The programme has been designed to provide maximum learning and networking opportunities, allowing time to meet and interact with other council managers and emerging managers from around the country, delivering outside the annual conference professional development programmes such as the Overseas Manager Exchange Programme and the SOLGM Opus Business School.

SOLGM is pleased to announce that GHD is back as a sponsor of the Supreme Award of the SOLGM Local Government Excellence Awards.

As a service provider to local government around New Zealand, GHD has a unique perspective on the many talented people and leading initiatives designed to achieve excellence, with limited funding and an increasingly complex regulatory operating environment.

“For this reason GHD is pleased to continue its support of the SOLGM Local Government Excellence Awards by sponsoring the Supreme Award,” says Sara Dennis,

Management Consulting Group Manager for GHD. “The GHD Supreme Award provides an opportunity for local authorities to showcase their achievements and innovative thinking in adapting to the challenges faced by the sector.”

GHD believes that the local government sector has the opportunity to lead best-practice in policy development, community relations, organisational capability and regulatory compliance in an environment of intense public scrutiny and where government is expecting more for less.

To the leaders of SOLGM it seemed only a few years ago that the sector was talking about the difficulties in attracting qualified staff and how councils were competing for these people with private sector companies and central government agencies.

While challenges remain in recruiting qualified and experienced engineers, building inspectors, planners and the like, many in the LG sector have now turned their attention to focus on how to ensure that talented people already in councils and organisations will stay, given the current environment.

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

Vehicle fleet tracking well

Wellington City Council's fleet asset manager, David Jacobs.

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

In recent years Wellington City Council has made significant inroads into how its vehicle fleet is managed – leading to impressive reductions in fuel use, more efficient use of a reduced fleet, and even safety improvements.

The improvements flow from various initiatives including a review of the council’s light fleet in 2009, the establishment of a fleet management unit and steering group, the introduction of GPS-based tracking technology, the establishment of a fleet management plan and information management systems.

So far 19 vehicles have been culled from the car pool without compromising the ability of staff to get around the city and do their work.

The GPS tracking system – more frequently used on long-distance truck fleets – has allowed the council to check on driver behaviour – it has significantly reduced the number of speeding tickets incurred by staff and has reduced fuel usage by 25 per cent.

In 2007 the council awarded FleetSmart, a business subsidiary of Cardlink Systems Ltd, the outsourced fleet management of council’s fleet. The council’s acting chief asset officer, Greg Orchard, says the organisation has benefited by having access to

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good fleet information management systems and business controls.

In 2010 the council engaged Smartrak Limited to install the GPS-based real-time fleet tracking management system. Some 175 tracking units are now installed and running across the fleet.

David Jacobs, the council’s fleet asset manager, says the fleet tracking system has given the council the ability to measure use and be able to benchmark use in terms of kilometres and hours within and outside business hours.

The result means optimised fleet use and fleet-size rationalisation.

He says data sharing between FleetSmart and Smartrak also allows on-line odometer readings.

“It means we can stay on top of maintenance schedules and allows us to monitor unusually high or low vehicle usage patterns.

“Some people may say there’s a whiff of ‘Big Brother’ to all this – but the vast majority of council staff are entirely comfortable with the monitoring. They know it’s not only about keeping costs down but also making sure council vehicles are used safely and properly.”

Greg Orchard agrees: “It’s also about the reputation of the organisation. If Wellingtonians see council-branded vehicles being used properly and safely then they

25 MOBILE PLANT

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are happy. And if they’re happy – we’re happy…”

Under consideration by the council is the Smartrak online car-pool booking system that will further optimise fleet usage and could further rationalise the overall light fleet size.

The council’s fleet asset management plan links directly to the organisation’s overall assetmanagement planning and indeed to its long term planning process consistent with the level of depreciation of fleet assets and based on an agreed set of good practice replacement criteria. It also allows the council to anticipate and take advantage of technological changes and environmental issues.

The plan has enabled the council to look genuinely to the future and carefully and properly introduce hybrid vehicles into the fleet. The centralised planning also means a fully-electric vehicle is being trialled and used right across the organisation.

The success achieved has been by design and not accident. The fleet management plan has provided the framework for the council to continue managing its fleet in a cost-effective and efficient manner.

The developed strengths will enable the council with confidence to respond to the challenges and changes on the horizon.

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EROAD - transport technology at its best In September 2009, EROAD became NZTA’s first online RUC Agency after an extensive approval and probity process, and by doing so changed for good the world of telematics (GPS) tracking and vehicle management.

This is because - unlike the previous generation of GPS tracking systems – the EROAD system has to endure the scrutiny of Government security and reliability audit every three months because the system is directly connected to NZTA for electronic RUC payment and the updating of all WOF and COF data. At the same time, the EROAD system was approved to replace mechanical hubodometers on all vehicles requiring them, and was rated the toughest hardware able to be fitted to a vehicle.

Since the 2009 rollout EROAD has quickly become the largest nonNZTA portal for commercial RUC in New Zealand and has amassed an impressive 900 customers ranging from infrastructure and utility organisations such as KiwiRail, Tenix/Powerco Delta

Utilities and Lineworks through to a significant range of New Zealand’s commercial transport operators.

Bus fleets such as Fullers, Bus Travel NZ, Reesby Buses and Eastern Buses have also embraced the technology and now – as MED syndication has been awarded – a number of local government organisations across New Zealand are starting to implement this next-generation technology.

From a Local Government perspective the EROAD advantage is across three specific areas: FLEET ACTIVITY •Fleet/despatch optimisation through the ability to see where vehicles are and record their proximity to faults/ jobs. EROAD can also be connected to the leading-edge iCOS electronic vehicle booking system which reports vehicle use back to the booking register automatically.

•Fuel usage and management via the unique EZfuel connection between the vehicle and the fuel provider.

•Automatic On/Off road use management.

BEHAVIOUR •Health and Safety functions. Can identify if a vehicle has had an incident.

•Lone worker security connectivity to personal alarms (as used by Midcentral Health).

COMPLIANCE ASSURANCE •Automatically extracts Registration.

WOF and COF data from NZTA and alerts any nominated party of impending requirments.

•Automatically buys RUC for any vehicle and displays it on the windscreen electronically.

•Maintains and legally archives all service records as required by the new TSL and RUC Act requirements 2012.

(Further information: www.eroad.co.nz).

Tenix Powerco Alliance benefits from EROAD In late 2005, Tenix entered into an evergreen Alliance agreement with Powerco Limited to provide design, construction and maintenance services for its electricity and gas distribution networks serving New Zealand’s North Island. Powerco is New Zealand’s second largest electricity and gas distributor.

Tenix provides comprehensive and immediate response capability from a network of 17 depots spanning Powerco’s networks. The results were impressive; ranging from improved utilisation, excellent works program delivery, streamlined works practices, fewer non-conformances, positive cultural change, improved safety and complete transparency on cost to serve.

To take the alliance to the next level Tenix engaged EROAD to roll out the Eruc & Ehubo system into the fleet of nearly 300 vehicles – ranging from general purpose office cars, power grid support vehicles, to large work trucks. Tenix’s National Procurement Manager Julian Crawley outlined 8 key areas when briefing company staff on the reasons behind the EROAD rollout: • “Lower administration costs due to a comprehensive range

of user friendly tools and reports • Protecting our business by assisting us to comply with the law and generate essential business information • Automatic electronic RUC when we need it online 24/7 – no more paper licences and no vehicle downtime. Ensuring our vehicles never run out of RUC and maintain full legal compliance.

• Improved transparency around vehicle movements, costs, and monitoring of stop/idle times and driver hours • Better control of service and maintenance costs • Satisfying business partner and customer compliance requirements • The Service Module provides our fleet team with a powerful tool to improve transparency around vehicle costs and better control service and maintenance expenses.

• The vehicle rollout occurred over the Christmas 2012 holiday period and was very smooth. The EROAD technology platform promised real and on-going savings and benefits to the organisation, and the system has certainly lived up to our expectations. “We are very pleased with it.” (Further information: www.eroad.co.nz).

KiwiRail, Tenix and Delta Utilities are amongst EROAD’s wide range of infrastructure customers.

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

Hybrid promises to be a quiet achiever As part of its focus on improving the sustainability of its operations, Hastings District Council has replaced a conventional petrol-powered vehicle with a Toyota Prius C. The Prius C is powered by a hybriddrive system which combines a 1500cc petrol engine with an electric motor and battery system. The drive system activates either the electric or petrol engine or both dependent on power demand and battery charge. The vehicle uses energy from the petrol engine, braking and the drive train to recharge the battery system.

