Agenda of Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Responsibilities and key projects

The Committee is responsible for regional environment, climate change and natural heritage by:

· Developing (and monitoring) strategy, policy and action plans, including any agreed community consultation, to recommend to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee, as set out in the Schedule of Key Projects for Reporting Committees, attached to these Terms of Reference*

· Acting as a community interface for consultation on policies and as a forum for raising community concerns, while ensuring community engagement is complementary to that undertaken by local boards

· Making decisions within delegated powers, including

§ Allocation of the Environmental Initiatives Fund

§ Allocation of the Waste Minimisation and Innovation Fund (REG/2013/4)

Powers

All powers necessary to perform the Committee’s responsibilities

Except:

(a) powers that the Governing Body cannot delegate or has retained to itself (section 2)

(b) where the Committee’s responsibility is limited to making a recommendation only

(d) the approval of expenditure that is not contained within approved budgets

(e) the approval of expenditure of more than $2 million

(f) the approval of final policy

(g) deciding significant matters for which there is high public interest and which are controversial

(h) the commissioning of reports on new policy where that policy programme of work has not been approved by the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee

(i) the power to establish sub-committees

*Schedule of key projects for the Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee

Regional pest management strategy

Environmental strategic action plan

NPS –Freshwater management programme

Natural hazards risk management action plan

EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC – WHO NEEDS TO LEAVE THE MEETING

Members of the public

All members of the public must leave the meeting when the public are excluded unless a resolution is passed permitting a person to remain because their knowledge will assist the meeting.

Those who are not members of the public

General principles

· Access to confidential information is managed on a “need to know” basis where access to the information is required in order for a person to perform their role.

· Those who are not members of the meeting (see list below) must leave unless it is necessary for them to remain and hear the debate in order to perform their role.

· Those who need to be present for one confidential item can remain only for that item and must leave the room for any other confidential items.

· In any case of doubt, the ruling of the chairperson is final.

Members of the meeting

· The members of the meeting remain (all Governing Body members if the meeting is a Governing Body meeting; all members of the committee if the meeting is a committee meeting).

· However, standing orders require that a councillor who has a pecuniary conflict of interest leave the room.

· All councillors have the right to attend any meeting of a committee and councillors who are not members of a committee may remain, subject to any limitations in standing orders.

Independent Māori Statutory Board

· Members of the Independent Māori Statutory Board who are appointed members of the committee remain.

· Independent Māori Statutory Board members and staff remain if this is necessary in order for them to perform their role.

Staff

· All staff supporting the meeting (administrative, senior management) remain.

· Other staff who need to because of their role may remain.

Local Board members

· Local Board members who need to hear the matter being discussed in order to perform their role may remain. This will usually be if the matter affects, or is relevant to, a particular Local Board area.

Council Controlled Organisations

· Representatives of a Council Controlled Organisation can remain only if required to for discussion of a matter relevant to the Council Controlled Organisation.

1 Apologies

An apology has been received from the Chairperson, Cr Wayne Walker. The meeting will therefore need to elect a chairperson for this meeting, or a deputy chairperson for the rest of the term, who will then assume the chair for this meeting.

2 Declaration of Interest

Members are reminded of the need to be vigilant to stand aside from decision making when a conflict arises between their role as a member and any private or other external interest they might have.

3 Confirmation of Minutes

That the Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee:

a) confirm the ordinary minutes of its meeting, held on Tuesday, 20 October 2015, as a true and correct record.

4 Petitions

At the close of the agenda no requests to present petitions had been received.

5 Public Input

Standing Order 7.7 provides for Public Input. Applications to speak must be made to the Democracy Advisor, in writing, no later than one (1) clear working day prior to the meeting and must include the subject matter. The meeting Chairperson has the discretion to decline any application that does not meet the requirements of Standing Orders. A maximum of thirty (30) minutes is allocated to the period for public input with five (5) minutes speaking time for each speaker.

At the close of the agenda no requests for public input had been received.

6 Local Board Input

Standing Order 6.2 provides for Local Board Input. The Chairperson (or nominee of that Chairperson) is entitled to speak for up to five (5) minutes during this time. The Chairperson of the Local Board (or nominee of that Chairperson) shall wherever practical, give one (1) day’s notice of their wish to speak. The meeting Chairperson has the discretion to decline any application that does not meet the requirements of Standing Orders.

This right is in addition to the right under Standing Order 6.1 to speak to matters on the agenda.

At the close of the agenda no requests for local board input had been received.

