I sympathise
'bout your committee
'bout feeling sleepy
little wonder
all that ennui
You think, I think
how long must we take
in oblivion deciding
what's so obvious
unless you're oblivious
Time slows & stands still
and it has no cost
I'm feeling so lost
and not that strong
to do this for long
Found this in my journal from early 2008.
Here's hoping that 2010 will be more positive and interesting!
 On Thursday 28th January ARC Councillors and Parks staff went on a site visit to Waitawa Regional Park. You go through Clevedon to get there. It's in the South East of Auckland Region, within the jurisdiction of Manukau City Council. This parkland was purchased in 2004 and is not available for public use. Yet. This headland (Pawhetau Point) looks East over the inner Hauraki toward South Waiheke. |
 Parks Officer indicates the Northern headland (Koherurahi Point) of this 188 hectare regional park. Both headland areas include significant pa sites with Maori diggings, pits, fortifications evident. |
 In this close up of Northern headland (Koherurahi Point) , you can clearly see the jetty at the end. This is used by the current tenant of the land - Orica - an explosives manufacturer. Orica's tenancy is coming to an end in under 2 years. The size of the land area has enabled this dangerous practice to continue - vacant land provides a safety buffer in the event of a possible explosion. |
 A very high amenity beach lies between these two headlands. The northern end of the beach is surfaced with a light gravel, while the south end has soft Waitemata Sandstone subject to erosion. This photo was taken almost at low tide which shows why the beach will be a good all tide beach. |
 Here we are walking out onto the jetty - made of concrete materials and apparently in very good condition. Immediately to the left is a concrete boat launching ramp. The debate was about whether public could use the ramp to launch boats, whether ferries might call to drop visitors, or whether the wharf and vicinity should be for fishers and walkers and non-motorised recreation (kayaks etc). |
 Lots of talking and looking and listening... |
 Looking back to the Point from the wharf, this particular headland was a very significant pa site. It is now covered in old - past their use by date - pines. Removing them without damaging the land and diggings etc will be a challenge. There is a narrow one lane cutting through to the wharf, which provides very limited motorised transport access. |
 This is the beach on the other side of that headland, looking South. (Photo taken from inside the bus - sorry about reflection!). This is also a very pleasant beach about 400 metres long. White shell surface, but with Pacific Oyster clad rocks there at low tide. Not such a good beach for all tide access. Lots of parking here. |
 A major purpose of the site visit was to explain the land management issues that arise on the bulk of the parkland back from the coast. This land is intended for active uses like mountain-biking, horse-riding and such like. The land had been used fitfully for animal farming (grazing), and about 27 hectares is pine plantation. |
 A lot of the hillsides are covered in gorse. There is a current program of weedkilling, and then mulching on site. I wondered a bit about whether heavy rain might wash the exposed top soil and mulch off... |
 Here's a hillside of dead gorse, ready for mulching and clearance. The plan is to plant grass first, them sow some areas with Manuka seed to allow regeneration of bush. You can see in the left foreground an example of the weed species that have proliferated. The gum tree is OK! |
 A program of stump removal is also underway, along with the removal a rushes - shown here. Cllr Bill Burrell gives an idea of scale! The idea on this land is to enable pasture to grow - without stump holes and suchlike which can form safety risks to strolling park users. |
 Waitawa does contain some remnant areas of native bush which will be protected. |
 But the pine trees will be harvested to generate some revenue to pay for improvements to road access and suchlike. Some concern was expressed during the visit to a truly scorched earth approach to pine tree removal. Some consideration of visual landscape from the sea, sun shelter, and natural beauty on the park itself, suggested that some clusters or copses of pines might be retained, and other transitional measures considered. |
 Throughout the park, there are many gentle pathways, weathered fences, offering peace and tranquillity. |
 These contrast interestingly with the presence of a number of "brick shit-house" constructions used to store explosives. |
 There are a number of these very strongly constructed buildings on the park. And while Orica is under an obligation to remove such structures on the termination of its lease, there is an argument for the retention of some: they add historical interest and context; they may be able to be re-used a adapted for use by potential concessions (such as Kayak hire, Mountain bike club storage). During the visit we learned of a developing Kayak trail also... |
 Waitawa is really about the coastal landscape. Such potential. Everybody was keen to open it up to public access as soon as could safely be achieved. Even if only a part could be opened up... |
 Just a kilometre offshore you can see McCallum's Island. This is being quarried away under licence for paving materials. McCallum Chip. Sad really. To lose an island like that, and for that. There are a couple of interesting and substantial ship wrecks on the island (you can just make out the tip of the bow and stern of one of these wrecks on the left of this photo.) |
 Another view through gum tree trunks. That's Coromandel in the background. |
 Conversations will continue. Here's the site visit under the welcome shelter of 4 or 5 pine trees. |
 Parts of the landscape looked a bit like Central Otago. So dry and brown. |
 But I guess the rain will come sometime. And then the wetland area in the heart of Waitawa Regional Park will come to life and do its job of keeping the runoff nice and clean. No nitrate runoff here thank you very much. Not even from Orica's Ammonium Nitrate stores! |
 This is a story about tree roots and how powerful they can be - even when they are tiny..... Here's a picture of a drain repair we had to have done at home, because tree roots got into the drain and stopped it draining. The plumber had to break the old pipe that had been layed in the dug out area, and replace it, and provide appropriate connections at each end to the existing pipe network. |
 This is a close up of the problem area. I've put a tennis ball there to show the scale. It is tucked under the tree roots that caused the problem. There were 3 of them. None thicker than my little finger. It seems they began by finding a tiny gap between the pipe and the rubber joining link between the white pipe, and the drain.... you can see the replacement rubber joining link... |
 Anyway. This picture shows part of the pipe section that was taken out, and the bits of tree roots. They found a small gap between this clay pipe, and the rubber seal connecting it to the white plastic pipe. |
 The drain layer had to cut across this section of plastic pipe. The cut is just over a metre down the pipe from where the roots entered the drain.What is interesting is that the roots inside the pipe, have completely filled the cross section of the pipe. |
 Here you can also see the thickness of the root mass inside the pipe. No wonder the drain was blocked! |
 And for completeness I show here the root growth that the drainlayer found actually going up the pipe and inside the house.I know you might not be interested in drains and stuff. But I thought this was pretty interesting. You have to love sewage, sewers and drains to be a real councillor! And, by the way, I recommend this Drain Layer: Trevor Allen 445 6543. |
There was a lovely news item in NZ Herald last week:
Water fit to swim in but not to drink
Water agencies say it is too costly to recycle the millions of litres of water pouring daily into the sea from Auckland's effluent treatment plants.
