As part of Northland Regional Council’s consultation on our draft Freshwater Plan Change, we’re asking for public input on how we protect steep land from erosion.

You don’t have to look far in Northland to see steep hills. Slope is the main driver of erosion risk, and as part of Northland Regional Council’s consultation on our draft Freshwater Plan Change, we’re asking for public input on how we protect steep land from erosion.

Erosion affects the health of streams, rivers, and lakes because runoff from steep land is one of the main sources of sediment in Northland’s waterways. Alongside high E. coli levels, which are an indicator of faecal contamination in the water, high levels of sediment are one of the biggest problems our waterways face. Sediment makes estuaries muddier, makes waterways less appealing to swim in, and makes it harder for native plants and animals in the water to survive. In addition, phosphorous can attach to sediment, leading to higher nutrient levels in the water.

To tackle this problem, Northland Regional Council is looking at changing the way we manage steep land.

We’re consulting on draft new rules limiting vegetation clearance, cultivation and earthworks in areas of high erosion risk (land with a slope of between 25 and 35 degrees), with tighter controls applied to these activities in areas of severe erosion risk (land with a slope greater than 35 degrees).

We know steep land erodes more when it is in pasture and grazed than when it is covered with woody vegetation. So we’re also considering whether to include new rules to manage stock access to land with high and severe risk of erosion. There are currently no rules in the regional plan controlling stock access to highly erodible land.

Woody vegetation, such as regenerating native bush, continuous cover forestry or permanent carbon forests, also reduces the risk of slips on steep land. Long term, managing stock access to highly erodible land would reduce sediment runoff into waterways and increase our region’s resilience to erosion.

Alongside the draft rule changes, we have developed two new draft maps of highly erodible land showing slopes between 25 and 35 degrees, and slopes of over 35 degrees. The draft maps show that about 12.25% of land in Te Taitokerau is at high risk of erosion, and 7.2% is at severe risk of erosion.

The draft maps are interactive and enable you to drill down to look at your own property.

We are interested in your views on the draft maps of highly erodible land and whether rules for stock access to these areas should apply.

For more information, including cost estimates, read our discussion document The draft Freshwater Plan Change: Have your say on stock exclusion or visit www.wai-it-matters.nz