7 Extraordinary Business

Section 46A(7) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“An item that is not on the agenda for a meeting may be dealt with at that meeting if-

(a) The local authority by resolution so decides; and

(b) The presiding member explains at the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public,-

(i) The reason why the item is not on the agenda; and

(ii) The reason why the discussion of the item cannot be delayed until a subsequent meeting.”

Section 46A(7A) of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (as amended) states:

“Where an item is not on the agenda for a meeting,-

(a) That item may be discussed at that meeting if-

(i) That item is a minor matter relating to the general business of the local authority; and

(ii) the presiding member explains at the beginning of the meeting, at a time when it is open to the public, that the item will be discussed at the meeting; but

(b) no resolution, decision or recommendation may be made in respect of that item except to refer that item to a subsequent meeting of the local authority for further discussion.”

8 Notices of Motion

At the close of the agenda no requests for notices of motion had been received.

Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee

02 December 2015

Forward work programme for Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee

File No.: CP2015/19530

Purpose

1. To enable the Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee to agree a forward work programme, to be reviewed on a six-monthly basis.

Executive Summary

2. This report recommends a ten month forward work programme for the Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee (ECCNH). This programme covers the period from December 2015 until the next local government elections in October 2016.

3. The purpose of the programme is to enable the committee to deliver on its priorities and to manage its workflow. It also provides direction to the advisory work that staff need to undertake to support that.

4. The work programme is part of a package of governance changes recently introduced across council committees. These include reducing the formal reporting of ‘information only’ items; increasing the chief executive’s financial delegations; and reducing the number of formal meetings of reporting committees to provide more time for focus on strategic priorities.

5. A proposed programme that aligns with the committee’s delegations is appended as Attachment A. This includes areas of responsibility such as:

· oversight of the implementation of Auckland Growing Greener, the Low Carbon Auckland Action Plan, the Wai Ora Wai Maori programme and other key environmental projects

· allocation of grants from the Waste Minimisation and Innovation and Regional Environmental and Natural Heritage Funds

6. If approved, this forward work programme will also be tabled with Regional Strategy and Policy Committee for its adoption on 3 December 2015. This will be an addition to its adoption of work programmes for all other committees of council.

7. There is some overlap between this work programme and the progress on resolutions tracking sheet currently used by the committee. There is potential for these two items to be combined in future, once the committee has adopted a forward work programme.

Recommendation

That the Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee:

a) approve the forward work programme for the committee shown in Attachment A to the agenda report to guide the work of the committee over the next ten months.

b) note that the forward work programme will be updated regularly and reviewed approximately every six months.

Comments

Introduction

8. The Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee’s delegations state that the committee is responsible ‘for regional environment, climate change and natural heritage through developing (and monitoring) strategy, policy and action plans, including any agreed community consultation to recommend to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee’ on key projects.

9. The committee also oversees the allocation of the Waste Minimisation and Innovation and Regional Environmental Heritage Funds.

10. The committee’s delegations also state that it acts as a ‘community interface for consultation on policies and as a forum for raising community concerns.’

11. This report recommends a ten month forward work programme for the ECCNH Committee to consider for the period December 2015 to October 2016 when the next local government elections will be held. This work programme will be reviewed on a six-monthly basis.

Purpose and context for the forward work programme

12. The purpose of the programme is for the committee to ensure that it is delivering on its priorities and to manage its workflow.

13. The executive leadership team (ELT) has proposed that all committees of Auckland Council should have agreed forward work programmes by the end of 2015. Over the last four months a number of committees of council have adopted forward work programmes, including the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee (the parent committee for ECCNH).

14. This forward work programme planning is part of a package of governance changes recently introduced to improve the quality of governance and supporting advice. These changes include:

· Ensuring that the majority of reports to committees require governance decisions, rather than being for information. For example, the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee has had an information item report section on the agenda since May 2015. This allows non-decision making items to be dealt with more efficiently. It is expected that Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage will adopt a similar approach to non-decision making items once this work programme has been adopted.

· Moving forward, committee agendas will also provide an electronic link to non-confidential memos and workshop material distributed to members since the previous meeting to ensure that these are on the public record.

Draft forward work programme

15. A draft work programme is attached (Attachment A). The draft programme includes an explanation of why the work is being undertaken, the committee decisions required, the fit with committee delegations and Long-term Plan implications, where appropriate.