Planning and regulatory committee chairman Rod Heaps is very pleased with the acquisition. He says “council has made a commitment to investigate practical opportunities to incorporate sustainability initiatives into its operations. This vehicle purchase is such an initiative and one that we will monitor to see what savings can be made.”

The vehicle will be used principally in urban areas by council regulatory staff. Cr Heaps says, “ This will particularly suit the Prius which tends to save fuel during round town driving, as its petrol engine cuts out rather than idling when the vehicle is stopped or slowing down at intersections.”

The Prius was purchased under the council’s membership of the All of Government procurement contract which resulted in a significant saving on the normal retail price.

What is a workplace travel plan?

Councils could look at promoting workplace travel plans along the lines devised by Auckland Transport.

These plans aim to reduce the numbers of workers all driving fleet cars or their own vehicles to and from work morning and night.

These plans can cut down on the numbers of on-site car parking places and reduce the numbers of vehicles on the roads at peak times and can provide innovative solutions to workplace transport issues. A plan entails staff and management working to develop a responsive and coordinated plan for the business. The result is greater choice for the journey to work for employees, better service for clients and visitors to the company, and more effective management of business travel and freight.

reduce the costs of running vehicle fleets improve staff productivity provide community and environmental benefits offer benefits to staff improve your company image With the increased awareness of the health benefits of an active lifestyle, daily exercise through travel options such as walking and cycling to work can also contribute to employee wellbeing.

A WORKPLACE TRAVEL PLAN IS SMART BUSINESS If one of the problems below applies to your workplace, a travel plan could provide the solution: Insufficient car parking Expensive parking Time spent stuck in traffic rather than working Visitors and customers have difficulties finding your site Parking overflows onto neighbourhood streets Environmental issues

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BENEFITS OF A WORKPLACE TRAVEL PLAN By reducing the number of vehicles going to your workplace and increasing accessibility through more travel options, organisations can: save on car parking release land for development needs

ar parking management C Secure cycle facilities Showers and lockers for walkers, joggers and cyclists Communication and promotion (e.g. passenger transport clinics) C arpooling Incentives Fleet bikes and public transport passes for business travel

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PAVEMENT

Engineer has it well covered An ill-fitting manhole cover can be dangerous for cyclists and pedestrians but it can also create a noise nuisance for people nearby and potentially cause damage to motor vehicles.

But thanks to an Opus International Consultants roading engineer, those problems can be overcome.

Neil Gumbley is an experienced roading engineer based in Opus’ Rotorua office, and he has designed a system of bevelled interlocking rings that allow a manhole cover to be adjusted exactly to match the surface profile of the road.

His system also provides stability for the manhole cover and the surrounding concrete haunching under the weight of a vehicle.

He believes the patented design of the ring system will lower the cost of pavement maintenance. It will mean less damage to road surfaces from the vibration of ill-fitting manhole covers and will reduce road noise while providing a smoother ride for motorists.

Mr Gumbley has spent most of his working career in

Neil Gumbley demonstrated his adjustable manhole cover at the recent Ingenium conference.

the construction and maintenance of roads and infrastructure management. Frustrated by the lack of commercially available alternatives, he first experimented with various PVC adjustment ring models and settled on the concept of using a bevelled face rather than the more common parallel face.

The tapered interlocking riser rings are used in pairs so that the manhole cover can be precisely adjusted to match the height and alignment of the road surface.

The bevelled adjustment rings incorporate a dovetail key to resist lateral shear and are designed for use with a cast iron manhole frame with a shear key skirt on the underside. Neil’s unique design concept also incorporates insert set screws in the top ring to make the final height adjustments and set the cast iron

Bitumen price and availability The last 12 months has seen a number of factors impacting on the domestic supply market in New Zealand.

On a ‘macro-level’, prices as measured by product indices strengthened to near ‘pre-crash levels’ in 2008. This strengthening however was also punctuated by high levels of volatility brought about by global economic uncertainty impacting on the New Zealand dollar, as well as market dynamics affecting product availability and pricing. These effects have seen most recent prices soften.

New Zealand’s bitumen market has been reasonably stagnant in size for some years now at around 165,000 metric tonnes. Of this quantity and depending on commercial decisions by domestic suppliers to import product or not, anywhere between 110-140,000 metric tonnes is produced locally at New Zealand’s only refinery at Marsden Point. This is essentially a ‘tolling refinery’ operated by the major fuel suppliers in New Zealand. Only two of these suppliers currently elect to produce bitumen.

Bitumen pricing out of Marsden Point is also unique

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

PAVEMENT

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in that its bitumen price is ‘closely linked’ to fuel oil pricing. Since around 2006 when the markets for both bitumen and fuel oil became quite price-independent, it is very rare to find a refinery prepared to determine its bitumen price by a fuel oil-related formula. Given that the price of imported bitumen is largely based on a market ‘spot price’, there is the potential in New Zealand for quite a disparity in pricing between locally produced and imported bitumen.

Putting price to one side, product availability throughout the peak months of the year has been an issue this year.

With the retirement of the vessel Taiko there is only one coastal tanker Kakariki (with a carrying capacity of around 2500 metric tonnes) servicing all bitumen deliveries from Marsden Point to coastal storage terminals. With many terminals running dry throughout the season, this has no doubt had impact on the delivery of some resealing contracts.

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CONSTRUCT

frame to the correct position while the mortar underneath strengthens.

Neil Gumbley says the current method of manhole construction often leads to ongoing pavement maintenance problems. The construction of manholes for utilities under a road usually involves the location of a cast iron lid and frame at the road surface that is generally held in place by the pavement and surfacing layers of the road.

Following road construction or repaving, the lid level is adjusted to match the road surface by fitting a combination of non-interlocking precast concrete adjustment rings beneath the cast iron frame.

Mortar and wedges are then used to pack the frame to the correct alignment.

“At times the cast-iron frame sinks into the mortar before it has set, resulting in an uneven road surface. In addition, impact loading on the manhole cover can cause the manhole frame to rock and over time break up the surrounding road surface.”

He says the overall result is a poor ride for motorists, noise and vibration complaints and expensive repair costs.

Other features of the Opus manhole cover are that it can be retrofitted to existing manholes, it is easy to assemble on site and of course it can be readily adjusted to match the road surface.

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By MIKE FLOOD-SMITH, GM Delta Corp. A more detailed version of this article is at: www.localgovernmentmag.co.nz

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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WETLANDS

Community initiatives in NZ wetland management

The advancing crack willow around the lake fringes and throughout the wetland has been rapid and has isolated the original lake shore and bed.

The development of community initiatives in conservation in New Zealand has seen the steady rise by communities in the development of restorative programmes for local and regional conservation issues.

In some instances these initiatives have been community responses to the inability of local government and agencies inability to provide operational or resource management responses to pressing environmental issues. Those responses are often around the availability of funding to act appropriately or immediately on local environmental issues. However, in other instances community initiatives are driven by reflection, observation and the realisation that negative changes are impacting on the community’s local environment.

For local government and agencies in New Zealand partnerships in environmental management are becoming an important feature of the conservation psyche within communities.

The Lake Waihola Waipori Wetland Complex covers 2157 hectares and is regarded as the most significant waterfowl habitat in Otago. Situated within the Clutha District and 45 kilometres south of Dunedin, the wetlands comprise two shallow lakes at Waipori and Waihola. Both lakes

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

drain through extensive swamplands into the Waipori and Taieri Rivers and there is a vast array of smaller ponds, and vegetated islands linked by a network of channels. The wetlands are of national significance because they support many native bird species such as the South Island Fernbird (Bowdleria punctata punctata) and endemic fish like the Giant Kokopu (Galaxias argenteus).

Rapid colonial agricultural development and the influx of invasive plants in the Waihola Waipori wetlands is a familiar pattern to the national decline in wetlands where only 10-13 per cent have remained since the onset of agriculture and land development.

The heavy invasion of the wetland channels especially by Crack Willow (Salix fragilis) was choking the functionality out of the catchment, resulting in poor water quality, loss of endemic habitat, flooding and the closure of traditional recreational access within the wetlands.

