Tēnā koutou,

Welcome to the November edition of the Mount Industrial Community Newsletter.

Please read on for updates on the following:

• Our national air quality standards
• Other changes to relevant government legislation
• Strengthening air quality rules in the Mount Maunganui Airshed
• ‘Our air 2021’ - preliminary data release by Ministry for the Environment
• Port of Tauranga wharf extension consent application 
• Mount Maunganui industrial area PFAS investigation
• Questions and answers by Clear the Air
• Calls to the Pollution Hotline 
• Summary of exceedances
• New methyl bromide guidelines. 

Our national air quality standards

The World Health Organisation Air Quality Guidelines, which cover six key pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, sulphur dioxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide) have now been updated and Ministry for the Environment are working through these international updates. This is the first time the guidelines have been updated for 16 years and comes after a systematic review of more than 500 publications by world experts. Regional Council are not able to enforce the World Health Organisation Air Quality Guidelines (compared with the National Environmental Standards), although they do provide us with important information and an international perspective in relation to exposure to the six key contaminants. 

The updated standards are now expected in early to mid-2022 and may form part of the Natural and Built Environments Act which will partly replace the Resource Management Act 1991.

We will continue to keep you up-to-date as this amended legislation develops and is released.

Other changes to relevant government legislation

As well as the national air quality standards being updated, a number of other changes are being carried out to key pieces of legislation. Some of these changes will impact how we manage air quality in the Mount industrial area. These include:  

• The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) is the main law governing how people interact with natural resources and is being replaced with three new acts this parliamentary term. The three new acts are the Natural and Built Environments Act, Strategic Planning Act and the Climate Change Adaptation Act. More information here.
   
• The existing 20 District Health Boards are to be replaced over three years by a national authority called Health NZ and a new Māori Health Authority. This includes the Bay of Plenty District Health Board which is expected to be disbanded in its current form by 30 June 2022. More information on this announcement can be found here.

Strengthening air quality rules in the Mount Maunganui Airshed (Plan Change 18)  

We’re in the process of introducing new rules and provisions to the Mount Maunganui Airshed which better target fine dust and odour. For this to happen, the amended National Environmental Standards for Air Quality must first be confirmed as it’s likely limits for fine dust will be adjusted through this process. 

We have written to the Associate Minister for the Environment, explaining the impact delays with the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality are having on the process of introducing new rules specific to the Mount Maunganui Airshed. 

Our air 2021 - preliminary data release by Ministry for the Environment

Our air 2021 looks at the state of New Zealand’s air quality for the last four years (2017 – 2020), reporting against the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality for pollutants like particulate matter 10 (PM10), fine particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ produce this report every three years and have explained that the updated report will be released on 10 December 2021 when they’ve had a chance to factor in the updated World Health Organisation Air Quality Guidelines.

We’re pleased to see air quality improvements in both Rotorua and Mount Maunganui reflected in the preliminary data release, however, note Rotorua still has significant issues with PM2.5 and that Our air 2021 does not incorporate our extensive air quality monitoring data for particulate matter in the Mount Maunganui industrial area. It instead focuses on winter-time exceedances for particulate matter in the rest of New Zealand. It is hoped the full report due in December will draw attention to the absence of data and therefore provide a more accurate picture of particulate matter issues in this area. We look forward to seeing how the updated World Health Organisation guidelines will influence the findings.

Particulate matter does remain an issue in the Mount Maunganui Airshed and is a problem that requires extensive and varied long-term efforts to see improvement. A future plan change will be required to achieve this in the polluted Mount Maunganui Airshed.

SO2 has been highlighted as an issue in the preliminary data release for the Mount Maunganui industrial area. This is a gas produced by activities like vehicle emissions, shipping, waste processing and fertiliser manufacture. The preliminary data release shows that in the four-year period between 2017 and 2020, overall SO2 levels in this area did not trigger health thresholds set by the Ministry for the Environment but were at times elevated.

Fortunately the landscape has been changing since 2016 and we’re pleased to see SO2 readings have trended down in the Mount industrial area over the last 5 years, following significant investment in mitigation and control measures by some industries. Further major reductions in SO2 levels have also been observed as a result of the introduction of MARPOL requirements for fuel with a low sulphur content being applied to foreign vessels.

Hundreds of ships berth at Port of Tauranga every year. Air discharges from ships are permitted under the Resource Management (Marine Pollution) Regulations 1998, and the Regional Council cannot make rules that restrict these discharges.

