Rates are an essential part of the funding that allows Auckland Council to maintain a vibrant and sustainable Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s how we fund the services and facilities that matter and help create a city where all Aucklanders can thrive.
Strongly supported by Aucklanders, Auckland Council introduced the natural environment and water quality targeted rates in 2018. These targeted rates are ring-fenced for the purpose they are collected – this means they must be used to protect the environment or our waterways. They’re one of the ways we can continue to invest in, protect and restore our natural environment as well as improve water quality and clean up our waterways.
These targeted rates contribute to many projects and help us support important community efforts.
Councillor Richard Hills, Chair of the Policy and Planning Committee celebrated the significant progress made towards restoring and protecting our natural environment and waterways, which is demonstrated in the 2024/2025 annual progress report.
“Through Auckland Council’s Long-term Plan 2024-2034, Aucklanders once again submitted strongly in favour of the targeted rate programmes. The Governing Body approved $350 million for a Natural Environment Targeted Rate for council and community-led action to protect and restore priority native ecosystems and threatened species,” says Cr Hills.
“Another $661 million was committed for a Water Quality Targeted Rate for new water infrastructure to create healthy habitats for plants and animals while also cleaning up our beaches, harbours and waterways. This includes the funding that has allowed us to continue work on resolving long-term water quality issues right across Auckland, with notable mentions being the Eastern and Western Isthmus Water Quality Improvement Programme.
“The 2024/2025 targeted rate also reflects that we don’t get these fantastic results without the significant support and collaboration of mana whenua and community partners.
“An amazing example of this collaboration is the recent release of 10 kiwi on Waiheke Island, the first reintroduction of kiwi in urban Auckland. This result is due to the mahi and persistence of Te Korowai o Waiheke in reducing stoat numbers so kiwi and other manu can flourish. We are seeing tangible benefits, not only in our parks, reserves and beaches but in our backyards and neighbourhoods as well,” says Cr Hills.
“What makes this mahi always so exceptional is the tireless commitment over the last seven years, from our partnership with mana whenua as kaitiaki and rangatira of Tāmaki Makaurau and their work in restoring the mauri of te taiao, to the efforts of communities and businesses alongside our kaimahi who have contributed to achieving our remarkable environmental and water quality aspirations.”
Targeted rates in action
Samantha Hill, General Manager Environmental Services, is proud to share the continued success and impact of the Natural Environment Targeted Rate across the Auckland region, now in its sixth year.
“These achievements reflect our commitment to protecting Auckland’s unique ecosystems and native species for current and future generations,” she says.
This programme has been instrumental in reducing pest numbers in key biodiversity areas, safeguarding the pest-free status of islands in the Hauraki Gulf, managing the impact of kauri dieback and maintaining exclusion zones for deer and goats in Te Ngāherehere o Kohukohunui / Hūnua and Waitākere Ranges.
“Central to our success is the strong and enduring relationships we have built with mana whenua across the region as well as community involvement. By fostering local leadership and empowering mana whenua, community groups and schools, we expand the reach and impact of conservation activity. Together, we’re creating a resilient network of environmental stewards who are helping to protect Auckland’s natural taonga for generations to come,” says Ms Hill.
Craig Mcilroy, General Manager Healthy Waters and Flood Resilience, says that the Water Quality Targeted Rate is more than an infrastructure investment – it’s a promise to future generations that we will leave our environment better than we found it.
“Through this dedicated investment, we are delivering transformative stormwater infrastructure and innovative programmes to reduce wastewater overflows, sediment, and pollutants that contaminate our waterways and marine environment. Every project under this programme has a shared purpose: to protect public health, improve the ecological health of our waterways, and reduce Safeswim warnings across the region,” he says.
Through the Western Isthmus Water Quality Improvement Programme, we’re fast-tracking major infrastructure upgrades. In partnership with Watercare, this work is significantly reducing wastewater overflows into the Waitematā Harbour and building the stormwater infrastructure necessary for long-term water quality improvements.
On the eastern side of the city, the Eastern Isthmus Water Quality Improvement Programme is being delivered in tandem with critical projects like the Central Interceptor and the Newmarket Gully Tunnel. So far, 1.5 kilometres of new public stormwater pipe has been built, with 17.4 kilometres in design, supporting the separation of over 1,300 properties from the combined network.
“Every metre of pipe laid, every restored stream bank, and every pollutant prevented from entering our harbours brings us a step closer to swimmable, fishable, and thriving waterways,” says Mr Mcilroy.