In 2008 the Waihola Waipori community undertook a series of public meetings to discuss the condition of the lakes and the wetlands. The meetings drew together hunters, fishermen, boaties, farmers, landowners, conservationists, white-baiters, and iwi, together in a collective group to

discuss the future management of the catchment. The community was also able to draw together disparate agency collaboration and funding from the Otago Regional Council, Department of Conservation, Clutha District Council, and Fish and Game to develop an intensive weed control programme for the wetlands. By 2010, as the Lake Waihola Waipori Wetlands Society, it was able to initiate that programme through $280,000 from lotteries, the Biodiversity Advice Fund, Sustainable Farming Fund, and the Biodiversity Condition Fund.

The two-year programme has seen the Society undertake aerial control of 473 hectares of crack willow and other weed control in the wetlands.

That control has been essential to the opening up of the water flow in the wetlands and the long term health of the site. It has also had positive effects on the habitat and breeding opportunities for endemic fish and water fowl in the area.

The success of the programme undertaken by the Lake Waihola Waipori Society has been the community’s ability to ensure co-ordination between the various agencies and local government. By using the strengths of these organisations for a common objective the community has been

WETLANDS

The Lake Waihola Waipori Wetlands are an extensive area of interconnected channels and islands that are nationally significant for many endemic species.

able to achieve a consensus of objective and succeed. It’s also meant that by having the community undertake the liaison with landowners and interest groups, significant good will and trust is generated in the community. Success has also created a level of community confidence, where the community looks to grow other areas of amenity, conservation and

economic development from the project in its region.

Regional and local councils have much to gain in supporting community conservation initiatives in wetland management and other environmental projects in New Zealand. By acting as a collaborator rather than as an administrator within a regulatory framework, local government and agencies can be active participants sharing their

skills with the community. The current high-level tensions in water resource management in New Zealand needs collegiate and inter agency co-operation to be successful and communities are an appropriate conduit to ensure successful management.

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WETLANDS

Hawke’s Bay rivers gain from waste treatment After considering submissions on new wastewater treatment options for Waipukurau and Waipawa, the Central Hawke’s Bay District Council has adopted a sewage treatment process offered by WaterClean Technologies.

The process uses floating wetlands installed on the existing oxidation ponds with the plant roots growing down into the wastewater. The plants take up nutrients while organisms growing on the roots of the plants treat the sewage.

The effluent is then dosed with chemicals and filtered through a sand filter to remove phosphorus, and finally irradiated with ultra violet light to kill pathogens. The final effluent, which is close to drinking-water standard, is discharged into the Tukituki and Waipawa rivers.

The final effluent quality will meet the more stringent

standards of the resource consents for these treatment plants, which have to be met by September 30, 2014.

Terry Wearmouth, chief executive of WaterClean Technologies, says that the relationship with the Central Hawke’s Bay District Council began in 2009.

“The client was extremely happy with the system we’d installed for them in Otane, so when the CHB District Council started looking for a new system to treat waste water in Waipukurau and Waipawa early this year, they approached WaterClean to put together an option.”

“Councils across New Zealand are all too often told that pond technology to treat waste water is no longer an effective option, but the results that WaterClean’s in-pond technology is achieving all over New Zealand speaks for itself.

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WETLANDS

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“This has been the biggest decision this council has had to face in a number of years,” says CHB Mayor Peter Butler.

The construction cost for the sewerage treatment upgrade project to be budgeted in the LTP is $6.2 million, and includes other work required to bring parts of the existing sewerage treatment plants up to the latest standards. The annual operating costs will increase by $108,000 per year.

“Council had budgeted $8.2 million for construction costs and $500,000 per year for increased operating costs in the original draft LTP. These latest figures of $6.2 million for construction and an increased operating cost of $108,000 per year are a big saving for our community,” said Mayor Butler.

The council considered five options that could be built under its existing wastewater consents including worm farm treatment, sequential batch reactors, a modified Bardenpho plant, anaerobic digestion as well as a sixth option of the forest treatment proposed by the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council which would have required a new resource consent.

The cost to council of these options ranged from estimates of $7.7 million to $11 million with increased operating costs between $293,000 and $379,000.

Mayor Butler, said “the investigations and consultation carried out to reach this result have been extremely robust, and the end result, with considerable savings in cost to the ratepayers and the significantly improved quality of the treated effluent going into the rivers, was a great result for the efforts of councillors, staff, and the community as a whole”.

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WETLANDS

Wetland adds nature’s balance to Lake Rotorua’s shoreline Cultural, ecology values in Waikato restoration During construction of additional facilities for Huntly Power Station in the vicinity of Lake Okowhao, just north of Huntly, Genesis Energy made a cultural and ecological commitment to a collaborative habitat restoration project involving Hukanui Aamuri Paa, Waahi Whanui Trust and Waikato-Tainui.

NIWA completed the initial scoping exercise and then Wildland Consultants helped with the preparation of a staged work plan, and is providing ongoing technical advice during its implementation.

The project is centred on an old oxbow of the Waikato River and differs somewhat from other wetland restoration initiatives in that its primary focus is on the restoration of tuna (eel) habitat and fish passage, and the enhancement of opportunities for traditional and customary use of these resources. A secondary objective is to enhance habitat values for other indigenous

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

flora and fauna, and enhance the naturalness of the immediate area.

For some years before physical works commencing in 2010, the oxbow was effectively summer dry, having been in-filled with flooddeposited sediments and the progressive accumulation of organic matter derived from vegetation. Little indigenous vegetation was present, and the area was largely covered in crack willow forest together with a diverse array of other invasive pest plants including yellow flag and reed sweetgrass. Little if any hydrological connectivity existed between the river and the lake during the critical months when elvers (juvenile eels) migrate upstream to the habitats they require if they are to prosper.

The first phase of the project involved control of willow and yellow flag using a combination of aerial and ground-based applied herbicide, followed up with excavation of a watercourse linking the Waikato

River to the Okowhao outlet channel, excavation of parts of the oxbow, and the construction of a large bund around the periphery of the oxbow area. The purpose of the bund is to create greater permanence of water within this area and to minimise the deposition of silt into it from sediment-laden floodwater by deflecting this water away from the project area. Earthworks have largely been completed, as has the initial planting of riparian areas and the bunds using ecosourced native plants that would formerly have occurred within the area. Training programmes in weed control and planting have presented opportunities for local iwi to practise kaitiakitanga in their own rohe, which is another important facet of the programme.

BY ANDY GARRICK, SENIOR ECOLOGIST, WILDLAND CONSULTANTS LTD

WETLANDS

The Hannahs Bay or Otauira wetland is an 8ha wetland situated on the eastern side of Lake Rotorua.

It was formerly part of a much larger wetland complex that extended over an area now occupied by farmland, the Rotorua Airport, residential housing, and the Hannahs Bay Recreation Reserve.

Drainage of surrounding areas over a period of time resulted in the lowering of water tables within the remnant, and the demise of many indigenous wetland species. It also allowed the invasion of a wide variety of exotic pest plants, such as willow, hawthorn, blackberry, gorse, pampas, and Japanese honeysuckle. In 2003, Rotorua District Council obtained funding from the Bay of Plenty Regional Council to restore the wetland and construct a walkway through it.

Additional funding was made available from district council park funds, and the Rotorua Regional Airport. Wildland Consultants was engaged to prepare a restoration plan and implement it.

Water levels were raised by bunding low-lying peripheral areas, blocking off drains, and redirecting water from airport springs into the wetland via a channel which also carried stormwater from the wider catchment to the lake during extreme rainfall

events. Where it exits the wetland, the channel was fitted with a weir calibrated to maintain a minimum water level within the wetland. Physical works were begun in spring 2005 but water was not reintroduced to the wetland until the winter of 2006 when the initial control of pest plants had been completed. Willows and hawthorn were drilled and poisoned, and other weeds controlled using a variety of approaches which included the use of a machine-mounted mulching unit and the targeted application of herbicides. Follow-up weed control has been undertaken each year, and the wetland is now largely free of invasive pest plants, however ongoing vigilance and periodic control will be needed. Community and school planting days were held, and nearly 23,000 plants introduced to the wetland over a three-year period. Walkway and boardwalk systems, with interpretative signage prepared by a local community group and the Mokoia Community Association, have been installed.

Water levels are now substantially higher, the appearance of the area has been dramatically changed, and wetland values have been markedly improved.

BY ANDY GARRICK, SENIOR ECOLOGIST, WILDLAND CONSULTANTS LTD

20th Annual NZCS Conference

Making Waves, 20 Years and Beyond 14-16 November 2012 • Royal NZ Yacht Squadron, 101 Curran St, Westhaven, Auckland

Join us as we look back on the last 20 years of coastal science, planning, management and engineering in New Zealand. We will also discuss the hottest coastal topics of today and consider what the next 20 years may look like for our coastal environment.