Higher treatment standards at the two plants serving metropolitan Auckland make the discharge at their sea outfalls fit to swim in, though not to drink.
A claim by the North Shore City Council on Friday that its plant "discharges 99.9 per cent water" prompted a Herald reader to ask why this 68 million litres of water was not being reused.
The reader, Jenny Bickerstaff, questioned whether it could not be used for irrigating council gardens or in car washes, instead of being wasted by discharging it into the ocean.
The Auckland Regional Council member for the North Shore, Dr Joel Cayford, supports the idea.
"The tighter the standard, the more obvious it becomes to provide for reuse," he said.
"Auckland's need for washing and grassland irrigation water during dry periods could readily be met by limited reticulation of highly treated water."
Dr Cayford said reuse of water could delay the time when Auckland's peak demand consumption called for an extra source of water.
Such options included a second Waikato River pipeline and a dam at Riverhead, to the city's northwest.
These options would cost about $200 million each.
But so far, North Shore City Council has only a trial of using water from its Rosedale plant to irrigate nearby trees.
City Water operations manager Steve Singleton said the plant's discharge quality was "very high" but was not fit for human consumption or for, say, watering park grass "because it may raise health and cultural issues".
Steps could be added to the treatment process to make the water drinkable and reused in the water supply, as was done in dry parts of Australia.
But the costs and Auckland's high rainfall made this uneconomic.
A reticulation system from the plant to users would cost about $30 million.
The adjacent Albany and Wairau Rd business areas required a full drinking water standard and potentially would take only 1 per cent of the plant's output.
Watercare Services' plant at Mangere, on the Manukau Harbour, investigated land application of treated wastewater on several occasions, said Watercare chief engineer Jim Hodges.
"The volumes involved at more than 300 million litres a day mean there is insufficient land available within tens of kilometres of the Mangere plant with the required soil types to accept treated wastewater.
"Under winter conditions the land can accept little or no treated wastewater.
"When costs, conflict with other land uses and public perception are taken into account, the option is not practicable."
Mr Hodges said Watercare continued to try to find industries that could use treated wastewater.
In the long term, with improved technology, Watercare's Three Waters strategy expected treated wastewater to become a significant source of drinking water.
Melbourne Water Q&A
1 What is recycled water?
Stormwater, greywater, rainwater and treated effluent are all alternative water supplies that, when treated as required, are suitable for a range of purposes. This can include irrigating grazing land and crops, in horticulture, industrial processing, in residential dual pipe schemes, and to keep our public and recreational spaces green. On this website, "recycled water" generally refers to fully treated effluent from sewage treatment plants. Recycled water is a valuable resource. It contributes to conservation of drinking quality water, improves the reliability of our water supplies, frees up water for the environment or growth, and reduces the amount of treated effluent discharged into our bays and oceans.
2. Is recycled water presently in use?
Recycled water is already being used in a wide range of applications, including the irrigation of agriculture, parklands and golf courses.
3. Can households use recycled water?
There are a number of residential developments planned for Melbourne, which will have dual pipe facilities enabling the use of recycled water for non-drinking applications such as toilet flushing and garden watering.
4. Why is recycled water being used?
Water is a precious resource, yet less than 10% of Australia's urban and industrial water is recycled. Melburnians use about 485,000 million litres of potable (drinking) water each year. Much of this is for uses that do not require drinking quality water, and could be substituted with recycled water. Water recycling is a socially, environmentally and economically viable solution to help preserve our drinking water supplies.
5. What are the benefits of using recycled water?
Recycled water has many benefits. It reduces the demand on fresh water and makes use of a precious resource that currently goes to waste. Water recycling schemes protect the environment by reducing the discharge of treated effluent to bays and the ocean.
6. How can recycled water be used?
In general terms, Class C recycled water can be used for crops such as tree plantations, vineyards and general agriculture, and irrigation of golf courses and parklands under controlled conditions. With further treatment to Class A, recycled water can be used on an unrestricted basis for horticulture, irrigation of market gardens and open space recreation, and for garden watering and toilet flushing through dual pipe residential development schemes.
7. Where does recycled water come from?
In most cases around metropolitan Melbourne, the source for recycled water is one of Melbourne Water's two sewage treatment facilities - the Eastern Treatment Plant at Bangholme and the Western Treatment Plant at Werribee, which provide large amounts of recycled water all year round. However, in some cases local treatment plants run by the metropolitan retail water companies also provide recycled water.