16. Consistent with the committee’s delegations, key projects and decisions over the next ten months will include:

· The review of the Regional Pest Management Plan. This plan will update council’s approach to pest management and ensure that this is consistent with the new National Policy Direction on pest management. As the delegations for release of the draft plan for consultation and adoption of the final plan sit with Regional Strategy and Policy Committee, the committee’s role will be to consider updates on the review of the plan.

· Allocation of grants from two major funds. These are the:

o Waste Minimisation and Innovation Fund ($475,000) - encourages Aucklanders to engage in projects to reduce and minimise the amount of waste going to landfill

o Regional Environmental and Natural Heritage Fund ($450,000) – supports Aucklanders to engage in the protection, restoration or enhancement of Auckland’s environment, with a focus on our most significant natural heritage areas. Also supports initiatives to encourage sustainable living.

· An annual update on implementation of the Auckland Low Carbon Action Plan. The plan aims to transition Auckland to a greener, more prosperous, liveable, low carbon city, powered by efficient, affordable, clean energy and using resources sustainably.

· Updates on the implementation of Auckland Growing Greener. This includes council’s delivery of projects in four focus areas – urban transformation, zero waste, restoring nature and healthy waters, and future opportunities for council to act as a catalyst for the region to ‘grow greener.’ As part of this, the committee will also be updated on the state of Auckland’s urban forest and future trends.

· Presentation of the West Coast Action Plan to address pollution in the west coast lagoons. Actions identified may also be relevant to other hot spots for water pollution around the region or lead to the development of regional initiatives. The committee’s role will be to consider whether they endorse this plan and any related regional initiatives and recommend these to the Regional Strategy and Policy Committee for approval.

17. There are a range of other matters reported to the committee from time to time including submissions on topics within the committee’s delegation, and one-off pieces of work such as the recent review of funding sources available for marine litter clean up operations. These are difficult to programme as they arise out of committee resolutions or external processes.

18. Many of these items are tracked through the progress on resolutions sheet currently used by the committee.

19. There is some overlap between the proposed work programme for ECCNH and this progress tracking sheet. There is potential for these two items to be combined in future – to give an overview of future work to be presented to the committee, and an update on staff progress on resolutions to date.

Additions to forward work programme

20. New work not currently listed on the proposed programme will also be generated from time to time. This work will be assessed against existing priorities and considered by the committee as needed. Staff will provide a brief justification for any work being reported that is not part of the agreed work programme.

21. There is an opportunity for the committee to consider whether there are any gaps in the draft programme, or any projects that the committee does not consider a priority. However the draft programme reflects the committee’s delegations and commitments already made by the council and funded in the Long-term Plan 2015-2025.

22. Any significant new work would require assessment of budgetary impacts, and approval by the appropriate committee of the whole; for example, for development of new strategy or policy, approval would need to be sought from Regional Strategy and Policy Committee as the parent committee.

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

23. The intention is that formally adopting committee work programmes will help to inform local board work programmes over time.

Māori impact statement

24. The issues considered by ECCNH are of particular significance to Māori in their role as kaitiaki of Auckland’s natural environments. The projects and processes being reported to this committee will have a range of implications for Māori which will be considered when the work is reported.

Implementation

25. Once approved, a short report will be prepared for each agenda showing the future work programme and how reports on the agenda align to it. Staff will review the programme approximately every six months and report to the committee with proposed changes.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	Draft forward work programme for Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee	13

Signatories

Author	Gael Ogilvie, Manager Environmental Services
Authoriser	Barry Potter, Director Infrastructure and Environmental Services

Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee

02 December 2015

Regional Environmental Natural Heritage Grant Allocation

File No.: CP2015/14962

Purpose

1. To present the Environment Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee (the committee) with the funding recommendations for the 2015/2016 Regional Environment and Natural Heritage (RENH) grants programme funding round.

Executive Summary

2. Following the adoption of the Community Grants Policy (CGP) by Council in December 2014 Auckland Council established a RENH grant programme to:

· support the protection, restoration or enhancement of Auckland’s environment with a focus on our most significant natural heritage areas;

· encourage and support Aucklanders to adopt environmentally sustainable lifestyles.

3. The RENH grants programme leverages private investment and resources to achieve these outcomes.

4. In July 2015, the committee adopted the RENH grants programme framework (consisting of regional significance criteria, funding exclusions, an investment approach and timing of funding) for the 2015/2016 financial year and the Long-term Plan 2015-2025 allocated budget for this purpose. The adopted framework for this fund is attached as Attachment B to this report.

5. In 2015/16 the fund has a total of $488,702 available for allocation. Table one below provides a summary of applications received and funding recommendations.