Visit www.coastalsociety.org.nz to learn more or contact the Conference Committee Chair Hugh Leersnyder at hugh.leersnyder@beca.com

NEW ZEALAND COASTAL SOCIETY Te Hunga Takutai o Aotearoa

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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Attacking wetland weeds Te Henga wetland is located north-west of Auckland between the Waitakere Ranges and Bethell’s (Te Henga) Beach. At 153 hectares, it is the largest freshwater wetland in the region, and supports a unique ecosystem of plants and animals, including rare species Australasian bittern, North Island fernbird, spotless crake, longfin eel and inanga.

As is the case with many wetlands, exotic weeds are a problem and pose a risk to the ecological values of the site. Crack willow (Salix fragilis) is a widespread weed, with over 50,000 trees estimated to be present. The trees have been identified as one of the top priorities for eradication, along with alligator weed (Alternanthera philoxeroides) and grey willow (S. cinerea). Weed control in the wetland is jointly funded by the Auckland Council and Department of Conservation.

Krist y Hall, Senior Ecologist from Boffa Miskell on the edge of the spray trial area .

In February 2009, herbicide was applied via helicopter to a trial area of approximately 1.5 hectares of privately owned land in the upper reaches of the wetland. The purpose of the trial was to assess any impacts of the spray on native vegetation within and surrounding the wetland, in preparation for a possible more widespread willow eradication programme. The herbicide used was AGPRO Green Glyphosate (GG360), approved for use over water.

Since the trial, an annual monitoring programme has been undertaken to assess changes to the wetland following willow removal, and to compare this with areas of the wetland where willow control is yet to be undertaken. Boffa Miskell is working with the Auckland Council Biosecurity team to monitor vegetation, fish, aquatic invertebrates and water quality.

Results of the monitoring show that the trial has achieved 100% mortality of crack willow trees within the trial area. Three years later, some small shoots of crack willow are appearing, identified as tiny twigs that were submerged under water when the herbicide application occurred. These can now be targeted by ground contractors, with significantly less labour time required. Native vegetation in the canopy and sub-canopy beneath the willows was initially impacted, but has now recovered and has increased to a level where it is significantly higher than in areas where willow eradication is yet to be conducted (refer Figure 5 and Figure 6). Monitoring of fish in the wetland has found inanga, longfin eel, shortfin eel, common bully and exotic gambusia. A range of aquatic macro-invertebrates are present in the trial area, including sensitive taxa. Some declines in water quality are evident at sites where willows have not been sprayed, although this is likely to be related to catchment scale influences rather than solely due to the presence of willows.

The Auckland Council is complementing the trial eradication by working with the local community to educate landowners of the importance of fencing wetlands, methods to control weeds, and gaining community support for the project. Further eradication of willows (using the drill and inject method) has already commenced, targeting willows in other parts of the catchment.

BY KRISTY HALL, SENIOR ECOLOGIST, BOFFA MISKELL

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

PHOTO: NEIL HEND ERSO N

WETLANDS

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STORMWATER

Judges Bay finally reaches its true potential The Judges Bay inlet upgrade was completed in the summer of 2011-12 and has already become a very popular swimming and relaxation destination for the people of Auckland.

Aucklanders and visitors alike were flocking to try out the new pontoons in the bay and enjoy the new facilities before the winter set in — a remarkable turnaround for a bay which was often closed due to water-quality issues.

The award-winning park upgrade was implemented

by Auckland Council, Parks and Recreation Department. A design consortium was established, led by Reset Urban Design, with the aim of preserving and celebrating the rich cultural heritage of the bay and parkland. The detailed brief was to create an all tides swimming destination with a modern andfriendly community spaces and ongoing ecological integrity.

R

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

STORMWATER

Raingarden

Water Quality was a key driving factor in ensuring the project would succeed in these aims. Stormwater Solutions Consulting Limited joined the design team to provide the low-impact stormwater expertise for Stage 2 of the project.

The team took an holistic approach to incorporate the stormwater management system into the overall landscaping design. Raingardens and swales were used to enhance the streetscape and mimic the natural environment, as well as adding amenity values for the local community. These surface and at-source treatment devices also played a part in reinstating the idea of the historic stream which had, until recently, been piped. A proprietary filter (StormFilter) was installed in the lower catchment to ensure all stormwater flows are treated before discharge into the bay.

The planting choices for the raingarden and swales were taken from the local fauna palette to ensure that the ecological environment was enhanced. This was also translated within the filter media for the raingarden and swales, which was sourced locally. The plant selection for the treatment devices such as native nikau palms, carex and flax species from the local fauna palette will ensure that the plants will endure the same climatic patterns that they are genetically prepared for.

The reduction in waste and replacement of the plants was considered at the outset of the project.

Seamless communication between all design partners was a feature of the project. Bronwyn Rhynd of Stormwater Solutions based the design around low-impact principles to provide treatment of the stormwater before discharge into the bay in an attractive and functional way. The innovative approach was implemented throughout the stormwater management design to ensure the best outcome was achieved. A collaborative team approach from client to consultant stretched the capability of improving the water quality as much and as consistently as possible.

The upgrade of the stormwater system to incorporate low impact design and sustainability values for treatment reduced the environmental risk of degradation of the quality of the water within the bay.

The adjacent road runoff was a concern to the community as this was degrading the water quality within the bay. The focus on improvement of this was foremost in the designer’s mind in choosing the devices for treatment.

The teamwork employed on the implementation and design of Judges Bay is evident in the resulting ‘inner city jewel’. The combination of design of the amenities, the informative signage, the water quality and the look and function has given Auckland a superb inner-city destination.

Image height = 9.2 cm

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REBUILDING CHRISTCHURCH

Quakes force

rethink

on building design processes Following the Christchurch quakes and in the months and even years following the Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission hearings, peer reviews of structural designs by fellow engineering firms will become increasingly common.

As the Christchurch rebuild gets under way and designers come to terms with a ruined city that needs a fresh approach to building planning, building techniques and earthquake safety standards, there will be significant changes in procedures from past decades.

Already, peer reviews of existing buildings, which have been retro-fitted and strengthened, are far more frequent than pre-earthquake.

Steve Hogg, a technical director at Aurecon in Christchurch, says the engineering company is already undertaking far more such reviews — including DMC House in central Christchurch, to which Aurecon’s engineers and designers have just relocated.

Fifty-one staff from the company’s buildings team have moved into the 2 800m second storey of the four-level building in Colombo St south, with the remaining 90 Aurecon staff still based in Casebook. The company was previously housed together on the corner of Colombo St and Gloucester St, overlooking Cathedral Square.

“Basically a peer review means that a

Team spirit amid the rubble The recent release of the Christchurch Blueprint defined an important new direction for the city and provided a clear plan of how rebuild works will be undertaken.

Amidst the overwhelming amount of work to be done, it is easy to forget about the large numbers of people working quietly to rebuild the city.

McConnell Dowell (MacDow) has been working in Christchurch since the September 2010 earthquake, with a significant increase in work scope following the February 2011 quake. The team is part of the alliance of five main contractors rebuilding the city, alongside Fletcher, Fulton Hogan, Citycare and Downer. The scope of works for the rebuild is still being defined, however works are expected to be in excess of $100 million per year.

MacDow is currently performing significant network drainage and roading works, remediation of the Lyttleton retaining walls, as well as assisting with emergency works following the February 2011 earthquake.

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

The team is a diverse blend of Christchurch locals, Kiwis, Irish and other expats, many of whom have relocated to Christchurch specifically for the rebuild. Working together in an unfamiliar city, as well as the unease created by continued aftershocks, means there is a strong family culture within the team, something project manager Greg Wichman considers critical. Lack of both short and long-term accommodation remains an ongoing issue, and many project staff have lived together at some point, meaning strong bonds are formed.

For Christchurch locals, joining the MacDow team provides an opportunity to be involved in the rebuild of their city. Superintendent Richie Evans is Christchurch-born but spent most his working life as a self-employed contractor in Auckland, deciding to return to his hometown following the February 11 earthquake.

Becks Billingham-Southen, a Christchurch local, joined the team 10 months ago as she felt it was “important for local people to get

involved in the rebuild if possible.”

Vicki O’Donnell works for the team on a ‘fly in-fly out’ basis, enjoying the benefits of both Auckland and Christchurch lifestyles. She joined MacDow just days before the February 22 earthquake, a factor in her decision to keep her family and main property in Auckland. She describes the MacDow team as having an expat-type culture; shared experiences forming strong bonds between staff. She felt that the earthquakes had instilled a greater level of empathy and openness in people.