Until recently, the majority of these ships were powered by marine fuel with a high sulphur content which contributed to poor air quality. Since January 2020 all foreign-flagged vessels in NZ waters have had to adhere to an international treaty, MARPOL, requiring the use of fuel with a much lower sulphur content. Since the introduction of MARPOL, SO2 levels recorded within the Airshed have been considerably lower.

You can read the preliminary data release here. 

Port of Tauranga wharf extension consent application 

In May this year, Port of Tauranga Limited applied for a resource consent to extend their existing wharves south, on both the Sulphur Point and Mount Maunganui side of the channel. The area where the extension is being proposed is identified in the Coastal Plan as a ‘port zone’, a definition which allows for port related activities.

Regional Council have outsourced the processing of this consent to an independent third party. The application has been limited notified to relevant iwi and hapū groups and the submission period has been extended to 12 November 2021.

Port of Tauranga Limited have requested that the application is referred directly to the Environment Court and Council has approved that request. The next steps are to see what submissions are made and for the consultant planner to prepare a report for the Court. Once Port of Tauranga Limited has considered the content of that report they will confirm whether they want to proceed with the direct referral.

Mount Maunganui industrial area PFAS investigation

Following information being received about (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) in soil and groundwater within the Mount Maunganui industrial area, Regional Council engaged Aurecon to complete urgent sampling for PFAS of groundwater, drinking water, surface water, soil and sediment in and around Whareroa Marae.

The results of the Phase One sampling showed PFAS were not detected in the samples, with the exception of surface water and sediment within the open drain between the industrial area and the airport. However, these low concentrations did not exceed the adopted recreational human health guidelines.

The sampling highlighted the need to carry out a more extensive investigation of the wider Mount Maunganui industrial area and Regional Council has reengaged Aurecon to carry out this next phase of the investigation. Phase Two of the investigation will be carried out in accordance with the relevant national guidelines and primarily be based on a review of existing information and data, where available.

This information will then be used to develop a comprehensive understanding of the potential extent of PFAS contamination in the Mount Maunganui industrial area. It will also be used to help establish what further sampling and analysis may need to be completed and how to manage this contaminant, collectively, going forward.

Regional Council and Aurecon will be reaching out to local industry in the Mount Maunganui industrial area during Phase Two to help refine the information gained and minimise potential data gaps. Phase Two has started and is scheduled to be completed by 17 December 2021.

We will continue to keep you up-to-date. 

Questions and answers by Clear the Air 

Calls to the Pollution Hotline 

• In the three months to 1 October, 162 calls were received in relation to air quality issues in the Mount Maunganui industrial area (21% of total calls to the Pollution Hotline for this period).
• Of these, 6 were in relation to dust, 5 in relation to industrial start up notifications, 145 in relation to odour and 6 in relation to smoke. 

Summary of exceedances

New methyl bromide guidelines 

Methyl bromide is a fumigant used at Port of Tauranga (the Port) primarily to treat logs before export in order to meet biosecurity requirements of the country receiving the shipment, principally China and India. It is also used to treat some imported products to ensure that no pests or diseases are brought into New Zealand.

Due to increasing use of methyl bromide and the risks to human health and the environment, the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) have reviewed how this fumigant is used in New Zealand. The updated rules on its use were released in August 2021. The main changes are:

For ship hold fumigation:

• From 1 January 2022, a 900m buffer zone will apply. This means that from 1 January 2022 ship hold fumigation of methyl bromide at the Port will not be able to comply with the new rules.
• From 1 January 2023 this practice will be banned.

For log fumigation:

• From 1 January 2022 buffer distances will relate to methyl bromide recapture requirements. Greater recapture rates will require a reduced buffer distance as less chemical is released into the atmosphere.

Under these new rules the traditional recapture system currently used at the Port would require a buffer distance so large that it may make log fumigation at the Port impractical. Urgent attention is now being given to using carbon based recapture, a system able to achieve the required higher rates of recapture, to facilitate the on-going fumigation of logs at the Port.

Ethanedinitrile (EDN)

EDN has been identified as a possible ‘drop-in’ substitute for methyl bromide however at this stage it is still not approved as a fumigant in NZ. The EPA are currently assessing the application and will decide on whether or not to approve its use, and the controls that should apply. Many consider it a preferable fumigant as it does not harm the ozone layer and requires a reduced buffer distance.

Given the constraints imposed on methyl bromide fumigation, and the public opposition to fumigation at the Port, it is expected that there will be more logs treated with non-chemical alternatives such as de-barking. However not all markets (e.g. India) accept this as an acceptable alternative to fumigation so there is still likely to be a requirement for chemical log fumigation for some time to come.