Compliance Monitoring

 

NRC is responsible for monitoring compliance with resource consents and rules in Regional Plans. Activities monitored in relation to groundwater include groundwater abstraction and bore construction.

Bore Compliance Monitoring

The Council maintains a bore log database that incorporates all bore logs provided by drillers. There are in excess of 4600 bores registered on the database, 131 of which were registered during 2007-08.

All bores installed under a bore permit (resource consent) are visited by NRC monitoring staff to ensure that they comply with the conditions of their consent. During 2007-08, 66 consented bores were inspected by NRC staff and 25% were found to have minor non-compliance. These minor non-compliances included bores lacking a concrete pad, or removable cap and access point where water level readings can be taken.

The photographs below show a poorly constructed and maintained bore (left) and the correct construction of a bore (right) including a concrete pad, 30 cm high casing and removable cap.

Photo: badly constructed bore Photo: well constructed bore

Formal enforcement action for significant non-compliance was taken on three occasions during 2007-08, with regard to non-compliant bore construction.

Groundwater Take Compliance Monitoring

Compliance monitoring of resource consents issued for groundwater take continued during 2007-08. There were no cases of significant non-compliance and no formal enforcement action was taken during this financial year.