The team have never quite adapted to the ongoing earthquakes but have found a novel way to manage them: “We had a game where you’d guess the magnitude. The quake would happen and someone would go up to the whiteboard and we’d all shout out what we thought the magnitude was. Then we’d check on the web, and the winner – whoever was closest – would have to buy the coffees.” continued on page 34

REBUILDING CHRISTCHURCH

second set of eyes is looking over the building or design just to see if anything has been missed.”

Hogg said that while the peer review of DMC House was straightforward, with Aurecon giving the building the thumbs up, new and more complex designs would be a different matter.

“Peer reviews are going to play a key role in new design technologies, or what we call displacement based design. The rebuild will see all sorts of new construction methods for which there currently aren’t any formally documented New Zealand design codes, only design handbooks supported by New Zealand and international research.”

For instance, Hogg said there was currently no formal code written for what is known as PRESSS technology – pre-stressed seismic structural systems – which would be widely used.

“Most engineers have heard of this technology but because it is so new to the New Zealand market, many have not had the opportunity yet to design and detail new buildings with this type of technology.”

Hogg said that most new buildings would implement new technologies, with only a small proportion opting for pre-earthquake design philosophy.

“Don’t they say that one definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result? That applies to buildings too. You can’t use the old technology and expect that it’s going to perform any better than previously in the event of another earthquake like the ones we’ve had.

“All engineers need to be current with new technologies but there is quite a gap because not all have had the opportunity to undertake the design of a new building using low damage design technology.”

Hogg said that only a handful of engineering firms in New Zealand had such experience, including Aurecon which engineered the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology using a rocking wall system, and the 11 storey Te Puni student accommodation building in Wellington.

Simon Taylor, who has managed Aurecon’s partial shift back into town,

said his team was excited to return to the city.

“This is where all the action will be and where our work will be centred.

It’s close to where our clients are going to build and we feel that being back in town, we are part of the action.”

For further information: Steve Hogg, technical director, 03 366 0821, 027 240 8212, Stephen.Hogg@aurecongroup.com Simon Taylor, 021 897 950, simon. taylor@aurecongroup.com,

BY GRAHAM HAWKES

WHATEVER WAY YOU LOOK AT IT ENGINEERING IS ABOUT PEOPLE. People are at the centre of everything we do and nowhere is this more evident than in Christchurch.

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REBUILDING CHRISTCHURCH

Digging deep to repair Canterbury’s foundations

Liquefaction and settlement around the foundations of a Canterbury house.

During the recent large earthquakes in Christchurch, liquefaction caused significant damage to tens of thousands of residential houses on the Canterbury Plains.

As the city rebuilds on land at risk of liquefaction damage from future earthquakes, there is a need to develop simple, cost-effective engineering measures which will increase the resilience of new houses to limit financial losses and disruption.

A number of challenges have been tackled in the first stages of the residential rebuild. One of the largest mapping exercises and land-damage assessments has been undertaken and reported on by Engineering Consultants Tonkin & Taylor Ltd on behalf of the Earthquake Commission. The recently released land report as at February 29 provides detailed

information about the nature and extent of land damage in Canterbury following the September 2010, February 2011 and June 2011 earthquakes.

Along with these extensive mapping assessments, large amounts of geotechnical data on the subsurface ground conditions have been collected over the past 12-18 months. More recently, full-scale testing of ground improvement options for residential foundation solutions and property repair have been trialled, with the purpose of developing recommended foundation solutions for reconstruction and repair of damaged houses in Canterbury.

To help with rebuilding, the EQC commissioned Tonkin & Taylor to carry out broad-scale, suburb-wide geotechnical ground investigations for residential areas where the land

Survey taps into pessimism Building construction workload optimism for the Christchurch rebuild has dropped from an average of 85 per cent during 2011 to 63 per cent, according to the May 2012 building construction sentiment survey by Davis Langdon, an AECOM company.

The survey is based on the views of 600 building construction industry decision-makers including consultants, contractors, financiers, agents, developers and others from across the public and private sectors.

Davis Langdon’s New Zealand regional director, Chris Sutherland, says the outlook in Christchurch remains consistent with the trend observed over the last year.

“Frustration with the protracted Christchurch Central City Blueprint process is adding to the uncertainty for investors.”

“One respondent described the

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

impasse between commercial developers and prospective tenants as a ‘stalemate’ caused by the inability to commit to new projects while the Christchurch CBD remained ‘little more than a construction site’.”

Mr Sutherland says while current conditions are still fairly poor, there is evidence of a positive upswing in the industry’s outlook for the coming year.

“Eighty-five per cent of New Zealand construction industry decision makers anticipate stable or increasing workloads over the next 12 months, up from 80 per cent in December.”

“Optimism is strongest in Auckland where 36 per cent now expect more work over the coming year, up from 28 per cent in the previous quarter.”

He says existing building refurbishments were selected by 76 per cent of decision makers as a key

source of new work.

“Refurbishment work has been spurred on by the need to enhance buildings without having to seek finance for an entirely new building.

There is also the need to act on seismic assessments of existing building stock across the country.”

Tightening profit margins continue to plague the industry’s ability to deliver projects, says Mr Sutherland.

“Many respondents indicated that continually low margins were ‘putting some companies in financial difficulty’, or worse, causing them to fail. This is adding to the industry’s shortage of expertise and could 'destroy the industry resource base'."

Concerns about accessibility to finance remain steady, although some respondents identified encouraging signs of investor confidence thawing in the private sector development market.

REBUILDING CHRISTCHURCH

was most affected by the earthquakes. These initial investigations and reports covered 50 Canterbury suburbs and the information obtained from the investigations will provide a source of geotechnical data to support advice for EQC and for future council consent applications for the suburb.

The reports collate geotechnical investigation data from boreholes, soil tests and geophysical testing in each suburb. A total of 1344 cone penetration tests and 162 boreholes were completed to determine ground strength and soil profiles throughout the suburbs.

Geophysical testing of 12 kilometres in length was undertaken in 11 suburbs to calculate the subsurface ground profile and a total of 666 standpipe piezometers (instruments that measure the ground-water level) were installed for groundwater contouring and ongoing ground water monitoring.

The area-wide data that has been collected with EQC, other agencies such as territorial local authorities,

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA) and engineering and construction professionals to facilitate rebuilding in Canterbury has also been made available to technical professionals through the Canterbury Geotechnical Database website: https:// CanterburyGeotechnical Database.

ProjectOrbit.com/. Interpretation of the data and information can be completed by geotechnical specialists to produce reports that can be submitted with building consent applications to the local authority.

More specific detailed investigations are now currently underway in areas classified by CERA and the Department of Building and Housing (DBH) as Technical Category 3 (TC3). TC3 land is categorised by DBH as moderate to significant land damage from liquefaction is possible in future large earthquakes.

The detailed investigations are being undertaken by T&T on behalf of EQC and private insurers. It is estimated approximately 10,000

residential properties within TC3 require special foundation work for either repairs or rebuilding, and require drilling work to obtain a building consent. The more specific investigations are being undertaken in 38 suburbs, at more than 22,500 location points comprising of 2250 boreholes, 20,250 cone penetration tests using up to 14 testing drilling rigs across the city. This is a huge project for the Canterbury region where the staged work programme started in March 2012 and has an expected completion date of within three years.

In conjunction with the vast amount of subsurface ground information being collected T&T has also been commissioned by DBH and EQC to investigate a number of ground remediation options being trialled for the purpose of residential property repair in the Canterbury region. The trail involved a series of full scale tests undertaken at the liquefaction damaged Queen Elizabeth II Athletics Stadium New continued on page 34

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

33

REBUILDING CHRISTCHURCH

continued from page 33 Brighton, Christchurch using four possible ground improvement options.

The foundation systems that were tested included densification of a crust layer, cement stabilisation of a crust layer, construction of a grid of deep soil mix columns, and a perimeter wall of contiguous piles. These ground improvement options were tested using a sequence of explosive charges that were detonated to generate earthquake shaking motion that was representative of up to a magnitude of 7-7.5 event.

