Focus on green issues

The environmental issues facing Marlborough have been summarised in a new council report.

The 2008 Marlborough State of The Environment Report is available to the public from today.

Council environmental science and monitoring manager Alan Johnson said the report, modelled on a national environment report released in 2007, focused on areas of the environment that had come under pressure over the last 10 to 15 years and the availability of major natural resources in the region.

The report would guide council in future policymaking, he said.

It sets the scene with a summary of the district's history and a snapshot of the province today, showing that the greatest relative growth in population in the region has occurred in the Wairau Plain area, where population grew by 13 per cent between 2001 and 2006.

Pressures on the environment identified include waste, land use change, climate change, biosecurity threats and energy and infrastructure.

The report also identifies:

That vineyard waste accounts for 38 per cent of the district's total waste.

The total number of dairy herd stream crossings in the Rai River catchment has more than halved since 2003.

There has been a 25 per cent reduction in stock numbers in the region since 2002.

The number of water permits authorising the taking and use of water has tripled since 1995.

Only 4 per cent of Marlborough aquifers show human or agricultural impact compared with 57 per cent of sites nationally.

The council released a State of the Environment report annually from 1994 to 2004, but producing a report every five years was more cost effective and also allowed for trends to emerge in data, said Mr Johnson.

"I think it's a fantastic read, because it provides an excellent summary," he said.

Environment Committee chairman Graeme Taylor described the report as a "milestone of 10 years of hard work".

"I hope it's a document that the public show an interest in," he said.

Mr Johnson encouraged people to access a digital report online at the Marlborough District Council website, but it would also be available from today at the Marlborough District Council offices and the Marlborough District Library.

Copies would also be sent to relevant agencies and groups.

- The Marlborough Express