Another potential source of recycled water involves extracting and treating sewage along existing pipelines (sewer/water mining). The sewage is treated on location (away from an existing treatment plant) using a localised treatment plant. This solution provides another option for recycling, which can reduce the requirement for new pipelines and therefore increase the viability of some recycling proposals.
Stormwater recycling offers another on-site recycling option, with treated recycled rainwater used for non drinking water domestic applications.
8. What happens to treated effluent at present?
The majority of Melbourne's sewage is treated at Melbourne Water's Eastern and Western sewage treatment plants and discharged as treated effluent into Bass Strait and Port Phillip Bay. Approximately 11.3% of the total flow is recycled at present. In addition, large flows from the Western Treatment Plant are used for environmental flows for complex onsite wetland habitats.
Through the increased use of recycled water, we will be able to further reduce the volume of water discharged and use it in applications beneficial to the environment and the community.
9. Is recycled water safe?
Yes. Recycled water undergoes high standards of treatment to ensure it is fit for its intended purpose. There are standards that apply for its use. Regular monitoring and reporting is required to ensure the quality of water being supplied is fit for use.
10. Are there guidelines for recycled water use?
Yes. Recycled water can be safely used for a variety of purposes appropriate to the level of treatment it has undergone, in accordance with EPA Victoria's Guidelines for Environmental Management: Use of Reclaimed Water.
These standards are in line with interstate and international practice and permit a wide range of applications. Individual water recycling projects each require an Environment Improvement Plan, which complies with the requirements of EPA Victoria Visit EPA Victoria: http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/
11. How is recycled water defined?
Recycled water is defined as water that has been treated to a 'fit for purpose' standard for a specific application. The following water classes can all be used to replace potable water and, if used in an EPA-approved fit-for-purpose application, can be classified as recycled water:
Class Range of uses (uses include all lower class uses)
A Urban (non-potable): with uncontrolled public access.Agricultural: eg human food crops consumed raw.Industrial: open systems with worker exposure potential.
B Agricultural: eg dairy cattle grazing.Industrial: eg wash down water.
C Urban (non-potable) with controlled public access.Agricultural: eg human food crops cooked/processed, grazing/fodder for livestock.Industrial: systems with no potential worker exposure.
D Agricultural: non-food crops including instant turf, woodlots, flowers.
EPA Victoria: Guidelines for Environmental Management, Use of Reclaimed Water, September 2002
America’s century-old love affair with the automobile may be coming to an end. The U.S. fleet has apparently peaked and started to decline. In 2009, the 14 million cars scrapped exceeded the 10 million new cars sold, shrinking the U.S. fleet by 4 million, or nearly 2 percent in one year. While this is widely associated with the recession, it is in fact caused by several converging forces.
Future U.S. fleet size will be determined by the relationship between two trends: new car sales and cars scrapped. Cars scrapped exceeded new car sales in 2009 for the first time since World War II, shrinking the U.S. vehicle fleet from the all-time high of 250 million to 246 million. It now appears that this new trend of scrappage exceeding sales could continue through at least 2020.
Among the trends that are keeping sales well below the annual figure of 15–17 million that prevailed from 1994 through 2007 are market saturation, ongoing urbanization, economic uncertainty, oil insecurity, rising gasoline prices, frustration with traffic congestion, mounting concerns about climate change, and a declining interest in cars among young people.
Market saturation may be the dominant contributor to the peaking of the U.S... fleet. The United States now has 246 million registered motor vehicles and 209 million licensed drivers—-nearly 5 vehicles for every 4 drivers. When is enough enough?
Japan may offer some clues to the U.S. future. Both more densely populated and highly urbanized than the United States, Japan apparently reached car saturation in 1990. Since then its annual car sales have shrunk by 21 percent. The United States appears set to follow suit.
The car promised mobility, and in a largely rural United States it delivered. But with four out of five Americans now living in cities, the growth in urban car numbers at some point provides just the opposite: immobility. The Texas Transportation Institute reports that U.S. congestion costs, including fuel wasted and time lost, climbed from $17 billion in 1982 to $87 billion in 2007.
Mayors across the country are waging a strong fight to save their cities from cars, trying to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution. Many are using a “carrot-and-stick” approach to reduce costly traffic congestion by simultaneously improving public transportation while imposing restrictions on the use of cars.
Almost every U.S. city is either introducing new light rail lines, new subway lines, or express bus lines, or they are expanding and improving existing public transit systems in order to reduce dependence on cars. Among the cities following this path are Phoenix, Seattle, Houston, Nashville, and Washington, D.C. As urban transit systems expand and improve, commuters are turning to public transit as driving costs rise. Between 2005 and 2008, transit ridership climbed 9 percent in the United States. Many cities are also actively creating pedestrian and bicycle-friendly streets, making it easier to walk or bike to work.
Forward-looking cities are also reconsidering parking requirements for new buildings. Washington, D.C., for example, has rewritten its 50-year-old codes, reducing the number of parking spaces required with the construction of both commercial and residential buildings. Earlier codes that once required four parking spaces for every 1,000 square feet of retail space now require only one.
As parking fees rise, many cities are moving beyond coin-fed parking meters and replacing them with meters that use credit cards. The nation’s capital is making this shift in early 2010 as it raises street parking fees from 75¢ to $2 per hour.
Economic uncertainty makes some consumers reluctant to undertake the long-term debt associated with buying new cars. In tight economic circumstances, families are living with two cars instead of three, or one car instead of two. Some are dispensing with the car altogether. In Washington, D.C., with a well-developed transit system, only 63 percent of households own a car.
