Download U rb an Ec o lo gy in Stru c tu re Pla nn in g : th e Lo ng B ay

Dave Slaven, Mark Lewis & Simon Chapman
Urban Ecology in Structure Planning:
the Long Bay Example
•Most of the catchment is currently farmland
•Last remaining rural catchment within Auckland’s
Metropolitan Limit
•Adjoins the Okura/Long Bay Marine Reserve
•Popular destination – well over a million visitors to
Long Bay Regional Park annually
•The northernmost of Auckland’s East Coast Bays
Long Bay:
“A framework to guide the development or
redevelopment of a particular area by defining
the future development & land use patterns,
areas of open space, the layout & nature of
infrastructure, & other key features for managing
the effects of development.”
Structure Planning
Define the area & identify stakeholders
Assemble & map natural resource,
physical resource & heritage info
Consultation
Develop & refine the ground rules
Implement the Structure Plan by
changing the District Plan
The Structure Planning Process
•Eventually... A community of 5000 people living in
a high quality environment
•Environment Court decision required cooperation
and compromise
•Two competing Structure Plans (Landco & NSCC)
•Controversial - The Great Park?
Long Bay Structure Plan
•Farmland: some habitat for birds, lizards, etc.
•Streams: some good fauna habitat & good
potential for restoration & enhancement
•Bush patches: relatively good diversity of
indigenous flora and fauna
•Extensive/intensive ecological investigations
Long Bay - ecology
2. Inanga
1. Ornate skink
Two case studies – tracking the
integration of ecology & design:
Case study: ornate skink (Oligosoma ornatum)
•Habitats: bush edges & rank grassland,
often found under logs and other debris
•Now considered to be a stronghold for
ornate skinks
•Few previous records in the area
Ornate skinks at Long Bay
•Create connections between habitats
•Create new habitats
•Relocate skinks from works areas
•Protect & enhance significant habitats
(covenants, fencing, predator control, etc.)
Protecting ornate skinks at Long Bay
•Provide refugia: log disks
•Provide dense low-growing vegetation –
especially at bush-grassland interfaces
•Maximise connectivity – even narrow
habitat corridors can work well for ornate
skinks
Design responses
Example revegetation planting cross-section
Skink-friendly planting schedules
Skink habitat enhancement examples
Enhancing skink habitat with log disks
• Degraded spawning habitat at
Long Bay
• Specific spawning habitat
requirements – upper estuary
streams with overhanging
riparian vegetation
• Important whitebait species
• An indigenous freshwater fish
species
Case study: inanga (Galaxias maculatus)
•Plant riparian species conducive to inanga
spawning
•Maximise the amount of habitat suitable for
inanga spawning
Design responses
•Collaborative multi-disciplinary approach –
planning, urban design, engineering,
surveying, architecture, landscape
architecture, ecology, etc.
E.g., restoration of ecological sequences
from the ridgetops to the sea
E.g., wetlands designed to detain & filter
stormwater, will also provide natural habitat
& public open space integrated with the
built environment
•Holistic approach – blurring the lines
Long Bay: integration of ecology & design