25 August 2011 Chapter 9 - Coastal Marine The Act requires that any money received by the Council from a coastal occupation charge must be used only for the purpose of promoting the sustainable management of the coastal marine area. Through the Marlborough Regional Policy Statement, this Plan and State of the Environment Monitoring, the Council has already set out some of the issues for sustainably managing the coastal marine area. In the context of this Plan, issues concerned with promoting the sustainable management of the coastal marine area can be found in many of the chapters of the Plan, given the integrated nature of the document. However those chapters of specific relevance include the following: Tangata Whenua (2), Heritage (3); Flora and Fauna and their Habitats (4); Landscape (5); Public Access (8); Coastal Marine (9); and Natural Character (10). 9.1.2 Aquaculture Management A reform of the legislation covering the management of marine farming – the Aquaculture Reform 2004 - came into effect on 1 January 2005. The aim of the reform was to create a more integrated aquaculture management regime, with a balance between enabling economic development, looking after the environment, settling the Crown’s Treaty obligations to Maori, and responding to community concerns. As a result of this reform, marine farming is now mostly covered by the Resource Management Act, with one process for planning where marine farms should go and for granting consents for them to occupy coastal space. Areas for new marine farming (Aquaculture Management Areas – AMAs) need to be identified in the Plan, and coastal permits for marine farms within AMAs are issued by the Council. The Ministry of Fisheries contributes to the Plan process by testing for any undue adverse effects on commercial, customary or recreational fisheries prior to an AMA being approved in the Plan. Space within AMAs is also to be allocated to iwi to settle Maori claims to commercial marine farming. The Act states that aquaculture activities (marine farming) can only take place within areas identified in the Plan as AMAs. Marine farming is prohibited outside AMAs. Council has the main role in managing marine farming in the Wairau/ Awatere plan area. Providing for marine farming within AMAs enables effects on the community, environment and economy to be managed in an integrated way through the Plan preparation processes, before individual applications for marine farms are considered. The cumulative effects of several marine farms in one area can also be considered. The Ministry of Fisheries (MFish) continues to play a significant role in the creation of AMAs. Before starting on the public notification processes for including a new AMA in the Plan, Council must request MFish to undertake an assessment as to whether the proposed AMA would have an “undue adverse effect” on commercial, customary or recreational fishing. Areas within the proposed AMA that would unduly affect customary or recreational fishing will be removed from the proposal prior to notification. Any areas that would unduly affect commercial fishing will be identified in the Plan and anyone wanting to establish a marine farm in those parts of the AMA must first reach an agreement with the affected quota holders before they can apply for a resource consent. Part of the Aquaculture Reform 2004 included the settlement of Treaty of Waitangi commercial aquaculture claims through the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004. These provisions are intended to settle all Maori claims to commercial marine farming interests since September 1992. Iwi are provided with an allocation of area for marine farming equivalent to 20% of marine farming spaces 9 - 3