Feedback and decisions

What we asked

In our Consultation Document, we asked people if we should make an affordable level of investment spread over the next 10 years or a higher level of investment into climate change and resilience.

What we heard in submissions

Over 760 responses were received, with almost half supporting an affordable level of investment and more than a quarter supporting higher investment.

Over 240 people made specific comments about climate change, covering a wide range of subtopics. Overall, the feedback underscores the importance of evidence-based decision-making, community engagement and a balanced approach to addressing climate change concerns. The complexity of addressing climate change at the local level was highlighted, and the importance of prudent, effective investment strategies that consider both environmental and social factors was underscored.

Views about the planned investment in our overall climate response ranged from disappointment, to adequate, through to excessive. However, most submitters felt our planned investment is about right. Some people wanted our investment in climate response to take priority over our other expenditure. Others opposed any investment in climate response as they don’t believe in the science and/or feel more research is needed. Due to affordability concerns, some people wanted us to spend less or the minimum possible in this area.

What we decided

We confirmed the affordable level of investment on climate change and resilience (the preferred option) in the final Plan. This includes:

• $6.1 million on adaptation actions such as
  • Catchment enhancement.
  • Green infrastructure development in rural areas.
  • Maintaining and improving Council’s Climate Risk and Resilience Explorer tool.
  • Developing a regional climate adaptation strategy and adaptation plans for individual communities.
  • Addressing climate change risks at closed landfills.

• $66.1 million on mitigation actions such as

These projects would involve a combination of both capital and operational spending. In the majority of cases, this investment addresses climate change issues at the same time as meeting other needs.

We decided to provide funding of $20,000 per annum for three years to the Warmer Healthier Homes Te Tau Ihu Charitable Trust (WHH) for their Tasman homes insulation programme. The WHH Project leverages funding from Central Government, with EECA providing funding at a ratio of 8:2 or 9:1 (depending on location within the District) through third-party funders such as the Council.

We also received funding requests from the Businesses for Climate Action Trust (BCA) and the Nelson Tasman Climate Forum. Whilst we support the work of these organisations, due to financial constraints we decided not to provide this funding. However, where eligible, we recommended they apply for our community grants scheme.

Wakatū Incorporation, the Whakarewa Trust-NRAIT and Te Āwhina Marae would like to see a Climatorium developed in Te Tauihu/Motueka, and requested support and funding. The Climatorium would be a national climate centre for Aotearoa and a community asset. We decided not to identify funding in the Plan for the Climatorium, but would like to continue the dialogue, investigate future collaboration, and work with Wakatū Incorporation to understand how the Climatorium would operate and assess the benefit to Tasman.

The Waimea Inlet Forum asked us to allocate adequate funding to implement the Waimea Inlet Strategy and Action Plan 2023-2026, and specifically requested funding to implement the currently unfunded actions that we are leading or supporting. We have funded a range of projects in the Plan but we decided not to fund the more aspirational unfunded actions in the Waimea Inlet Action Plan.

We were asked to donate solar energy credits to help reduce energy poverty. We currently have three sites producing solar energy of which only one, the Motueka Library, is producing exported solar energy in any meaningful amount. We are currently using this exported electricity to reduce the electricity bills paid by our libraries, so decided against donating them.

Tasman Climate Response Strategy and Action Plan

Feedback received on the draft Tasman Climate Response Strategy and Action Plan was generally positive, with more than two-thirds of the 156 respondents supportive of the draft plan. Several suggestions for additional actions were made, such as promoting public transport and engaging with the agriculture sector to reduce methane emissions. Some people requested more ambitious emissions reduction targets and robust monitoring mechanisms. Others noted that several actions in the plan lacked budgets and suggested they be allocated funding and staff time.

Feedback received has been incorporated into the final Tasman Climate Response and Resilience Strategy and Action Plan 2024-2035’, which was adopted on 27 June 2024. Read the plan and background here.

Rising sea levels, increasing temperatures, and more frequent extreme weather events are just some of the challenges that we face.