A more specific uncertainty is the future price of gasoline. Now that motorists know that gas prices can climb to $4 a gallon, they worry that it could go even higher in the future. Drivers are fully aware that much of the world’s oil comes from the politically volatile Middle East.
Perhaps the most fundamental social trend affecting the future of the automobile is the declining interest in cars among young people. For those who grew up a half-century ago in a country that was still heavily rural, getting a driver’s license and a car or a pickup was a rite of passage. Getting other teenagers into a car and driving around was a popular pastime.
In contrast, many of today’s young people living in a more urban society learn to live without cars. They socialize on the Internet and on smart phones, not in cars. Many do not even bother to get a driver’s license. This helps explain why, despite the largest U.S. teenage population ever, the number of teenagers with licenses, which peaked at 12 million in 1978, is now under 10 million. If this trend continues, the number of potential young car-buyers will continue to decline.
Beyond their declining interest in cars, young people are facing a financial squeeze. Real incomes among a large segment of society are no longer increasing. College graduates already saddled with college loan debt may find it difficult to get the credit to buy a car. Young job market entrants are often more interested in getting health insurance than in buying a car.
No one knows how many cars will be sold in the years ahead, but given the many forces at work, U.S. vehicle sales may never again reach the 17 million that were sold each year between 1999 and 2007. Sales seem more likely to remain between 10 million and 14 million per year.
Scrappage rates are easier to project. If we assume an auto life expectancy of 15 years, scrappage rates will lag new sales by 15 years. This means that the cars sold in the earliest of the elevated sales years of 15–17 million vehicles from 1994 through 2007 are just now reaching retirement age. Even though newer cars are more durable than earlier models, and may thus stay on the road somewhat longer on average, scrappage rates seem likely to exceed new car sales through at least 2020. Given a decline of 1–2 percent a year in the fleet from 2009 through 2020, the U.S. fleet could easily shrink by 10 percent (25 million), dropping from the 2008 fleet peak of 250 million to 225 million by 2020.
At the national level, shrinkage of the fleet combined with rising fuel efficiency will reinforce the trend of declining oil use that has been under way since 2007. This means reduced outlays for oil imports and thus more capital retained to invest in job creation within the United States. As people walk and bike more, it will mean less air pollution and fewer respiratory illnesses, more exercise and less obesity. This in turn will also reduce health care costs.
The coming shrinkage of the U.S. car fleet also means that there will be little need to build new roads and highways. Fewer cars on the road reduces highway and street maintenance costs and lessens demand for parking lots and parking garages. It also sets the stage for greater investment in public transit and high-speed intercity rail.
The United States is entering a new era, evolving from a car-dominated transport system to one that is much more diversified. As noted, this transition is driven by market saturation, economic trends, environmental concerns, and by a cultural shift away from cars that is most pronounced among young people. As this evolution proceeds, it will affect virtually every facet of life.
 The 7464 sq metre site is located in front of the three Scene apartment blocks, and was once home to Oriental Markets. I understand the site is 140 metres long, and 40 metres deep. It is on the corner of Britomart Place and Quay Street. The longest frontage is along Quay Street – across the road from the waterfront.The location and the sheer number of carparks tweaked my interest and concern. How can it be so easy to get consent to build a five story high carparking building, 140 metres long, fronting Auckland’s downtown waterfront, and pretty much in your face from Queens Wharf? |
 It appears the original consent for a building on this site – granted in early 2008 - included 1208 carparks (a lot), within the shell of a building containing apartments and other mixed uses – plus the cinema. Activated at the ground floor. I understand that about 3 levels of carparks were to be underground (basement), and 10 split levels above ground, to a total height of 17 metres. The above ground carparks would be behind the outer layer of apartments and other uses (these being 5 storys). From the street (Britomart Place and Quay Street) you would see apartments, shops, and other active uses. |
 As the Herald Newspaper article notes, Bluewater decided the market had changed, so decided to seek some changes to its consent. Apparently it successfully persuaded Auckland City Council that its s.127 application to change the conditions of consent for the proposed building, could be non-notified. It appears that evidence from Clinton Bird was instrumental. This was to the effect that the effects of a parking building on the site (with activation only at ground level), were much the same as the consented development. |
 Two daughters on the lawn at the bach under the brolly. Grass was like a desert. Will it ever be green again...? |
 Three daughters in the sand dunes at the beach. Pandering to my desire for a photo for the NZ Herald photo competition. You know: "She wears sea shells on the sea shore...."Did you know: the whelks all twist the same direction. Wonder if it's different in the Northern hemisphere. The things you think about on holiday.... |
 I know, the man's a killer of fish, hunter-gatherer. Fishing was very good this holiday. And so many dolphins about. We even saw Orca come up the estuary and go after sting ray. What a great place. |
 Rick Stein based casserole recipe for King Fish that is fantastic:Put par-boiled potato slices at bottom of baking dish, and add vegetables like skinned broad beans, sliced pepper, sliced mushroom, sliced zuccini, plus 75 ml olive oil, 200 ml stock, salt and peppper, and bake this lot at 200 for about half an hour. Then press into this base of baking vegetables, a dozen or so 3-4cm long steaks obtained by cutting across your King Fish back-steak fillet. You can use the steaks to impress fresh herbs into the heart of the casserole. Then sprinkle salt and pepper and put back in hot oven, where it will only take between 5 and 10 minutes to cook the fish perfectly. Juices soak into the vegetables. Then serve. |
I sympathise
'bout your committee
'bout feeling sleepy
little wonder
all that ennui
You think, I think
how long must we take
in oblivion deciding
what's so obvious
unless you're oblivious
Time slows & stands still
and it has no cost
I'm feeling so lost
and not that strong
to do this for long
Found this in my journal from early 2008.
