Queenstown Lakes  
Climate Action and Sustainability Update 

The climate is changing. And so are we. 

Tēnā koutou and welcome to the Winter 2023 edition of our Climate Action newsletter.

We’ve got plenty to update you on:  

• QLDC Climate Reference Group’s five new members 

• Plastic Free July: learning about the circular economy 

• Progress on Climate and Biodiversity Plan Outcome 1 – getting our house in order  

• Update on Queenstown Lakes Food Resilience Project – food security hui 

• Final weeks for Wānaka’s $2 community shuttle trial 

• QLDC Climate & Biodiversity Project Grants recipients 

Happy reading! 🌱 

Five new members join QLDC’s Climate Reference Group 

The independent Climate Reference Group (CRG) has recently welcomed five new members to its ranks. 

The CRG advises Council on the latest updates in climate action and biodiversity restoration. The group has been instrumental in supporting projects, embedding climate action into Council planning, partnering on submissions to central government, and developing the Queenstown Lakes 2022-25 Climate and Biodiversity Plan. 

Read on to meet the new members and hear about why they joined the CRG in their own words. 

Dr Chris Cameron 

Chris is an innovative thinker with diverse experience in climate change science, strategy, policy, and implementation. Chris has represented Aotearoa New Zealand at United Nations climate change negotiations and is recognised as a pioneer in climate adaptation. He leads the climate change team at an Aotearoa-owned environmental consultancy. 

“I’ve had a long-standing interest in the climate of Otago, including producing a report for QLDC in 2019 on projected changes in the climate and their implications for the district. I’m excited to contribute to the further development of climate and biodiversity responses with a Council that is taking a progressive and inclusive approach. I look forward to working on this critical mahi with the Group, Council staff and elected members, together with community participants.” 

Victoria Crockford 

Victoria has a diverse professional background, working for not-for-profits, large corporates and start-ups in the housing, energy, social enterprise, and screen sectors. Her roles have included communications, government relations, and executive leadership. Most recently, she advocated for everyone’s right to a decent home as CEO of Community Housing Aotearoa-Ngā Wharerau o Aotearoa, the national peak body for the community housing sector. Her work across our housing, electricity, and transport systems means she is well-placed to understand the connected challenges of decarbonising, preserving and enhancing a flourishing natural environment.  

“Connecting the dots on the challenges and opportunities our climate change response asks of us has been a driving force in my professional and personal life. With a geography degree under my belt, I have long connected to te Taiao, the natural world and feel privileged to live in a place so blessed with natural wonders. Working to create a future in which my kids can thrive as locals is my main 'why' for being a part of the Climate Reference Group. It is my hope and commitment that my lenses of mother, strategist, and communications and government relations expert and my lived experience of disability will bring useful contributions to the table.” 

Sydney Telfer 

Sydney is an evolving expert in climate risk management. She is highly proficient in developing and working with stakeholders to analyse climate-related scenarios to understand the risks and opportunities climate change presents. She is passionate about improving the welfare of our society and environment through facilitating long-term, community-centred governance and decision making.  

“My vision for the CRG is to have a multi-disciplinary, long-term and co-benefit-oriented approach to climate change and biodiversity for the Queenstown Lakes District. The aspiration is to deliver national and global best practise, pragmatic and practical advice that contributes to delivering on an integrated and restorative economy, society and environment that is resilient to both chronic and sudden change. Our region is so beautiful and unique, there is so much opportunity to continue to enhance the way we prosper through living as kaitiaki.” 

Dr Leslie Van Gelder 

Leslie is an archaeologist, strategist, and Professor of Education at Walden University who engages in research and strategy work as a consultant across multiple sectors. Her work focuses on the intersections between people and place from the Upper Palaeolithic period to today and has a special emphasis on the role of climate change and impacts on humanity across time. She is Co-Chair of the Southern Lakes Sanctuary, Chair of both the Glenorchy Heritage and Museum Group and Glenorchy Dark Skies Sanctuary Group, and has served on QLDC’s Vision Beyond 2050 Steering Group, Regenerative Recovery Advisory Group, and Economic Diversification Framework and Taskforce. 

“I am delighted to join the CRG and hope to bring perspectives that are undergirded by an understanding of current thinking in the biodiversity and conservation sector, both in this district and internationally. My wider desire is to work with the inspiring people serving on this group and integrating our diverse approaches to the challenges we face into a dynamic coherence that will be beneficial for the future of this place we call home and our wider planet.”