Table 1 – Summary of 2015/16 RENH grant allocation

Applications received	63 applications received requesting $1,357,052
Applications not considered for funding	7 applications ineligible (did not meet funding criteria). 1 application withdrawn by the applicant.
Funding recommendations	42 applications recommended for funding totaling $488,702 13 applications recommended to be declined.
Funding contribution (Match funding)	The majority of applicants are contributinga minimum of 50% towards total project costs.
Multi-year funding	2 of 6 requests for 3 year funding are recommended, committing a total $24,900 in both FY16/17 and FY17/18.

6. Attachment A to this report provides a brief summary of each application, its assessment against the fund outcomes and a funding recommendation. In summary it is recommended that 42 applications are supported with grants totalling $488,702, ranging from $1,500 to $40,000 with an average grant of $11,636. It is also recommended that a further 13 applications are declined

Recommendation

That the Environment, Climate Change and Natural Heritage Committee:

a) approve funding decisions and grant allocations for applications to the Regional Environmental Natural Heritage grants programme as listed below and in Attachment A of the agenda report:

Organisation	Amount recommended	Term
Motutapu Restoration Trust	$30,000	1 Year
Motuihe Trust	$15,000	1 Year
The Forest Bridge Trust	$24,700	1 Year
Hauraki Gulf Conservation Trust (HGCT)	$40,000	1 Year
The Whau River Catchment Trust	$15,500	1 Year
Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society, Waitakere Branch	$11,000	1 Year
The Forest Bridge Trust	$25,000	1 Year
The Whau River Catchment Trust	$12,000	1 Year
Stephen Thomas	$20,000	1 Year
Ngati Whatua Orakei, Whai Maia Trust Ltd,	$4,900	3 Year
Nuhaka Trust	$7,500	1 Year
He Tohu Aroha Co-Operative	$23,000	1 Year
Forest Ridge Conservation Group	$3,000	1 Year
Kevin Wragge	$5,000	1 Year
Cheryl Dill	$2,500	1 Year
Manaia Properties Ltd	$5,000	1 Year
Stephen and Stacey Thomas	$5,000	1 Year
Theo Stewart	$8,600	1 Year
Friends of Oakley Creek Te Auaunga Inc	$20,000	3 Year
B & EV Blake	$2,000	1 Year
John and Michaella McKenzie	$5,000	1 Year
Thomas Civil and Environmental Consultants Limited	$30,000	1 Year
The Sustainable Coastlines Charitable Trust	$8,000	1 Year
The Waiheke Resources Trust	$11,000	1 Year
Paul Mowbray	$5,000	1 Year
Urban EcoLiving Charitable Trust (UELCT)	$10,000	1 Year
Great Barrier Island Environmental Trust	$10,000	1 Year
Chirag Jindal, Peter Crossley, Ian Mander	$16,000	1 Year
Woodlands Park School	$7,000	1 Year
Waiheke Go Moth Plant Group (WaiGOMP)	$5,000	1 Year
Ross Hawkins	$5,000	1 Year
Maskell Trust	$5,000	1 Year
Kaipatiki Project Environment Centre	$16,000	1 Year
Beyond the Fence	$17,500	1 Year
Boffa Miskell Ltd	$5,000	1 Year
North-West Wildlink Partnership (NWW)	$12,000	1 Year
Gecko NZ Trust	$15,000	1 Year
Project Litefoot	$7,000	1 Year
Hajnalka Vezsenyi	$1,500	1 Year
Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi Inc	$5,000	1 Year
Forest and Bird North Shore Branch	$8,000	1 Year
Meadowbank School	$5,000	1 Year

Comments

RENH Purpose & Outcomes

7. The Community Grants Policy (CGP), adopted by Council in December 2014, recognises regional grant funding programmes as a key tool by which Auckland Council can support communities to implement the vision and aspirations for the region as a whole, as set out in the Auckland Plan and other regional strategic documents.

8. The CGP established the two key purposes for the Regional Environment and Natural Heritage Grants Programme (RENH):

· support the protection, restoration or enhancement of Auckland’s environment with a focus on our most significant natural heritage areas; and

· encourage and support Aucklanders to adopt environmentally sustainable lifestyles.