The tests have provided useful information for the development of foundations solutions for some of the TC3 areas of Christchurch that have been identified as being a relatively high risk of moderate to severe liquefaction damage in future earthquakes. The results determined that the construction of a stabilised or densified crust was a cost effective method to provide a founding layer for

continued from page 30 residential structures that is expected to provide adequate performance under design level seismic shaking. Following these trails and the successful results, DBH issued a document titled “Interim Guidelines for Repairing and Rebuilding Foundations in TC3” in April 2012.

All this work and the documents produced by T&T, EQC and DBH along with the enormous amount of geotechnical testing completed, with more underway, will assist with the level of detail required for innovative building foundation designs and the local authority consents needed to get Canterbury rebuilding from the ground up.

Note: The Land Report and the technical data reports (Factual Reports) prepared by T&T for EQC on the Plains (flat land) are available in the reports section of the T&T website: www.tonkin.co.nz/ canterbury-land-information/.

With much of the rebuild works centred in residential areas, stakeholder management has been a key focus of the MacDow team.

Network drainage and roading works can see whole streets closed for months at a time, severely restricting property access and meaning constant disruption for residents. The MacDow team visit every affected property and work hard to minimise disruption on residents. The team receive continued positive feedback for going beyond the call of duty – moving cars, assisting with carrying shopping, elderly residents across the road.

The earthquakes have created significant challenge for those living and working in Christchurch, however they have also presented an unprecedented opportunity for the city to start afresh. Or as Becks put it “as well as being kind of a depressing place, Christchurch is also a really exciting place to be”.

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

NZLG FOCUS

Councils should strategise on sport and recreation New Zealanders love their recreation and sport.

Sport NZ’s research study ‘The Economic and Social Value of Sport and Recreation to New Zealand’ published in October last year, set out to quantify just how much we love it. Nationally, 92 per cent of young people and 83 per cent of adults participate in at least one physical activity each year. Sport and recreation contributes $5.2 billion (2008/09) to the economy and is undoubtedly big business. However, this sector is not all about money. NZRA, the lead non-profit organisation advocating and promoting recreation in New Zealand is using the study to demonstrate how the benefits of sport and recreation help create a more integrated community.

International research concludes that sport and recreation contribute to communities by developing leadership and life skills, encouraging social inclusion, integrating diverse communities and building stronger families. How can local government reap the massive benefits of sport and recreation for community health and the local economy? NZRA and Sport NZ proposed an action plan for the sector when they presented this research at the recent LGNZ conference. NZRA believes there is still so much potential and growth in the sector — and help is out there. NZRA and Sport NZ are committed to offering support. NZRA has a benchmarking programme, Yardstick, to measure management practices and visitor satisfaction, as well as a vast knowledge-sharing network.

PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTHS M ake the most of local resources and features.

M aximise return for your community: Create an attractive place to live and work.

C onsider the appeal for visitors.

MANAGE EFFICIENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY M aximise performance: Use artificial turf to increase use where soil and weather disrupt activities.

BE INNOVATIVE E xplore partnerships with neighbouring councils.

BE STRATEGIC nderstand supply and demand of facilities at U regional and national levels to decide when, and if, facilities are needed.

Consider the potential of facilities as a catalyst for increased participation: Tauranga Council used regional and national hockey facility strategies to inform a recent investment decision.

$5.2 billion sport and recreation’s annual contribution to the economy 50,000 approximate number of FTEs in the sector $728 million value of volunteer services each year 15,000 number of sport and recreation clubs in NZ

Further information: http://nzrecreation.org.nz.

National Conference ‘Embracing Diversity’

RECOGNISE SPORT AND RECREATION AS AN INDUSTRY uantify value and set targets: Auckland Q Council calculated the current value of sport and recreation to the economy as $1.6 billion. It set a long-term plan target to double sport and recreation’s contribution to the economy to $3.2 billion.

Advocate for sport and recreation: The Bay of Plenty’s economic strategy, The Bay of Connections, includes sport and recreation as a key focus area.

SPORT AND RECREATION’S IMPACTS ON THE ECONOMY

Auckland 21-23 November 2012 

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Expand your opportunities Build effective partnerships Meet the diverse needs of your communities

Register online at: www.nzraevents.org.nz

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

35

NZLG FOCUS

Contract aggregation – is it favoured or not?

BY JEREMY SOLE, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, NZ CONTRACTORS FEDERATION

At the time of writing, the Ministerial Task Force on Road Maintenance Funding will have almost completed its work and, by the time you read this, the NZTA Maintenance and Operations discussion document should have launched its stakeholder consultation.

And so, while at this point I don’t know what the NZTA M&O review document contains, we have been advised that it aligns with many of the task force’s findings although the core principles in the NZTA review include a dramatic decrease in the number of State Highway maintenance contracts. It appears this reduction is to be achieved through aggressive escalation in levels of aggregation, coupled with extended contract terms.

Anyone who has been involved in contracting over the past decade will be aware of the ongoing debate about where to draw the line in terms of appropriate levels of contract aggregation — not to mention the opinions and often lack of information, around this — from all directions.

NZCF started as the national representative body of civil, general and roading contractors in 1944

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NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

To some readers the interim task force report appears to suggest there is an appetite for greater levels of contract aggregation. However the discussions and the submissions tell a different story.

While 10 per cent of written submitters were in favour of increased levels of contract aggregation, 33 per cent were strongly against this and another 27 per cent expressed significant unease.

Interestingly, the vast majority of these comments were made by elected councillors and senior council infrastructure staff, many of whom will have previously done their due diligence in this area.

The most significant reasons for concern are loss of the local contracting industry, loss of competition, loss of innovation, and issues around lack of competition expected at the end of contract terms. Summary data pulled from flipcharts from group discussions on the task force roadshows showed a similar pattern with 13 per cent support for further aggregation, 32 per cent definitely not in favour, and 33 per cent where concerns appeared to have matched or outweighed the positive aspects of increased levels of aggregation. Clearly there are serious concerns about the sustainability of current and increased levels of aggregation and as we move into a period of negotiation that may shape the industry for decades, we look forward to working with clients so that everyone’s interests are catered for in the medium to long term.

Despite common misconceptions on the issue, the New Zealand Contractors’ Federation does not have a philosophical objection to contract aggregation. Our philosophy is that procurement models should firstly be determined by the scale, complexity and risk present in the work to be carried out. For the sake of a healthy industry, it is critical that clients recognise the need to have opportunities and a growth pathway for contracting businesses in their area that are willing and able to grow. This philosophy does not discriminate against any procurement model, but advocates for balance and allows for local environments and local issues and geographical contexts to play a part in selecting and structuring contract models.

An issue that I have been encountering in many discussion forums is that clients often draw distinctions between large and smaller contracting firms in the context of quality and safety. Many seem to assume that large firms are committed to excellence in these areas but small firms are not. In reality this could not be further from the truth.

Many SME contracting firms have made significant investments to build highly competent and skilled businesses and the ‘quality’ discussion needs to be shifted from being a ‘big versus small’ discussion to ‘professional and skilled versus the rest’.

NZLG FOCUS

Many benefits flow from $25 million water project

Artist’s impression of new water treatment plant

BY KUTEIBA HUSSEIN, WATER PROCESS ENGINEER, AWT WATER LTD

During the late 1990s Taupo District Council (TDC) identified the requirement to improve and expand the Taupo urban water treatment plants and make improvements to the reticulation network. With the implementation of the DWSNZ in 2000, council initiated investigations to develop a strategy for implementing the necessary expansion and system improvements.

In 2008, a combined AWT Water and TDC team set out to investigate upgrades to the Taupo water supply.

An engineering planning and treatment process optioneering study was carried out to identify an affordable yet robust strategy for Taupo’s future water supply. This work led to the development of a comprehensive and integrated strategy for the future development of the water take, treatment plant upgrade and associated network improvements to meet the current and foreseeable future water supply needs of the Taupo community.

TDC set clear objectives from the outset of the project that provided direction for the initial engineering planning investigations. These were to: upgrade the WTP(s) to comply with the DWSNZ 2005 (Revised 2008); provide more consistent water supply pressures in the reticulation; convert reticulation from direct pumped pressurized systems to more efficient gravity systems; allow provision to connect adjacent satellite communities in the future; build sufficient flexibility into the system to accommodate increases in demand; reduce maintenance activities for

the network operations teams; meet the above objectives at the lowest cost.

Based on the above objectives twelve locations were initially identified for a new WTP (or combination of WTPs). Three treatment processes were short listed to provide compliance with the DWSNZ requirements to treat for protozoa, pathogenic bacteria, arsenic, and algal biotoxins. The options considered were: dissolved air floatation filtration (DAFF); membrane filtration, and ion exchange plus UV. An evaluation of the various sites and treatment options was undertaken considering such factors as required consents and approvals, site footprint vs. plant footprint, required reticulation upgrades, risks and total project cost.

