% 830 words

\section{Proposed activities and their potential effects}

All three major stations in the lifecycle of the proposed dairy
factory have to be considered for an assessment of the potential
effects of the project: preparation of the site and construction,
operation, and eventual close-down of the facility. For the purposes
of this assignment only the potential impacts of the first two stages
shall be addressed as they dominate the life cycle effects. This
includes the following activities:

\begin{enumerate}
\item site preparation and construction work
\item water allocation and abstraction
\item treatment of solid and liquid wastes
\item waste water discharge
\item packaging of produced good
\item transport of raw materials and goods
\end{enumerate}

The different activities at different stages may result in similar
effects on a given component of the socio-economic or physical
environment, and many impacts can cause a cascade of other effects of
varying significance. All project activities are to be evaluated
against selected components of the environment, including

\begin{inparaenum}
\item air and atmosphere;
\item water and soil;
\item vegetation and habitat;
\item human health;
\item amenity values and cultural heritage;
\item economic base; and
\item demography.
\end{inparaenum}


\subsection{Expected effects on water, soil and air}

The proposed dairy processing facility is supposed to be located close
to the river for easy access to water and for the convenient discharge
of waste water back into the river.  The preparation of the site for
construction in proximity to the river as well as the proposed take
and discharge activities during operation of the factory have direct
effects on water quality parameters. Changes to the properties of the
body of water (e.g. sediment load, changes in flow patterns, increases
in nutrient levels) affect not merely aesthetical values held by
residents of the affected region, but are likely to have impacts on
the composition of aquatic communities and the health of riparian and
aquatic ecosystems.

% TODO soil and air

\subsubsection{Construction}

Preparing the selected site for construction requires the displacement
of existing uses. On a site close to the river in a rural area, the
site may be populated by riparian vegetation. Vegetation in the
riparian area and the adjoining uplands may serve as a filter,
reducing the amount of sediment, excess nutrients and other pollutants
entering the river \parencite{riparian}. This filtering ability is
particularly valuable in a region where dairy farming is expanding and
with it the cumulative impact of non-point sources of farm effluent is
increasing. The clearing of vegetation may also directly reduce
available habitat for native species, such as frogs and insects with
aquatic larvae \parencite{riparian-management}. This impact can mostly
be avoided by selecting a site that has already been cleared and does
not serve as important habitat to native species.

During dredging and excavation works on the construction site or
during the removal of sediments away from the site, sediments may
spill into nearby water bodies. An excessive increase in suspended
sediments in the river affects water clarity, thereby reducing
penetration with sunlight which is needed by aquatic plants and algae
to grow. Increased turbidity may also make it difficult for fish to
find food or detect predators \parencite{niwa-sediment}. As the
sediment load of a river increases, its flow characteristics
change\footnote{The cascading effects of changes to flow parameters
are addressed in later sections.} and invertebrate habitat may be
destroyed by smothering animals, plants and the
river-bed. Sedimentation is less of a problem when the construction
site and the transport routes are chosen to be not in the immediate
vicinity of the river or other bodies of water.

\subsubsection{Effects during operation}

During operation of the diary factory water is abstracted from the
nearby river to sustain the production activities. The amount of water
that is used by a dairy factory depends on a variety on parameters,
including the range of products that the factory produces and the
operations that are involved in production; in New Zealand about 2.2
litres of water are used for every litre of milk that is being
processed \parencite[Fonterra data, cited
in][]{vanasselt}\footnote{When dairy farming is included in the
calculations, one litre of milk requires almost 1,000 litres of water
on average.}. According to \textcite{vanasselt}, dairy processing
plants use water mainly for cleaning and sanitising operations, as
well as heating and cooling.

The \textcite[][p. 110]{growing} summarises the potential impacts of
water take as follows:

\begin{quote}
  The environmental effects of water allocation are twofold – the
  effects of the reduction of water in the water bodies and the
  effects the use of that water may have on water quality.
  Abstraction of water from surface water or groundwater, will have an
  impact on the ecosystems reliant on that water, for example, by
  reducing the flow of a river, or increasing the temperature of the
  water. Thus a reduced flow may mean that the river is no longer a
  suitable habitat or breeding ground for a type of fish.
\end{quote}

% TODO: more?

% TODO: CONTINUE HERE!

The major waste material from processing milk in a dairy factory is
wastewater carrying organic components (such as proteins, lactose and
fat) and inorganic components (e.g. nutrients). Wastewater includes
both water that has been removed from the milk and abstracted water
that has been used to sanitise equipment, clean the factory, or for
heating and cooling.