9. The CGP sets out the following outcomes for the programme:

· the mauri of the natural environment is in optimum health

· our natural heritage is valued by all Aucklanders

· our natural resources are sustainably managed

· our waterways, coastline, harbours, islands and marine areas are treasured

· a high number and diverse range of Auckland’s indigenous species and ecosystems are conserved: there are no regional extinctions of indigenous species and a reduction in the number of threatened or ‘at risk’ species

· mana whenua are empowered, enabled, respected and recognised in their customary Kaitiaki role, and participate in the co-management of natural resources

· Aucklanders adopt sustainable lifestyles, including reducing use of non-renewable resources and minimising waste

· Auckland communities are involved in the stewardship of our biodiversity and other natural resources

· Aucklanders help to address climate change through carbon sequestration, adaptive land management and better soil management.

RENH Criteria & Budget 2015/16

10. In July 2015 the committee adopted the RENH Grants Programme framework setting out criteria, funding exclusions, investment approach and timing of funding (resolution ENV/2015/18), this framework is attached as Attachment B to this report.

11. To be eligible for funding through the RENH projects need to meet at least one of the grants programmes criteria for regional significance. These are:

a. The effective management and protection of threatened species and their habitat, and Auckland’s threatened ecosystems.

b. Council’s efforts to connect communities of interest and encourage integrated biodiversity management at a landscape scale.

c. Protection of regionally significant sites of indigenous biodiversity.

d. Strategic management of plant and animal pests in the Auckland region.

e. Protection, improvement and/or the restoration of streams, waterways and riparian margins within priority catchments.

f. Regionally focussed initiatives that promote sustainable living.

2015/16 Funding Round & Assessment

12. The RENH Grants Programme is an annual fund, which opened on 14 September 2015 and closed on 14 October 2015. The fund was promoted through the Auckland Council website and social media, council publications, existing council networks such as the Pest Liaison Group and Biodiversity Landowner Liaison Group, local board networks and email notification to stakeholders.

13. Applications were assessed by staff with subject matter expertise using the weighted assessment criteria as set out in Table 2 below.

Table 2 – RENH Assessment Criteria

Criteria	Considerations
Alignment with Strategic Priorities (40%)	Alignment with RENH grant programme: · Purpose · Outcomes · Criteria (regional significance)
Project Analysis (40%)	· Need for funding · Project effectiveness or viability · Cost, benefit Analysis · Project use of best practice work methods
Applicant capacity (20%)	· Delivery of projects previously supported with grants · Overall capability and capacity · Level of collaboration with others

14. Each application had an assessment score out of 100 which was used to rank applications from highest to lowest. Grant recommendations were developed and moderated by staff considering the application assessment score, project budget, items funding was requested for and the level of funding that would maximise outcomes and value for money.

Summary of Applications Received

15. In total 63 applications were received requesting grants of $1,357,052. Eight applications were either deemed ineligible for the fund or withdrawn by the applicant. The contributions of the remaining 55 applications have been assessed against the fund outcome areas and criteria as summarised in tables three and four below. Note that most applications contribute to multiple outcomes and criteria.

Table 3 – Applications by Fund Outcomes

RENH Fund Outcome	Number of applications contributing to this outcome*	Number of applications recommended for support
1. The mauri of the natural environment is in optimum health	26	23
2. Our natural heritage is valued by all Aucklanders	29	23
3. Our natural resources are sustainably managed	22	19
4. Our waterways, coastline, harbours, islands and marine areas are treasured	38	30
5. A high number and diverse range of Auckland’s indigenous species and ecosystems are conserved: there are no regional extinctions of indigenous species and a reduction in the number of threatened or ‘at risk’ species	34	26
6. Mana whenua are empowered, enabled, respected and recognised in their customary Kaitiaki role, and participate in the co-management of natural resources	13	12
7. Aucklanders adopt sustainable lifestyles, including reducing use of non-renewable resources and minimising waste	14	10
8. Auckland communities are involved in the stewardship of our biodiversity and other natural resources	34	27
9. Aucklanders help to address climate change through carbon sequestration, adaptive land management and better soil management.	10	7

* As identified by the Applicant

Table 4 – Applications by criteria (regional significance)

RENH Regional Significance Criteria	Number of applications received	Number of applications recommended for support
The effective management and protection of threatened species and their habitat, and Auckland’s threatened ecosystems.	28	23
Council’s efforts to connect communities of interest and encourage integrated biodiversity management at a landscape scale.	31	27
Protection of regionally significant sites of indigenous biodiversity.	25	18
Strategic management of plant and animal pests in the Auckland region.	24	19
Protection, improvement and/or the restoration of streams, waterways and riparian margins within priority catchments	23	18
Regionally focussed initiatives that promote sustainable living	5	4

Funding Recommendations

16. It is recommended that 42 applications are supported with grants totalling $488,702, ranging from $1,500 to $40,000 with an average grant of $11,636. It is also recommended that a further 13 applications are declined. A brief summary of each application, fund outcomes, assessment score, funding recommendation and comment is provided in Attachment A to this report.