Here's hoping that 2010 will be more positive and interesting!
| On Thursday 28th January ARC Councillors and Parks staff went on a site visit to Waitawa Regional Park. You go through Clevedon to get there. It's in the South East of Auckland Region, within the jurisdiction of Manukau City Council. This parkland was purchased in 2004 and is not available for public use. Yet. This headland (Pawhetau Point) looks East over the inner Hauraki toward South Waiheke. |
| Parks Officer indicates the Northern headland (Koherurahi Point) of this 188 hectare regional park. Both headland areas include significant pa sites with Maori diggings, pits, fortifications evident. |
| In this close up of Northern headland (Koherurahi Point) , you can clearly see the jetty at the end. This is used by the current tenant of the land - Orica - an explosives manufacturer. Orica's tenancy is coming to an end in under 2 years. The size of the land area has enabled this dangerous practice to continue - vacant land provides a safety buffer in the event of a possible explosion. |
| A very high amenity beach lies between these two headlands. The northern end of the beach is surfaced with a light gravel, while the south end has soft Waitemata Sandstone subject to erosion. This photo was taken almost at low tide which shows why the beach will be a good all tide beach. |
| Here we are walking out onto the jetty - made of concrete materials and apparently in very good condition. Immediately to the left is a concrete boat launching ramp. The debate was about whether public could use the ramp to launch boats, whether ferries might call to drop visitors, or whether the wharf and vicinity should be for fishers and walkers and non-motorised recreation (kayaks etc). |
| Lots of talking and looking and listening... |
| Looking back to the Point from the wharf, this particular headland was a very significant pa site. It is now covered in old - past their use by date - pines. Removing them without damaging the land and diggings etc will be a challenge. There is a narrow one lane cutting through to the wharf, which provides very limited motorised transport access. |
| This is the beach on the other side of that headland, looking South. (Photo taken from inside the bus - sorry about reflection!). This is also a very pleasant beach about 400 metres long. White shell surface, but with Pacific Oyster clad rocks there at low tide. Not such a good beach for all tide access. Lots of parking here. |
| A major purpose of the site visit was to explain the land management issues that arise on the bulk of the parkland back from the coast. This land is intended for active uses like mountain-biking, horse-riding and such like. The land had been used fitfully for animal farming (grazing), and about 27 hectares is pine plantation. |
| A lot of the hillsides are covered in gorse. There is a current program of weedkilling, and then mulching on site. I wondered a bit about whether heavy rain might wash the exposed top soil and mulch off... |
| Here's a hillside of dead gorse, ready for mulching and clearance. The plan is to plant grass first, them sow some areas with Manuka seed to allow regeneration of bush. You can see in the left foreground an example of the weed species that have proliferated. The gum tree is OK! |
| A program of stump removal is also underway, along with the removal a rushes - shown here. Cllr Bill Burrell gives an idea of scale! The idea on this land is to enable pasture to grow - without stump holes and suchlike which can form safety risks to strolling park users. |
| Waitawa does contain some remnant areas of native bush which will be protected. |
| But the pine trees will be harvested to generate some revenue to pay for improvements to road access and suchlike. Some concern was expressed during the visit to a truly scorched earth approach to pine tree removal. Some consideration of visual landscape from the sea, sun shelter, and natural beauty on the park itself, suggested that some clusters or copses of pines might be retained, and other transitional measures considered. |
| Throughout the park, there are many gentle pathways, weathered fences, offering peace and tranquillity. |
| These contrast interestingly with the presence of a number of "brick shit-house" constructions used to store explosives. |
| There are a number of these very strongly constructed buildings on the park. And while Orica is under an obligation to remove such structures on the termination of its lease, there is an argument for the retention of some: they add historical interest and context; they may be able to be re-used a adapted for use by potential concessions (such as Kayak hire, Mountain bike club storage). During the visit we learned of a developing Kayak trail also... |
| Waitawa is really about the coastal landscape. Such potential. Everybody was keen to open it up to public access as soon as could safely be achieved. Even if only a part could be opened up... |
| Just a kilometre offshore you can see McCallum's Island. This is being quarried away under licence for paving materials. McCallum Chip. Sad really. To lose an island like that, and for that. There are a couple of interesting and substantial ship wrecks on the island (you can just make out the tip of the bow and stern of one of these wrecks on the left of this photo.) |
| Another view through gum tree trunks. That's Coromandel in the background. |
| Conversations will continue. Here's the site visit under the welcome shelter of 4 or 5 pine trees. |
| Parts of the landscape looked a bit like Central Otago. So dry and brown. |
| But I guess the rain will come sometime. And then the wetland area in the heart of Waitawa Regional Park will come to life and do its job of keeping the runoff nice and clean. No nitrate runoff here thank you very much. Not even from Orica's Ammonium Nitrate stores! |
This is a story about tree roots and how powerful they can be - even when they are tiny..... Here's a picture of a drain repair we had to have done at home, because tree roots got into the drain and stopped it draining. The plumber had to break the old pipe that had been layed in the dug out area, and replace it, and provide appropriate connections at each end to the existing pipe network. |
| This is a close up of the problem area. I've put a tennis ball there to show the scale. It is tucked under the tree roots that caused the problem. There were 3 of them. None thicker than my little finger. It seems they began by finding a tiny gap between the pipe and the rubber joining link between the white pipe, and the drain.... you can see the replacement rubber joining link... |
| Anyway. This picture shows part of the pipe section that was taken out, and the bits of tree roots. They found a small gap between this clay pipe, and the rubber seal connecting it to the white plastic pipe. |
| The drain layer had to cut across this section of plastic pipe. The cut is just over a metre down the pipe from where the roots entered the drain. What is interesting is that the roots inside the pipe, have completely filled the cross section of the pipe. |
| Here you can also see the thickness of the root mass inside the pipe. No wonder the drain was blocked! |
| And for completeness I show here the root growth that the drainlayer found actually going up the pipe and inside the house. I know you might not be interested in drains and stuff. But I thought this was pretty interesting. You have to love sewage, sewers and drains to be a real councillor! And, by the way, I recommend this Drain Layer: Trevor Allen 445 6543. |
There was a lovely news item in NZ Herald last week:
Water fit to swim in but not to drink
Water agencies say it is too costly to recycle the millions of litres of water pouring daily into the sea from Auckland's effluent treatment plants.
