The report summarises the progress of actions of the ORC’s Climate Strategy and its effectiveness in coordinating and highlighting the climate-related work across ORC – covering the six months since it was adopted by ORC, in December 2024.

Actions include those which will drive a reduction of the organisation’s carbon emissions, several that will deliver better environmental monitoring, and others that will lead to the region adapting to a changing climate.

ORC’s Manager Strategy, Hilary Lennox, says of the 53 actions identified in the Climate Strategy, six have been completed and 43 are “on track”, while four actions are “off track”, the latter mainly awaiting the outcome of central government policy reform.

“The 2024 Climate Strategy reiterates that climate is a strong role in all the mahi of ORC,” Ms Lennox says.

A theme in the Climate Strategy is focusing on the ORC’s greenhouse gas emissions. These include emissions from the council’s car fleet and those produced from Otago’s public transport services.

She notes with the formal Climate Strategy having only begun six months ago, the first comprehensive assessment of ORC’s carbon emissions is currently underway and is expected to be finalised and to go before Council later this year. The emissions inventory will provide a foundation for the ORC’s emission reduction plan to be developed.

Several actions focus on ensuring the environmental monitoring network is tuned to detect changes in the environment that are predicted to occur in future, which in some cases will involve including additional climate monitoring parameters, Ms Lennox says.

“Our monitoring programme informs assessments of climate-related impacts around Otago, which includes things like changes in groundwater, coastal and river morphology, airborne particulates and sea-level rise,” she says.

The ORC has legislative requirements in adapting to a changing climate, which includes work on flood protection schemes and other climate change hazard mitigations.

“A highlight from the actions is the collaborative and community-facing work being carried out in climate adaptation, which includes projects and programmes such as South Dunedin Futures and around Glenorchy’s Head of the Lake project, both of which have reached significant milestones during the reporting period,” Ms Lennox says.

The 53 actions cover numerous directorates within ORC, including Strategy, Science, Policy and Planning, Natural Hazards, Engineering, Environmental Implementation, Environmental Monitoring, Compliance, Emergency Management/Civil Defence, Transport, Fleet and Facilities, Finance, Communications and Marketing, and Partnerships and Engagement.

Climate change touches on a myriad of risks, from wildfires and alluvial fans, erosion and groundwater levels and assets such as ORC’s flood banks and through to emergency management, she says.

Ms Lennox says the 2024 Climate Strategy has informed several ORC work programmes, including development of the Draft Regional Public Transport Plan 2025-2035; the draft Indigenous Biodiversity Strategy; climate change considerations for the Regional Pest Management Plan and in the ongoing development of the Integrated Catchment Management plans.

Of the four actions that are “off track”, Ms Lennox says they include exploring ways to decarbonise the Total Mobility scheme, developing a public and active transport connectivity strategy and notifying the Regional Land and Water Plan.

“These illustrate the impact central government direction can have on these matters at the regional council level,” she says.

“Having a Climate Strategy has increased the ORC’s credibility, with the organisation well placed to continue building public perception of the ORC as a regional leader on climate action, and also as a trusted source of information regarding our climate future,” she says.

This leadership is reflected in ORC’s engagement with peers from Otago’s numerous territorial authorities, members of the Zero Carbon Alliance, and with peers nationally, Ms Lennox says.

There has been the expansion and refresh of the Zero Carbon Alliance; ORC working with other councils to determine how to ensure the next Otago Climate Change Risk Assessment meets the needs of the region; and preparing a submission on Dunedin City Council’s 9 Year Plan to express support for climate related work which would act as a multiplier for ORC’s own work.

During the lifespan of the 2024-2034 Long-Term Plan, $650,000 has been set aside for implementation of the 2024 Climate Strategy.

The annual report on the implementation and effectiveness of the 2024 Climate Strategy will go before Council on Wednesday, 25 June, to be noted. The full annual report is now available online within the meeting Agenda.