Evelyn Cook 

Evelyn is the new representative from Te Ao Mārama Inc which represents Kāi Tahu ki Murihiku for resource management and local government purposes. Te Ao Mārama is made up of representatives of the four Murihiku rūnanga – Awarua, Hokonui, Ōraka Aparima and Waihōpai, and works with the area’s regional, district and city councils. The four Murihiku rūnanga are part of the 18 Papatipu Rūnanga of Te Rūnanga o Kai Tahu. 

"There has probably never been a more urgent need to plan for the impacts of foreseeable change. We are tasked with not only long-term planning for the future but acting now with an awareness of past climate change impacts to guide and challenge us. It is not just for us but the mokopuna of our mokopuna."

 Plastic Free July and the circular economy 

Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we have cleaner streets, clearer oceans, and beautiful communities. 

As part of the celebrations, we published a video highlighting some of the single-use plastic items that have recently been banned or restricted by Ministry for the Environment.  

See the video below:

We were proud to make a submission on behalf of the district, strongly supporting the phase out of these hard to recycle and single-use plastic items. These changes will help reduce the amount of plastic waste that ends up in our landfill, as litter in our beautiful environment or as contamination in our recycling streams, and furthers Aotearoa New Zealand’s shift toward a circular and low-emissions economy. Read more about these plastic bans here: Phasing out hard-to-recycle and single-use plastics | Ministry for the Environment

What is a circular economy? 

According to Aotearoa New Zealand’s Emissions Reduction Plan and Aotearoa New Zealand Waste Strategy, in a circular economy we design out waste and pollution, keep resources in use for as long as possible, then recover and regenerate products and materials at the end of their initial lifecycle. Protecting and regenerating natural systems is key to a circular economy, as is delivering equitable and inclusive outcomes. 

Read more about the circular economy here.  

Reducing waste reduces emissions  

We're proud to support several local initiatives that move us toward a circular economy, including Repair Cafe events in Queenstown, Wānaka, Glenorchy, Hāwea, and Luggate. 

Repair Cafes are free events where people get together to share their repair knowledge and experience. People who enjoy fixing things (Fixers) help people (Visitors) with broken things. Visitors bring their broken items from home and are encouraged to learn and participate in the repair of the broken items. 

Repairing stuff plays a vital role in reducing waste and emissions by extending the lifespan of products. When items such as electronics, appliances, or clothing break down, the instinct may be to replace them with new ones. However, repairing these items instead of discarding them reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfill. And by fixing and reusing products, we prevent the extraction of raw materials and the manufacturing processes required to produce new items, both of which contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.  

Delivered by Wastebusters and Sustainable Queenstown, these events are part of Resourceful Communities which is proudly funded by the QLDC Zero Waste District Programme.  

Progress on Climate and Biodiversity Plan Outcome 1 – getting our house in order  

There has been a lot of work happening behind the scenes on Outcome 1 of the Climate and Biodiversity Plan, which relates to demonstrating ambitious climate and biodiversity leadership. To achieve this we need to have our house in order with regard to emissions mitigation.  

To ensure we are walking the talk we have committed to a complex work programme targeted at the key elements of an effective greenhouse gas emission management framework - measure, reduce, verify and improve.

Measure/Reduce: Operational and embodied carbon 

We’ve committed to measuring and reducing both the operational greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels, wastewater and electricity use, as well as the embodied emissions from the buildings and infrastructure that we build.  

The data from ouroperational emissions is captured and reported on through software called e-Bench. This allows us to review emissions reduction performance as well as generate annual reports for our emissions inventory. This information has also been used to help develop an Emissions Reduction Plan for Council, which models the pathway options for achieving our 2030 target of a 44% emissions reduction against our 2019 baseline.  

A major project to evaluate the embodied emissions from the capital programme of our last 2021-31 Ten Year Plan has also recently been completed. The report is being reviewed and will provide an important reference for our next 2024-2034 Ten Year Plan which will be consulted on in March next year. 

Verify: QLDC receives Toitū Envirocare Carbonreduce certification

We’re proud to confirm QLDC is now a Toitū Envirocare carbonreduce certified organisation!

This carbonreduce certification involves annual auditing of Council’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions against the ISO 14064-3:2019 standard, as well as annual verification that we are making progress towards our emissions reduction targets.  