Higher treatment standards at the two plants serving metropolitan Auckland make the discharge at their sea outfalls fit to swim in, though not to drink.
A claim by the North Shore City Council on Friday that its plant "discharges 99.9 per cent water" prompted a Herald reader to ask why this 68 million litres of water was not being reused.
The reader, Jenny Bickerstaff, questioned whether it could not be used for irrigating council gardens or in car washes, instead of being wasted by discharging it into the ocean.
The Auckland Regional Council member for the North Shore, Dr Joel Cayford, supports the idea.
"The tighter the standard, the more obvious it becomes to provide for reuse," he said.
"Auckland's need for washing and grassland irrigation water during dry periods could readily be met by limited reticulation of highly treated water."
Dr Cayford said reuse of water could delay the time when Auckland's peak demand consumption called for an extra source of water.
Such options included a second Waikato River pipeline and a dam at Riverhead, to the city's northwest.
These options would cost about $200 million each.
But so far, North Shore City Council has only a trial of using water from its Rosedale plant to irrigate nearby trees.
City Water operations manager Steve Singleton said the plant's discharge quality was "very high" but was not fit for human consumption or for, say, watering park grass "because it may raise health and cultural issues".
Steps could be added to the treatment process to make the water drinkable and reused in the water supply, as was done in dry parts of Australia.
But the costs and Auckland's high rainfall made this uneconomic.
A reticulation system from the plant to users would cost about $30 million.
The adjacent Albany and Wairau Rd business areas required a full drinking water standard and potentially would take only 1 per cent of the plant's output.
Watercare Services' plant at Mangere, on the Manukau Harbour, investigated land application of treated wastewater on several occasions, said Watercare chief engineer Jim Hodges.
"The volumes involved at more than 300 million litres a day mean there is insufficient land available within tens of kilometres of the Mangere plant with the required soil types to accept treated wastewater.
"Under winter conditions the land can accept little or no treated wastewater.
"When costs, conflict with other land uses and public perception are taken into account, the option is not practicable."
Mr Hodges said Watercare continued to try to find industries that could use treated wastewater.
In the long term, with improved technology, Watercare's Three Waters strategy expected treated wastewater to become a significant source of drinking water.
Melbourne Water Q&A
1 What is recycled water?
Stormwater, greywater, rainwater and treated effluent are all alternative water supplies that, when treated as required, are suitable for a range of purposes. This can include irrigating grazing land and crops, in horticulture, industrial processing, in residential dual pipe schemes, and to keep our public and recreational spaces green. On this website, "recycled water" generally refers to fully treated effluent from sewage treatment plants. Recycled water is a valuable resource. It contributes to conservation of drinking quality water, improves the reliability of our water supplies, frees up water for the environment or growth, and reduces the amount of treated effluent discharged into our bays and oceans.
2. Is recycled water presently in use?
Recycled water is already being used in a wide range of applications, including the irrigation of agriculture, parklands and golf courses.
3. Can households use recycled water?
There are a number of residential developments planned for Melbourne, which will have dual pipe facilities enabling the use of recycled water for non-drinking applications such as toilet flushing and garden watering.
4. Why is recycled water being used?
Water is a precious resource, yet less than 10% of Australia's urban and industrial water is recycled. Melburnians use about 485,000 million litres of potable (drinking) water each year. Much of this is for uses that do not require drinking quality water, and could be substituted with recycled water. Water recycling is a socially, environmentally and economically viable solution to help preserve our drinking water supplies.
5. What are the benefits of using recycled water?
Recycled water has many benefits. It reduces the demand on fresh water and makes use of a precious resource that currently goes to waste. Water recycling schemes protect the environment by reducing the discharge of treated effluent to bays and the ocean.
6. How can recycled water be used?
In general terms, Class C recycled water can be used for crops such as tree plantations, vineyards and general agriculture, and irrigation of golf courses and parklands under controlled conditions. With further treatment to Class A, recycled water can be used on an unrestricted basis for horticulture, irrigation of market gardens and open space recreation, and for garden watering and toilet flushing through dual pipe residential development schemes.
7. Where does recycled water come from?
In most cases around metropolitan Melbourne, the source for recycled water is one of Melbourne Water's two sewage treatment facilities - the Eastern Treatment Plant at Bangholme and the Western Treatment Plant at Werribee, which provide large amounts of recycled water all year round. However, in some cases local treatment plants run by the metropolitan retail water companies also provide recycled water.
