Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaw Review

The Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws apply to assets owned or managed by Regional Council such as:

• drainage scheme canals and drains
• defences against water (e.g. stopbanks, pump stations, floodgates, geotechnical overlays)
• erosion protection works (e.g. rock rip rap, trenched willows, edge plantings, buffer zone plantings)

These assets protect people, property and livelihoods from river flooding and problems associated with a lack of land drainage.

The Bylaws only apply to assets managed by Bay of Plenty Regional Council as part of the region’s flood protection and land drainage schemes. These schemes are within the area from the Kaituna River and Te Puke Basin east to the Waioeka and Otara Rivers (Ōpōtiki) and include:

• Kaituna Catchment Control Scheme – includes some streams flowing into Lake Rotorua, the Kaituna River and drainage systems in the Te Puke Basin (from Te Puke out to the coast)
• Rangitāiki-Tarawera Rivers Scheme
• Rangitāiki Drainage Scheme – Rangitāiki Plains between Matatā and Whakatāne
• Whakatāne-Tauranga Rivers Scheme
• Waiōtahe River Scheme
• Waiōtahe Drainage Scheme
• Huntress Creek Drainage Scheme
• Waioeka-Otara Rivers Scheme – Ōpōtiki

The Bylaws outline when you need to speak with Council, and if necessary apply for a Bylaw Authority. This ensures we work together to develop the best approach to managing activities within Bylaw Applicable Areas.

The Local Government Act 2002 requires all bylaws to be reviewed every ten years.

This ensures the rules are:

• fit-for-purpose
• informed by the latest science and data
• informed by experience from previous flood events
• informed by present issues and risks e.g. climate change projections, land use changes and increased pressure from development

The Floodway and Drainage Bylaws 2008 needed to be reviewed and adopted by 30 June 2020.

COVID-19 lockdown occurred just as we were starting our formal consultation process. At the time there was no legislative pathway to defer the consultation process without the current 2008 Bylaws being automatically revoked on 1 July 2020.

Following lockdown the COVID-19 Response (Further Management Measures) Legislation Act 2020 was enacted. The Act provides temporary legislation, and updates s160B of the Local Government Act 2002, that ensures that the Floodway and Drainage Bylaws 2008 is not revoked on 30 June 2020 and continues to be in force until adoption of the Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020, or 30 June 2021, whichever is earlier.

Because of this temporary legislation Bay of Plenty Regional Council was able to postpone the proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 hearings, deliberations and adoption to later in 2020.

Due to COVID-19, consultation on the proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 was undertaken on-line, and via phone conversations, rather than the planned face-to-face engagement across the region.  

The following documents supported the formal consultation process:

• Bylaw Review Booklet - A series of information posters that explains the purpose of the bylaws, why they are being reviewed and the key changes.
• Statement of Proposal - The formal consultation document that outlines - the purpose of the bylaws, the review process, legislative compliance, the proposed amendments (covered in the ‘Proposed changes and rationale’ table), and how to make a submission.
• Proposed changes and rationale - This table outlines proposed changes to the 2008 bylaws, and includes a rationale for each proposed change.
• Proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 - The proposed 2020 bylaws document for consultation.
  
• Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaw 2020 Technical Report - Report on the seepage modelling undertaken to inform the setting of distances for Bylaw Applicable Area 3 – the area inland from the landward toe of stopbanks.

Forty-three submissions were received, with 15 submitters requesting to be heard. Submissions were received from across the region with the highest proportion being from the Eastern Bay of Plenty. Fifty-three percent of submissions were from rural submitters, 42% from urban submitters and 5% from regional submitters.

The Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws Hearings Pack 11 Aug 20 contains the following information about the submissions received and the hearings process:

• Hearings agenda
• Proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 – Statement of Proposal
• The proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020
• The Bay of Plenty Regional Council Floodway and Drainage Bylaws 2008
• Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s Officers Report to the Hearing – August 2020
• A full list of the submissions received by Council on the Proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020
• Legislative mandate for each clause of the Proposed Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020

Hearings were held on Wednesday 26 August 2020 and the hearings panel was made up of the following Regional Councillors:

• Councillor Andrew von Dadelszen (Tauranga General Constituency) – Chair
• Councillor David Love (Tauranga General Constituency)
• Councillor Norm Bruning (Western Bay of Plenty General Constituency)
• Councillor Kevin Winters (Rotorua General Constituency)
• Councillor Toi Kai Rākau Iti (Kōhī Māori Constituency)
• Councillor Bill Clark (Eastern Bay of Plenty General Constituency)

The Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 were formally adopted by Council on 17 December 2020 and become operative on 1 February 2021. 

• Media release – Bylaws adopted to protect people, properties and livelihoods
• Public Notice – Council Decision on the Adoption of the Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020
• Full Submissions List and Council Responses – December 2020
• Report and Recommendations of Hearings Committee
• Proposed Bay of Plenty Regional Council Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 - tracked changes version
• Bay of Plenty Regional Council Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 - operative 1 February 2021

NOTE: The Flood Protection and Drainage Bylaws 2020 will not become operative until 1 February 2021. The Floodway and Drainage Bylaws 2008 remain in force until that time. 

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council looks after more than $350 million worth of flood protection assets. These include floodgates, pump stations, stopbanks and floodwalls which are part of a flood protection system designed to help manage river flows and collectively work to minimise flood risks.

Council manages flood protection systems in five major rivers and drainage schemes:

• Kaituna Catchment Control Scheme
• Rangitāiki-Tarawera Rivers Scheme
• Rangitāiki Drainage Scheme
• Whakatāne-Tauranga Rivers Scheme
• Waioeka-Otara Rivers Scheme

Anyone who wants to carry out work in the vicinity of a flood protection asset must first apply for a bylaw authority. ‘Work’ could include constructing or demolishing a structure; undertaking earthworks; planting or removing trees, hedges or shrubs; installing a culvert or crossing in a scheme drain; intensive development of farm land (e.g. for horticulture).

Council may issue bylaw authorities, often with specific conditions, to allow landowners to carry out works while minimising any impact on the flood protection assets.

Email riversanddrains@boprc.govt.nz with ‘Does the FAD Bylaw apply to my property’ in the subject line and provide your full name, contact details (email and phone) and property address.

We will let you know if you are within a Flood Protection and Drainage applicable area and provide advice on applying for a bylaw authority if required. Alternatively fill out the feedback form below.