In May a team from Toitū audited the organisational GHG emissions reporting for 2018-19 to establish a baseline year against which future years could be compared.  They also audited emissions from 2019-20 which included an increase in Scope 1 emissions from the harvesting of the Coronet Peak Forest. The harvest was undertaken to reduce the seed source of wildling pines and to allow the land to be replanted with indigenous vegetation (action 6.6 in the Climate and Biodiversity Plan). Replanting Coronet Forest with indigenous species will remove the carbon emissions associated with the 2019-20 harvest over time and create a permanent ecological reserve that supports the restoration of the district’s biodiversity. 

Improve: Embedding climate & biodiversity considerations into decision-making 

We've committed to a broad organisation development project to embed climate action and biodiversity considerations into all areas of Council decision-making. The project is known as Project Taiao and being undertaken in three phases:  

1. Evaluate the current state of climate change and biodiversity considerations in decision making as well as assessing leading global practice. Provide recommendations for interventions that will align QLDC with this best practice.  

2. Identify the priority recommendations for implementation then design a suite of tools, process frameworks and system improvements.  

3. Develop and deliver a training programme that will enable our staff and elected decision makers to be fully equipped to use the tools designed.  

Phase one of Project Taiao is complete and Phase two is now underway to develop the tools and process improvement that will ensure climate and biodiversity action are embedded into the DNA of the organisation.  

Queenstown Lakes Food Resilience Project update – food security hui 

We've reached a key milestone with an action from our Climate & Biodiversity Plan relating to growing a resilient and low-carbon local food system.  

The collaborative project between QLDC and WAO Wānaka investigated the state of our district’s food security and evaluated options for building a more resilient, productive and accessible local food system.  

The project involved historical research, a community survey with 750 responses, a wide range of stakeholder interviews, research into international and national network models, and a hui of the district’s food-system stakeholders. 

The report into phase one of the project has been released and provides several interesting findings and insights. It also offers direction setting around mapping tools we’re investigating and outlines the next steps for the launch of a Food Resilience Network. 

Further information on the project can be found here. 

Don’t miss the bus! Final weeks for passengers to hop aboard Wānaka’s $2 community shuttle  

As Wānaka’s second community shuttle trial reaches its halfway point, we’re working with Community Networks/LINK encourage the community to get on board and take a ride to secure the future of public transport in the district.

Coordinated by Community Networks/LINK and delivered by Yello! with funding from QLDC and Lake Wānaka Tourism, this trial will run until August 18. 

To view the shuttle's timetable and book a ride, click here.

Data collected from the trial will be used to build a case and justify the investment required for public transport in the Upper Clutha. To help build a case for change, residents and visitors alike need to use the service as much as possible during the trial period. 

There are two services: a 25-minute streamlined Hāwea-Wānaka express route, and intra-city loops connecting the Health Centre, Three Parks, Albert Town, Northlake and Anderson Road to the CBD. The price per trip is $2, and while booking is still encouraged, riders can also wait at a marked bus stop. 

Customers are encouraged to provide feedback.  

Recently it was announced that a new Public and Active Travel Advisory Group, comprised of Otago Regional Council and QLDC members, had been established to advise on public and active transport matters. The learnings of the Community Shuttle Trial will help inform the group’s discussions around the future of public transport in the Upper Clutha. 

We proudly co-funded the community shuttle trial as part of our commitment to delivering on the Queenstown Lakes Climate & Biodiversity Plan. Although we’re not responsible for Public Transport services in the district we are fully committed to working with the Otago Regional Council, local organisations and our communities to test new services and collect a data set that will help shape our future public transport options. 

QLDC Climate & Biodiversity Project Grants Fund – supporting our local ecosystems 

As part of the Climate and Biodiversity Project Grants Fund, we are supporting several ecological restoration projects with local partner organisations.  QLDC is proud to work alongside these organisations as they help mitigate the effects of a changing climate in our environment and regenerate our indigenous biodiversity.

Each of the following organisations received approximately $20,000 in funding.

Mana Tāhuna Charitable Trust are doing important mahi including the catchment improvement of Te Wai Whakaata Lake Hayes.  

Upper Clutha Wilding Tree Group are working on wilding-tree control on the Mt Iron Reserve to allow for natural revegetation and re-planting. 

WAI Wānaka - Urban Catchment Group are planning, facilitating and preparing sites for maintenance, and conducting water quality monitoring on QLDC managed reserves as agreed with the Council’s Parks & Reserves Team. 

Whakatipu Reforestation Trust are working on native revegetation on QLDC managed reserves within the Whakatipu Basin. 

Te Kākano Aotearoa Trust are undertaking native revegetation on QLDC reserves in the Upper Clutha Basin. 

Thank you for reading!

Catch you in the next edition!

Bill, Kirsty, Kath, Sean and Hitch.