Another potential source of recycled water involves extracting and treating sewage along existing pipelines (sewer/water mining). The sewage is treated on location (away from an existing treatment plant) using a localised treatment plant. This solution provides another option for recycling, which can reduce the requirement for new pipelines and therefore increase the viability of some recycling proposals.
Stormwater recycling offers another on-site recycling option, with treated recycled rainwater used for non drinking water domestic applications.
8. What happens to treated effluent at present?
The majority of Melbourne's sewage is treated at Melbourne Water's Eastern and Western sewage treatment plants and discharged as treated effluent into Bass Strait and Port Phillip Bay. Approximately 11.3% of the total flow is recycled at present. In addition, large flows from the Western Treatment Plant are used for environmental flows for complex onsite wetland habitats.
Through the increased use of recycled water, we will be able to further reduce the volume of water discharged and use it in applications beneficial to the environment and the community.
9. Is recycled water safe?
Yes. Recycled water undergoes high standards of treatment to ensure it is fit for its intended purpose. There are standards that apply for its use. Regular monitoring and reporting is required to ensure the quality of water being supplied is fit for use.
10. Are there guidelines for recycled water use?
Yes. Recycled water can be safely used for a variety of purposes appropriate to the level of treatment it has undergone, in accordance with EPA Victoria's Guidelines for Environmental Management: Use of Reclaimed Water.
These standards are in line with interstate and international practice and permit a wide range of applications. Individual water recycling projects each require an Environment Improvement Plan, which complies with the requirements of EPA Victoria Visit EPA Victoria: http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/
11. How is recycled water defined?
Recycled water is defined as water that has been treated to a 'fit for purpose' standard for a specific application. The following water classes can all be used to replace potable water and, if used in an EPA-approved fit-for-purpose application, can be classified as recycled water:
Class Range of uses (uses include all lower class uses)
A Urban (non-potable): with uncontrolled public access.Agricultural: eg human food crops consumed raw.Industrial: open systems with worker exposure potential.
B Agricultural: eg dairy cattle grazing.Industrial: eg wash down water.
C Urban (non-potable) with controlled public access.Agricultural: eg human food crops cooked/processed, grazing/fodder for livestock.Industrial: systems with no potential worker exposure.
D Agricultural: non-food crops including instant turf, woodlots, flowers.
EPA Victoria: Guidelines for Environmental Management, Use of Reclaimed Water, September 2002
America’s century-old love affair with the automobile may be coming to an end. The U.S. fleet has apparently peaked and started to decline. In 2009, the 14 million cars scrapped exceeded the 10 million new cars sold, shrinking the U.S. fleet by 4 million, or nearly 2 percent in one year. While this is widely associated with the recession, it is in fact caused by several converging forces.
Future U.S. fleet size will be determined by the relationship between two trends: new car sales and cars scrapped. Cars scrapped exceeded new car sales in 2009 for the first time since World War II, shrinking the U.S. vehicle fleet from the all-time high of 250 million to 246 million. It now appears that this new trend of scrappage exceeding sales could continue through at least 2020.
Among the trends that are keeping sales well below the annual figure of 15–17 million that prevailed from 1994 through 2007 are market saturation, ongoing urbanization, economic uncertainty, oil insecurity, rising gasoline prices, frustration with traffic congestion, mounting concerns about climate change, and a declining interest in cars among young people.
Market saturation may be the dominant contributor to the peaking of the U.S... fleet. The United States now has 246 million registered motor vehicles and 209 million licensed drivers—-nearly 5 vehicles for every 4 drivers. When is enough enough?
Japan may offer some clues to the U.S. future. Both more densely populated and highly urbanized than the United States, Japan apparently reached car saturation in 1990. Since then its annual car sales have shrunk by 21 percent. The United States appears set to follow suit.
The car promised mobility, and in a largely rural United States it delivered. But with four out of five Americans now living in cities, the growth in urban car numbers at some point provides just the opposite: immobility. The Texas Transportation Institute reports that U.S. congestion costs, including fuel wasted and time lost, climbed from $17 billion in 1982 to $87 billion in 2007.
Mayors across the country are waging a strong fight to save their cities from cars, trying to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution. Many are using a “carrot-and-stick” approach to reduce costly traffic congestion by simultaneously improving public transportation while imposing restrictions on the use of cars.
Almost every U.S. city is either introducing new light rail lines, new subway lines, or express bus lines, or they are expanding and improving existing public transit systems in order to reduce dependence on cars. Among the cities following this path are Phoenix, Seattle, Houston, Nashville, and Washington, D.C. As urban transit systems expand and improve, commuters are turning to public transit as driving costs rise. Between 2005 and 2008, transit ridership climbed 9 percent in the United States. Many cities are also actively creating pedestrian and bicycle-friendly streets, making it easier to walk or bike to work.
Forward-looking cities are also reconsidering parking requirements for new buildings. Washington, D.C., for example, has rewritten its 50-year-old codes, reducing the number of parking spaces required with the construction of both commercial and residential buildings. Earlier codes that once required four parking spaces for every 1,000 square feet of retail space now require only one.
As parking fees rise, many cities are moving beyond coin-fed parking meters and replacing them with meters that use credit cards. The nation’s capital is making this shift in early 2010 as it raises street parking fees from 75¢ to $2 per hour.
Economic uncertainty makes some consumers reluctant to undertake the long-term debt associated with buying new cars. In tight economic circumstances, families are living with two cars instead of three, or one car instead of two. Some are dispensing with the car altogether. In Washington, D.C., with a well-developed transit system, only 63 percent of households own a car.
