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Rodney’s rural communities want better roads, more resilient infrastructure and greater protection of productive land as the district comes under increasing pressure from growth.
That was the message Rodney Local Board member Paul Manton took to a recent meeting of Auckland Council’s Rural Advisory Panel in a presentation outlining some of the challenges facing the region’s rural and coastal communities.
Manton said Rodney’s rural economy was diverse, encompassing dairying, sheep and beef farming, horticulture, viticulture, forestry, equine industries and rural tourism, alongside a growing number of lifestyle blocks.
However, across the district, many of the concerns being raised with the local board were similar.
Rural roads and transport safety were prominent, along with flood resilience, water quality, protection of productive land and whether infrastructure was keeping pace with population growth.
Poor rural broadband and mobile coverage also remained an issue, particularly given the importance of communications during emergencies.
Manton said communities were looking to the board to advocate for better maintenance of rural roads, faster delivery of transport projects, improved public transport connections and greater investment in infrastructure.
Recent severe weather had highlighted the vulnerability of rural roads, bridges and culverts, as well as the difficulties faced when communities became isolated.
Emergency preparedness was consequently an important area of focus for the board.
Manton also highlighted the increasingly difficult balancing act created by Auckland’s outward growth.
The board regularly encountered competing interests involving urban expansion and productive land, development and environmental protection, tourism and its impacts on residents, and rural industries operating alongside people with different expectations of the countryside.
Maintaining Rodney’s rural character while accommodating growth was a recurring concern.
Environmental priorities included the health of the Kaipara Harbour, freshwater and stream restoration, wetland protection, pest control, restoration of native habitats and sustainable land management. Manton pointed to community environmental programmes, catchment restoration projects and partnerships with landowners as examples of work already underway.
Rodney’s extensive coastline added another dimension.
Farming, tourism and coastal environments often operated side-by-side, while coastal settlements were experiencing growth and heavy seasonal visitor pressure.
Issues raised by these communities included coastal erosion, storm resilience and emergency access, pressure on infrastructure during holiday periods, and protection of harbours, estuaries and beaches.
Manton said the local board’s role was not necessarily to resolve all these issues itself, but to advocate for rural communities, bring interested parties together and ensure Rodney’s perspective was heard when regional decisions were made.
