Volume One 14. Use of the Rural Environment [D] Policy 14.1.8 – Some management activities associated with primary production cause effects that may adversely affect the environment (including human health) and resource consent will be required to enable the Marlborough District Council to monitor effects. Some machines and devices used in primary production activities have the potential to generate noise, which can create a nuisance to residential activities in the rural area. For example, frost fans used by primary producers to protect crops from damage can generate significant off-site noise emissions affecting human health and conflicting with the usually quiet night and early morning rural environment. It is important that limits are placed on the establishment and operation of these devices to ensure that noise levels do not result in unreasonable or unnecessary noise, while ensuring the effectiveness of these devices in serving the purpose for which they are designed is maintained. [D] Policy 14.1.9 – Manage the effects of primary production activities to ensure the environmental qualities and amenity values in adjoining residential zones are not unreasonably degraded, bearing in mind their location adjacent to a primary production environment. Activities within rural environments can generate effects that are unacceptable in residential environments, including noise, smell, dust and the utilitarian appearance of some rural buildings (compared to those within residential environments). Therefore, effects will be controlled at the interface between rural and residential zones to minimise potential conflicts and protect amenity. Requirements for new or expanding activities in rural environments near a zone boundary may include more effective visual screening, setbacks of dense planting and buildings and more restrictive noise levels than standards for rural environments would generally require. [R, D] Policy 14.1.10 – Control water levels in the Marlborough District Council-administered drainage network by removing surplus water from the soils of the Lower Wairau Plain to enable primary production activities to continue. This policy signals that the Council intends to continue to maintain its drainage network as a means of allowing landowners and resource users to continue accessing the productive capacity of the soil resources of the Lower Wairau Plain. This will require the active control of water levels within the drainage network and the maintenance of drains, small rivers and infrastructure (e.g. pumps, flood gates) that make up the network. [RPS, D] Objective 14.2 – The sustainability of Marlborough’s rural economy is not adversely affected by the spread or introduction of pests. All of Marlborough’s primary producing industries are potentially vulnerable to incursions or infestations by pests. While there has been a long history of pest management in Marlborough in traditional farming sectors, pest management has not been so apparent for other primary producing activities. Pests could also have an impact on the tourism industry: for example, the spread of didymo into Marlborough’s waterways could see a reduction in recreational opportunities. For Marlborough’s economy to continue to be successful it is important that appropriate plans are in place to manage incursions or the spread of pests. [D] Policy 14.2.1 – The Marlborough District Council will support any national response to an incursion of a pest(s) where this occurs, if it has the potential to reach Marlborough or is already present and/or has the potential to affect Marlborough’s primary production sector. Marlborough is vulnerable to incursions from pests from overseas and other parts of New Zealand. There are many roles for managing the spread of pests, from central government through local government and individual landowners. The Ministry for Primary Industries has the 14 – 5