We may not have a choice about climate change happening to us, but we do have a choice in how we respond. Both law and common sense tell us to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, prepare for the impacts of climate change, build resilience, and respond to the effects we are already experiencing.

Work is continuing on adapting our district to the impacts of climate change and growing our resilience. In particular, we are taking an adaptive planning approach, as recommended by the Ministry for the Environment. A comprehensive regional climate change risk assessment is being completed in collaboration with Nelson City Council. This will enable a better understanding of climate change risks, and the consequential impacts on people, economy, governance, and the built and natural environments. The risk assessment will inform our identification and evaluation of a range of adaptation options. Community engagement will be a critical part of the identification and assessment of options.

We also have a significant programme of work aimed at reducing our own operational emissions and supporting the Tasman community to reduce its emissions. Work on further reductions in Council and community emissions is included across the ten years of the Plan.

We have developed a comprehensive draft Tasman Climate Response Strategy and Action Plan (The Plan). It provides detailed actions we plan to take across a wide range of Council’s activities. Priority actions include: emission reduction measures in the transport, energy and waste sectors; empowering communities to act; initiatives to strengthen the resilience of our communities and ecosystems.

Budgets addressing climate change and resilience are embedded across many parts of what we do. Often these actions are not planned solely to address climate change and have other substantial benefits. The Plan shows what we plan to spend and where we intend to spend it over the next 10 years.

For more information on our climate response, including the draft Plan, click here.

Affordable level of investment spread over the next 10 years

We plan to continue investing in a range of initiatives from our Climate Action Plan. These measures would cost approximately $69.1 million over 10 years. In many cases, there are reasons the spending is needed in addition to responding to climate change.

The rates and debt impacts of this option are included in our proposed Plan.

This option includes:

• Adaptation actions such as:

» Catchment enhancement.

» Green infrastructure development in rural areas.

» Maintaining and improving our Climate Risk and Resilience Explorer tool.

» Developing a regional climate adaptation strategy and adaptation plans for individual communities.

» Addressing climate change risks at closed landfills.

• Mitigation actions such as:

» Expanding regional eBus services to weekends.

» Modest investment in safety improvements for pedestrians and cyclists.

» Capturing and reusing landfill gas.

» Minimising waste and reducing waste to landfill.

» Auditing greenhouse gas emissions inventories.

» Transitioning Council’s vehicle fleet to electric vehicles.

» Installing electric vehicle chargers.

» Continuing investments in commercial forestry and planting initiatives to sequester carbon.

Operational costs (10 years): $52.3 million

Capital costs (10 years): $16.8 million

Rates revenue (all types of rates):

Year 1: $2.3 million

Year 2: $2.6 million

Year 3: $2.9 million

Years 4 – 10: $27.9 million

This is equivalent to an average rates cost of $102 (incl GST) per household/business per annum from 2024/2025.

Impact on debt: $14.7 million

Effect on levels of service: ↑

Higher level of investment

This option would mean a higher investment, but a more proactive response to climate change to meet the needs of our community. It may result in us spending less on purchasing electricity in the future and being more proactive in anticipating and minimising climate change risks to infrastructure.

In addition to the investment in our Preferred Option, an extra $5.7 million over 10 years would be invested in:

• Planning for resilient infrastructure.
• Progressing ecological adaptation initiatives.
• Implementing energy efficiency/solar initiatives for our assets.
• Reducing emissions from Richmond Aquatic Centre.
• Providing a small funding contribution to the Warmer Healthier Homes initiative.
• Progressing actions relating to the Climate Action Plan’s leadership goal, including partnering on projects with others.
• Progressing actions relating to the Plan’s information provision and communication goal.

Option B has the following effect on rates revenue (all types of rates) in addition to the rates impact of Option A:

Year 1: $0.4 million

Year 2: $0.4 million

Year 3: $0.4 million

Years 4 – 10: $3.5 million

This is equivalent to an average rates increase of $17 (incl GST) per household/business per annum from 2024/2025 in addition to Option A.

Impact on debt: $1.5 million increase in addition to Option A at year 10.