17. While the RENH provides for grants between $5,000 and $40,000 per annum, there is provision to award smaller grants for projects that meet the criteria for regional significance but only require moderate support. Where grants of less than $5,000 are recommended this is due to either a moderate funding request by the applicant or moderate investment from Council required to maximise a project’s potential environmental outcomes.

Match funding

18. A 50% matched funding (applicant contribution) approach is encouraged for the RENH grants programme to ensure that council grants continue to leverage private investment and funding from other providers, however the framework includes provision for applicants to request grants of up to 100% of the total project costs in exceptional circumstances.

19. Eleven applications were received requesting a funding contribution of greater than 50%. Following assessment it was considered that none of these applications meet requirements for an increased funding contribution.

Multi –year funding

20. The RENH grants programme also provides for grants as either one-off or multi-year project grants with applicants needing to provide a project plan covering the entire period of funding.

21. Six applications were received for multi-year funding with all requesting support for three years. Two are recommended for multi-year funding based on high assessment scores (above 75), strong alignment with the RENH criteria, high applicant capacity and excellent project analysis. In addition to the recommended funding for 2015/16 it is recommended that two applications be supported for multi-year funding for three years being Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and Friends of Oakley Creek committing $24,900 in both 21016/17 and 2017/18.

Programme Improvements

22. This is the first year that Auckland Council has run the RENH funding round and some areas for improvement have been identified. Of the 42 projects recommended for support through the 2015/2016 RENH funding round many applications contribute to multiple outcomes and criteria, however only five applications focused on sustainable living outcomes.

23. The low number of sustainable living related applications may in part be due to the historic focus of the environmental grant programmes on conservation projects with the regional sustainable living outcome a new focus area for grant funding. Specific promotion of this aspect of the fund will occur as part of the 2016/17 funding round.

24. In addition the comparative evaluation of two quite different types of applications – those focused on natural heritage protection and enhancement and those targeting environmentally sustainable lifestyles – has been challenging. As part of the review of this first funding round staff will look at options to look at the allocation of priorities for different funding outcomes so that like projects can be more readily assessed against like projects. These options and discussions around refining implementation of the RENH will be brought to the committee in 2016 for input and decision making

Consideration

Local Board views and implications

25. The Community Grants Policy provides for Local Boards to operate their own local grants programmes. They may choose to fund local environmental projects and activities, some of which may complement the grants provided at regional level, or vice versa.

26. Local Boards are involved with promotion of the funding round and will receive a summary of funding decisions.

Māori impact statement

27. All grant programmes aim to respond to Auckland Council’s commitment to improving Māori wellbeing by providing grants to organisations delivering positive outcomes for Māori. Input from the Independent Māori Statutory Board was sought in the development of the Regional Environment and Natural Heritage grants programme.

28. Two of the nine RENH fund outcomes relate specifically to Māori concepts and capacity - The mauri of the natural environment is in optimum health; and Mana whenua are empowered, enabled, respected and recognised in their customary Kaitiaki role.

29. Twenty-seven applicants, predominantly those involved with waterway protection projects, identified their projects as contributing to these outcomes. One application was received from an iwi or Māori group.

Implementation

30. There are no implementation issues arising from this report. Budget allocation for the RENH fund was confirmed under adoption of the Long-term Plan (LTP) 2015-2025. The annual funding budget for the RENH fund is $488,702. The funding recommendations presented in this report recommend full allocation of the 2015/2016 fund.

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a View	2015/16 RENH Funding Recommendations	25
b View	RENH Funding Framework	37

Signatories

Authors

Frances Hayton, Environmental Grants & Incentives Manager, Operations

Viv Sherwood, Catchments & Incentives Manager, Infrastructure & Environmental Services

Authoriser

Barry Potter - Director Infrastructure and Environmental Services

Chairperson	Wayne Walker
Deputy Chairperson	Cr Dr Cathy Casey
Members	Cr Ross Clow
	Cr Chris Darby
	Cr Hon Christine Fletcher, QSO
	Cr Mike Lee
	Member Liane Ngamane
	Cr John Watson
	Member Karen Wilson
Ex-officio	Mayor Len Brown,
	Deputy Mayor Penny Hulse