A more specific uncertainty is the future price of gasoline. Now that motorists know that gas prices can climb to $4 a gallon, they worry that it could go even higher in the future. Drivers are fully aware that much of the world’s oil comes from the politically volatile Middle East.
Perhaps the most fundamental social trend affecting the future of the automobile is the declining interest in cars among young people. For those who grew up a half-century ago in a country that was still heavily rural, getting a driver’s license and a car or a pickup was a rite of passage. Getting other teenagers into a car and driving around was a popular pastime.
In contrast, many of today’s young people living in a more urban society learn to live without cars. They socialize on the Internet and on smart phones, not in cars. Many do not even bother to get a driver’s license. This helps explain why, despite the largest U.S. teenage population ever, the number of teenagers with licenses, which peaked at 12 million in 1978, is now under 10 million. If this trend continues, the number of potential young car-buyers will continue to decline.
Beyond their declining interest in cars, young people are facing a financial squeeze. Real incomes among a large segment of society are no longer increasing. College graduates already saddled with college loan debt may find it difficult to get the credit to buy a car. Young job market entrants are often more interested in getting health insurance than in buying a car.
No one knows how many cars will be sold in the years ahead, but given the many forces at work, U.S. vehicle sales may never again reach the 17 million that were sold each year between 1999 and 2007. Sales seem more likely to remain between 10 million and 14 million per year.
Scrappage rates are easier to project. If we assume an auto life expectancy of 15 years, scrappage rates will lag new sales by 15 years. This means that the cars sold in the earliest of the elevated sales years of 15–17 million vehicles from 1994 through 2007 are just now reaching retirement age. Even though newer cars are more durable than earlier models, and may thus stay on the road somewhat longer on average, scrappage rates seem likely to exceed new car sales through at least 2020. Given a decline of 1–2 percent a year in the fleet from 2009 through 2020, the U.S. fleet could easily shrink by 10 percent (25 million), dropping from the 2008 fleet peak of 250 million to 225 million by 2020.
At the national level, shrinkage of the fleet combined with rising fuel efficiency will reinforce the trend of declining oil use that has been under way since 2007. This means reduced outlays for oil imports and thus more capital retained to invest in job creation within the United States. As people walk and bike more, it will mean less air pollution and fewer respiratory illnesses, more exercise and less obesity. This in turn will also reduce health care costs.
The coming shrinkage of the U.S. car fleet also means that there will be little need to build new roads and highways. Fewer cars on the road reduces highway and street maintenance costs and lessens demand for parking lots and parking garages. It also sets the stage for greater investment in public transit and high-speed intercity rail.
The United States is entering a new era, evolving from a car-dominated transport system to one that is much more diversified. As noted, this transition is driven by market saturation, economic trends, environmental concerns, and by a cultural shift away from cars that is most pronounced among young people. As this evolution proceeds, it will affect virtually every facet of life.
| The 7464 sq metre site is located in front of the three Scene apartment blocks, and was once home to Oriental Markets. I understand the site is 140 metres long, and 40 metres deep. It is on the corner of Britomart Place and Quay Street. The longest frontage is along Quay Street – across the road from the waterfront. The location and the sheer number of carparks tweaked my interest and concern. How can it be so easy to get consent to build a five story high carparking building, 140 metres long, fronting Auckland’s downtown waterfront, and pretty much in your face from Queens Wharf? |
| It appears the original consent for a building on this site – granted in early 2008 - included 1208 carparks (a lot), within the shell of a building containing apartments and other mixed uses – plus the cinema. Activated at the ground floor. I understand that about 3 levels of carparks were to be underground (basement), and 10 split levels above ground, to a total height of 17 metres. The above ground carparks would be behind the outer layer of apartments and other uses (these being 5 storys). From the street (Britomart Place and Quay Street) you would see apartments, shops, and other active uses. |
| As the Herald Newspaper article notes, Bluewater decided the market had changed, so decided to seek some changes to its consent. Apparently it successfully persuaded Auckland City Council that its s.127 application to change the conditions of consent for the proposed building, could be non-notified. It appears that evidence from Clinton Bird was instrumental. This was to the effect that the effects of a parking building on the site (with activation only at ground level), were much the same as the consented development. |
| Two daughters on the lawn at the bach under the brolly. Grass was like a desert. Will it ever be green again...? |
| Three daughters in the sand dunes at the beach. Pandering to my desire for a photo for the NZ Herald photo competition. You know: "She wears sea shells on the sea shore...." Did you know: the whelks all twist the same direction. Wonder if it's different in the Northern hemisphere. The things you think about on holiday.... |
| I know, the man's a killer of fish, hunter-gatherer. Fishing was very good this holiday. And so many dolphins about. We even saw Orca come up the estuary and go after sting ray. What a great place. |
| Rick Stein based casserole recipe for King Fish that is fantastic: Put par-boiled potato slices at bottom of baking dish, and add vegetables like skinned broad beans, sliced pepper, sliced mushroom, sliced zuccini, plus 75 ml olive oil, 200 ml stock, salt and peppper, and bake this lot at 200 for about half an hour. Then press into this base of baking vegetables, a dozen or so 3-4cm long steaks obtained by cutting across your King Fish back-steak fillet. You can use the steaks to impress fresh herbs into the heart of the casserole. Then sprinkle salt and pepper and put back in hot oven, where it will only take between 5 and 10 minutes to cook the fish perfectly. Juices soak into the vegetables. Then serve. |