The outcome of the investigation identified a single microfiltration membrane plant at the site of the existing Lake Terrace WTP as the preferred option. The total cost of the project, including reticulation upgrades, is $25.4 million, being $5 million less than previous estimates.

By taking a holistic view of Taupo’s overall water supply scheme, and thoroughly undertaking an engineering planning phase, allowed for council’s projects and priorities to be efficiently rationalised and coordinated. The approach clearly identified the needs of council and ensured that the selected strategy addressed those needs in the most cost efficient manner. The following benefits were realised: investigations into the water demands of Taupo considering demand management techniques allowed the future

demand estimate to be reduced from 47 MLD to 35MLD, significantly reducing the required land area, footprint and capital cost of the water treatment plant; improving the network to allow for a gravity fed system provided the necessary contact time in dedicated rising mains for bacteriological compliance, negating the need for a dedicated contact tank thereby reducing cost and footprint at the WTP site; improving the network to allow for a gravity fed system also provided more consistent network pressures and eliminated surge pressures on the older parts of the network thereby reducing the frequency of pipe breakages; necessary network modifications were modeled taking into consideration potential upgrade alignments along the routes of existing ageing water supply pipes that were due for renewal; upgrading of older pipes due for renewal as opposed to installing new pipes allowed for rationalisation of renewal and capacity expansion budgets to reduce the overall costs to council; the project would be staged in a manner that would not only ensure compliance with DWSNZ and the Drinking Water (Health Amendment) Act, but would reduce the total capital expenditure upfront to TDC, and defer costs associated with capacity expansion over time.

The new Taupo WTP is currently in the construction phase and is due to be completed by July 2013.

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

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What do you know about tax penalties and councils?

BY VIVIENNE DENBY, ASSISTANT TAX MANAGER, TAXTEAM

If your council fails to meet its tax obligations, it is exposed to civil penalties, criminal penalties, or both.

The penalties could range from a few dollars to imprisonment of the chief executive! Determining the level of the penalties is a subjective assessment by Inland Revenue and for most civil penalties (the most common imposed) the onus of proof is on the taxpayer. For criminal penalties and certain civil penalties, the onus of proof rests with Inland Revenue.

Therefore, a good understanding of how the tax penalty regime works, and the remission/reduction mechanisms available is a ‘musthave’ and an important element of a taxpayer’s tax-risk management strategy.

With this in mind, we set out below a brief overview of the main elements of the tax penalty regime that are relevant to a local authority’s tax compliance, and measures that should be followed in defending any potential penalty imposition.

The most common kinds of civil

penalty are for late filing, late payment and tax shortfalls.

Inland Revenue charges a latefiling penalty if a tax return is not filed by its due date. This penalty applies to income tax returns, employer monthly schedules and GST returns. For income tax returns, an extension of time can be applied and Inland Revenue may grant this under certain circumstances without imposing the penalty. For the other returns, the penalty is imposed automatically.

A late-payment penalty is imposed if taxes are not paid by their due dates. This penalty consists of initial penalties for paying tax late, and monthly, incremental penalties on any amounts that remain unpaid (outstanding tax plus the initial penalties imposed).

Inland Revenue may not charge this penalty if it is the taxpayer’s first late payment for any tax type in a two-year period (referred to as a grace period) and the taxpayer then pays by a new due-date set by Inland Revenue.

A shortfall penalty arises when tax is underpaid. The penalty is imposed as a percentage of the tax shortfall, at various levels depending on the level of taxpayer culpability involved.

There are five categories of fault or breach, being lack of reasonable care (20 per cent), unacceptable tax position (20 per cent), gross carelessness (40 per cent), adopting an abusive tax position (100 per cent) and evasion (150 per cent).

We’re right there with you for practical solutions to local authority taxation issues

38

Richard Toovey, Tax Director T 04 494 2394

Michelle Macdonald, Tax Director T 04 494 2393

Jeff Eaton, Tax Director T 04 494 2391

Phil Fisher, Tax Director T 04 494 2396

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

Level 6 44 Victoria Street PO Box 44 Wellington T +64 4 494 2390 F +64 4 494 2399 www.taxteam.co.nz

NZLG FOCUS

The good news is that shortfall penalties may be remitted in certain circumstances, including the following: if the taxpayer makes a voluntary disclosure; before receiving notification of a pending tax audit, a reduction of 75 per cent (for ‘gross carelessness’ and ‘abusive tax position’) or 100 per cent (for ‘not taking reasonable care’ and ‘unacceptable tax position’); and after receiving notification of a tax audit, but before the tax audit actually begins, a reduction of 40 per cent; if the tax shortfall is temporary and has been permanently reversed or corrected, a reduction of 75 per cent; for ‘good behaviour’ in relation to the same tax type within the previous four years (or two years for PAYE, FBT, GST and RWT) a reduction of 50 per cent.

The most common breach is for ‘not taking reasonable care’. To demonstrate that reasonable care has been taken, your council needs to ensure that it maintains adequate record-keeping systems, applies appropriate policies and procedures, and has sufficient internal controls in place. However, we know that, despite best efforts, mistakes do happen.

A taxpayer is also expected to take reasonable care in interpreting tax law. Where uncertainty arises, professional tax advice should be sought. In this regard, however, it should be noted that simply using a tax agent does not automatically satisfy the obligation to take reasonable care, especially if the taxpayer provided inadequate information when seeking advice, failed to give reasonable instructions to their tax agent, relied unreasonably on the tax agent or advice believed to be

incorrect, or has had a similar tax shortfall previously. Therefore, your council is still responsible for maintaining proper tax records and providing all the relevant facts to its tax agent.

Criminal penalties that may apply to local authorities are for knowingly issuing two tax invoices for the same taxable supply, not deducting or withholding tax when required to do so, or not accounting to Inland Revenue for tax deducted or withheld – each of which could attract penalties of $25,000 for a first offence and $50,000 for a later offence.

CONCLUSION The start of a new financial year is an ideal time for local authorities to revisit their tax risk management strategies. Good tax procedures should ensure that unwelcome and unbudgeted tax penalties do not arise.

Procurement solutions: cutting time and cost Last month’s LG magazine highlighted concerns about the efficiency of procurement processes outlined in Caroline Boot’s award-winning paper ‘Value for Money Starts with Clever Buying’.

In a second part of that discussion, we outline some recommendations from the paper that have generated time and cost savings, as well as better tools for identifying the best value tenderers.

Research indicates there is significant variation in the way tenders are evaluated.

Inappropriate or confusing questions and time wasted in responding and evaluating irrelevant material all compromise the effectiveness of some public sector tendering processes. In addition, concerns about subjectivity and probity can undermine confidence in public sector procurement.

In contrast, assessment in education is relatively sophisticated;

and tender evaluation can borrow many useful techniques from this sector.

Academic assessments must be fair, transparent, objective, and cost-efficient. Best practice is well-defined and thoroughly trained; and (unlike RFTs) test papers are rigorously reviewed.

Objective anchored scales are routinely used to eliminate subjective judgment of capability.

These can be adapted for tender evaluation. Well-designed questionnaires reduce or eliminate illogical or contradictory instructions; and can significantly reduce the time needed to evaluate tenders.

The paper concludes that the solutions to the issues affecting tender evaluation are simple, inexpensive, and easily implemented. They focus on more robust and consistent review processes, together with practical, specific training in best-practice procurement methods.

Although the NZTA procurement processes are well-defined, until now there has never been a specific and targeted comprehensive course to teach this best-practice model.

Results from councils using best-practice procurement methods have brought substantial savings in time and costs for tender decisions. They also unquestionably deliver better tools for distinguishing best value for money in council procurement.

The recent launch of Infratrain’s new National Certificate in Procurement Procedures is accompanied by a comprehensive training course ‘Clever Buying’, which covers the requirements of the qualification; the NZTA’s processes; and application of best-practice procurement tools and techniques. This will be offered through a variety of professional channels.

Further information, Ross Leslie, Infratrain, or Caroline Boot at Plan A.

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Readying for

the rollout The Industry Training Organisation, InfraTrain, has been working with employers on a range of initiatives to help meet the skills requirements for the ultra-fast broadband (UFB) rollout.

The move comes in response to concerns that the industry is already struggling to find sufficiently skilled staff, with the problem set to worsen as the rollout gains momentum.