According to \textcite{vanasselt}, milk is repeatedly heated and
cooled during its way through the factory. UHT (ulta-high temperature)
treatment and other processes used to kill off harmful bacteria in the
milk, for example, results in heated wastewater. As most aquatic
ecosystems are very sensitive to temperature, discharges of warm
wastewater could significantly affect the composition and dynamics of
aquatic communities around the discharge location; hence, wastewater
discharges are usually required not to alter the natural temperature
of the sink waterway by more than one to two
degrees \parencite{chemical}.  According to the project description,
an existing dairy factory discharges wastewater that is two degrees
warmer than the river water. If the planned factory has a comparable
wastewater output, the water may have to be treated before discharge
to avoid significant effects on the aquatic ecosystem.

\subsection{Socio-economic effects}

- workers during construction
- more jobs during operation
- positive impact on economy (higher exports, more competition?)
- higher stress on social services for workers in the region
- loss of vegetation + discharge of wastewater: less beautiful


\section{SCRATCH AREA}


from NIWA:
http://www.niwa.co.nz/our-science/freshwater/tools/kaitiaki_tools/land-use/meat-processing/impacts/water-resources-and-MDP

  - Changes in flow - changes in water levels and flow variability
    alters available mahinga kai habitat and the invertebrates they
    feed on.

  - Reduction in specialist habitats - a decrease in water levels
    reduces flow to riparian wetlands, backwaters, and intermittent
    streams.

  - Changes in sediment accumulation - flow reduction affects movement
    and deposition of sediments in streams and rivers.

  - Decreases in species abundance and diversity - aquatic species
    have developed life history strategies in direct response to
    natural flows; for example, diadromous fish species migrate up and
    down the river at various times of the year and rely on preferred
    velocities and depths.

  - Increases in algae accumulation - algae respond to changes in
    temperature and nutrients, which are likely to increase with
    reduction of flow, especially during summer months.


- contamination
- nutrient overloading
  - 

\subsection{Transportation of raw materials and produce}



\subsection{Cumulative impacts}


- social impacts
  - more jobs 

- must consider cumulative impact of increased dairy *farming*
- consider effects of existing factory with permits for another decade
- farm runoffs pollute the river according to locals

NZ water problems \parencite{cullen}:

- agricultural irrigation increased by 55\% per decade
- water quality:
  - non-point sources (e.g. nutrient run-off)
  - access to waterways by cattle
  - urban develpment
  - forestry

- water management through regional councils:
  - regional policy statements + regional plans
  - unless authorised by plan discharges require resource consents
  
impact of agriculture on water:

- primary source of non-point discharges
  - application of fertiliser and pesticides
  - discharges from the soil and animals
  - materials move into surface and groundwater at higher rates than usual
- discharge from animals increases E. coli concentrations
- 


monitoring / significance implications:
- lack of reliable data against which to draw conclusions for key parameters in all regions
- lack of approved plans relating to water in some regions
  - require councils to set realistic goals and objectives; difficult
    because has to reconcile urban recreational and environmental
    requirements with rural economic demands
  - too little policy direction from central government
- even without these plans, councils must process resource consent applications
- lack of monitoring and enforcement
  - low compliance
  - impossible to determine the efficacy of management practices
- limited knowledge on how to best deal with non-point source discharges
- little knowledge about what the community wants and expects wrt water management


% Dairy farming has recently expanded in the Waiwhetu region, providing
% a boost to the local economy. To cope with the increased milk
% production, a dairy company is proposing to set up a new factory. The
% factory will be located close to the Waiwhetu River, the region’s main
% waterway. To operate the new factory, the proponents want to take
% water from the river and discharge wastewater from the plant back into
% the waterway.
% 
% There is already a dairy factory in the area producing milk products.
% The factory has existing discharge permits which are not up for review
% for another 10 years. At present, it uses 10,000 cubic metres of water
% from the river and discharges the same amount into the waterway. The
% wastewater is two degrees celsius warmer than the temperature of the
% river.
% 
% Many prominent people are welcoming the growth of dairying in the
% region and believe the new factory will bring more jobs to the area.
% However, others are concerned about the potential environmental
% impacts of the development. Environment groups and iwi argue water
% quality is already being affected by waste generated from local farms
% and want to see the river cleaned up.
% 
% Note: Waiwhetu is a fictitious region