IS BROADBAND YOUR BUSINESS? InfraTrain has a range of qualifications for contractors involved in broadband, covering: Horizontal Directional Drilling 9 Excavation & Reinstatement 9 Infrastructure Works – introductory, supervisory and 9 management level

9 Civil Plant Operation Give your staff the skills they need to do the job right first time.

Talk to us about how we can help you.

0800 486 626 askus@infratrain.co.nz www.infratrain.co.nz 40

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012 LG Magazine 85 x 130mm

Broadband is big business. Chorus alone will spend as much as $965 million over the next two years in the rollout of its networks, while the biggest growth looks set to take place over the next 6-9 months. Anecdotal feedback from InfraTrain customers shows that they are looking to recruit around 500 additional, skilled, horizontal directional drilling (HDD) operators for the UFB project alone in the next 12 months.

“InfraTrain is already seeing cases of contractors having difficulty in recruiting suitable staff and we are working to address this through a range of flexible training options,” says InfraTrain chief executive Philip Aldridge. “These include pre-employment courses aimed at attracting new entrants to the industry, and specialist technical training and qualifications for those already working in the sector.”

Initiatives currently underway include working with the Ministry of Social Development, Hamilton-based companies and local iwi to develop a two-week HDD pre-employment programme in Hamilton. Training will cover key foundation skills, with the aim of leading to full-time employment on successful completion. A fully delivered short course for HDD, which will be available nationwide, is currently under development. The course will help to meet immediate skills requirements, but will also address long-term needs by leading to current national qualifications for staff at skilled operator and supervisory level. These qualifications incorporate key skills including locating and identifying services, strike avoidance, health and safety, traffic management, manual excavation and compaction.

InfraTrain also offers a range of qualifications covering technical skills for people working on the UFB rollout. These include: infrastructure works — introduction programme including basic civil skills, traffic management, health and safety, location of services etc; excavation and reinstatement — including location of services, skills linked to the safe excavation and reinstatement of civil works sites, strike avoidance; civil plant operation — operation of a range of plant and equipment; horizontal directional drilling — skills for operation of plant, driller/tracker/site supervisor specific skills; infrastructure works supervision — supervisory level skills for those leading others on site.

Philip Aldridge says: “InfraTrain is well-placed to work with employers to tailor training programmes to meet their needs. In the past, economic uncertainty and short project-durations were barriers to investing in staff training for employers. However, as the majority of Broadband contracts are for multiple years, a longer-term approach to training can be taken — leading to significant benefits for companies and their staff.”

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Insurers pay earthquake billions The insurance industry has paid nearly five billion dollars into the Canterbury economy so far and is well on the way to clearing more than half of the commercial claims.

However where the EQC is involved the ability of the insurance industry to settle claims has been reduced because of apportionment and lack of land settlement information.

Just 21 per cent of claims in the residential area have been cleared.

Insurance industry chief executive have been meeting weekly with CERA, the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority, the EQC (Earthquake Commission New Zealand) and government departments including the Earthquake Recovery Minister’s own officials since March to speed up the recovery and obtain the information needed to settle claims.

Insurers are paying out and completing insurance claims for commercial customers at more than twice the rate of residential claims, due to lack of flood and land data and EQC issues.

Nearly half of all commercial insurance claims for Christchurch have been paid out to customers and settled, according to the Insurance Council. However difficulty obtaining land data and EQC decisions has seen slower residential payments where just over 20 per cent have been paid.

EQC is the only insurer in the world that insures land and this issue is enormously difficult for them. In addition EQC is still working through the issue of apportionment and that also makes their decision making more complex and harder to resolve.

EQC is facing an enormous and unprecedented task under huge pressure from the public, government and insurers and re-insurers to get things right.

This is affecting the insurance industry in the residential zone and slowing their ability to respond.

Together, the Christchurch residential and commercial insurance claims for earthquake damage now paid out total more than $NZ4.4 billion.

To the end of June this year, 110,053 residential insurance claims totalling $NZ1,339,768,000 and representing 21 per cent of all residential claims have been settled by private insurers, the Insurance Council says.

For the same end-of-June period, private insurers had paid out $NZ3,135,360,000 for commercial property claims as a result of the September 2010 and February 2011 earthquakes. This represents about 45 per cent of all commercial property claims for Canterbury.

The combined residential and commercial end-ofJune figures from private insurers totalled nearly four and a half billion dollars ($NZ4,475,128,000).

Insurance Council chief executive Chris Ryan says the figures indicate the private insurance industry is making steady progress despite suggestions the industry is going too slow.

The Insurance Council says while it acknowledges the frustration of Cantabrians, insurers and brokers are also frustrated with the huge task of assessing and completing claims and want to see them completed as soon as possible.

People settling earthquake-related insurance claims, particularly residential claims, continue to face difficulties associated with obtaining accurate land data as well as the sheer number of individual claims private insurers are dealing with.

The Canterbury earthquakes are recognised internationally as one of the largest and most complex insured loss events in history which inevitably impacted on the speed of the claims settlement process.

Where insurance claims are straightforward, insurers will cash settle with the claimant quickly to ensure that businesses and homeowners are able to get back to normal, or to allow the payouts to be invested in a positive future, including keeping businesses operating and staff in jobs.

The Insurance Council says earthquake insurance cover continues to be available for the majority of Cantabrians.

Difficulties arise for some people who are moving into the region and wishing to take up insurance. Solutions are available for those people. Insurers are agreeing to insure people on properties that are already insured, but may require some data about the condition of the land under those properties.

The Insurance Council says payouts from private insurers totalling more than $NZ4.4 billion are the forerunner of what is expected to be a $15 billion dollar private insurance payout for the Canterbury economy by the time the Christchurch rebuild programme is completed.

NEW ZEALAND LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUGUST 2012

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ZERO EXCAVATION PIPELINE ASSESMENT JD7

KEY USAGES

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The company has pioneered none-disruptive pressurised water main CCTV and NDT condition assessment technologies with support from the UK’s leading utility and water companies.

In 2005, JD7 developed the first camera system to be inserted into through a live fire hydrant directly into a clean water system. Since then, the company has developed several systems capable of assessing the full condition of pipes using a variety of methods.

•

Visual infrastructure surveys; inspects all pipes from the inside while live

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Pre-inspection service for capital works; accurately maps tees, branches, ferrules and others assets in mains

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Leakage surveys; live pipe leak surveys

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Conditional assessment; the capability to fully structurally asses the condition of mains while live, potentially pre-AMP

PRODUCT OVERVIEW INVESTIGATOR

BULLET

LDS1000

PIPESCAN+

The Investigator is a real-time inspection and leak detection system for 3” diameter pipes and above, at up to 16 bar pressure. The system provides a complete asset condition examination and leak finding by accessing networks through fire hydrants, air and gate valves and Quadrinas.

The smallest of our camera range, the Bullet is equipped with hydrophone and CCTV capability for use in 3” pipes and above, including trunk mains. The Bullet provides leakage examination and localisation and can be launched into pipework through full bore fire hydrants, 1.5” and above fittings, air and gate valves and Quadrinas.

Designed for long distance, trunk main inspection, the LDS1000 provides CCTV and leak detection with a range of up to 1000m. Incorporating a hi-resolution digital camera and focussed light system, the system can be inserted through air valves or pressure fittings with an internal diameter of 2” or more.

The PipeScan+ provides unparalleled data quality and detail for surveying underground water pipes. Incorporating internal ultrasound probes coupled with a hi-resolution camera system, it has the capability to scan pipework of all materials, allowing a full dimensional survey, with fully detailed structural assessments to be achieved. This includes wall thickness, corrosion and flaw identification, along with lining thickness, meaning an accurate life expectancy of pipework can be calculated.

Key features: - Interchangeable hi-resolution CCTV system - Pressurised insertion and seal technology - On-board Hydrophone for leak detection - Sonde for above ground location - Ruggedized control station - Real-time analysis and evaluation software - 100m range

Key features: - Effective in all materials and pipe sizes - Pressurised insertion and seal technology - On-board Hydrophone for leak detection

Key features: - On-board Hydrophone for leak detection - Hi-resolution CCTV system - Pressurised insertion and seal technology - 1000m range

Key features: - Complete structural analysis of pipework - NDT wall thickness - Hi-resolution CCTV system - 4” and above pipes - 100m range

www.undergroundvision.co.nz | sales@undergroundvision.co.nz | PO Box 302 406, North Harbour, Auckland 0751 | 09 415 0298