Well, the birds hit the fan last week when BayBuzz reported that HB Airport’s new chief executive told the Napier City Council the airport flatly opposed creation of NCC’s proposed Ahuriri Regional Park.
The reason: concern about heightened risk of bird strike (i.e. birds flying into planes and damaging them, perhaps fatally) if wetlands were expanded around the airport.
HB Airport is already by far NZ’s most bird strike prone airport, accounting for 83 ‘bird incidents’ per 10,000 plane movements (take-offs and landings). Next closest is Invercargill at 34/10,000. The NZ average is 14.7/10,000.
NZ’s Civil Aviation Agency compiles these stats and takes the issue seriously. They’ve developed a model to help airports assess their risks.
NCC was shocked by CEO Nick Flack’s statement.
BayBuzz was impressed by his bluntness.
Since then, alerted to the news that nearly 15,000 people read the BayBuzz article, the involved parties have conferred! And given feedback to BayBuzz.
HB Airport has ‘clarified’ its stance, providing this statement from CEO Nick Flack to BayBuzz:
“In my presentation to Napier City Council at the meeting on 10th April, I said that the Airport does not support the proposed Ahuriri Regional Park in its current form because of the large wetland created and the already high bird strike rate. Hawke’s Bay Airport is focused on operating a safe, efficient, and commercial airport that adheres to the Civil Aviation Act, including the management of wildlife in and around the vicinity of the airport.
“While we remain apprehensive, we are supportive of the Project’s Joint Committee and Technical Group process of carrying out wildlife and avifauna studies to articulate the change in wildlife and bird strike risk as a result of the project.
“We are also committed to working constructively with Council, Mana Ahuriri and Air New Zealand on a solution that enhances biodiversity and improves stormwater quality in a manner that minimises bird strike risk.”
Hmmm … apprehensive pending acceptable solution.
I met with the Park team for a ‘cup of tea’ — Mayor Wise, chief project advocate Councillor Brosnan, HBRC Chair Ormsby and Mana Ahuriri’s general manager Parris Greening.
For its part, NCC maintains that it has always identified bird strike danger as the “greatest strategic risk” to the project, and that a robust process has been underway to understand the risk and identify means of mitigating it, including engagement of qualified avian experts. Indeed NCC is hopeful that mitigation measures might actually reduce the risk.
This technical assessment will continue and, BayBuzz was told, be subject to independent peer review. And Mayor Kirsten Wise said flatly that NCC will not support the Park unless satisfactory mitigation measures can be identified and implemented.
Nevertheless, NCC has advanced the proposal without previously making public mention of bird strike as the “greatest strategic risk”. Its current public consultation on the project did not mention that risk until I noted its absence. NCC having the view it was “too soon in the process” to raise the issue. It’s now discussed in the consultation FAQs.
Although smaller in scale, this is reminiscent of HBRC’s investment arm (HBRIC) spending several years and $20 million on a dam proposal in CHB without having firmly secured the right to flood conservation land.
In this case, the cart before the bird.
Ultimately there’s only one voice that really matters on this issue … and that belongs to Air New Zealand. Ultimately it’s the airline flying the planes that will need to be satisfied that whatever bird strike risk is projected is acceptable, and then take responsibility for assuring their passengers of their flight safety. As of course they presently do, in full awareness of the current statistics.
Were a bird strike accident to occur, particularly after this issue has been clearly identified and safety questioned, the lawyers would first come after Air NZ, then HB Airport and its owners … presently including two local councils and potential new owner, Mana Ahuriri.
So all eyes on Air NZ as the review process proceeds in the transparent manner we have been promised.
To state the obvious, air travel is not already without risk (much lower than auto travel). Anyone getting on a plane today implicitly accepts that risk. Does flying in and out of the NZ airport with highest incidence of bird strike materially affect that risk?
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization, between 1988 and 2023, there were 262 human fatalities and 250 aircraft destroyed worldwide due to bird strikes. Globally, deaths from birdstrike-caused airplane incidents are estimated at less than 1 per 2 billion person-miles flown. I suspect most readers can live with that.
Actually, readers of last week’s BayBuzz article were more vocal about HB Airport’s location in the first place, with commenters noting the risks to the facility from flooding (viewed as exacerbated by climate change) and earthquake-triggered tsunami (ever closer according to the experts).
Time to buy land in Bridge Pa?
It has been noted Nick Flack wants an 8km buffer zone for the airport. He used to work at Christchurch Airport – wonder what the ratepayers thought of him there? As for the Hawke’s Bay Councils and Mana Ahuriri, I think they are all reading the room at the moment and getting ready for their last term or last lot of handouts from the ratepayers. All as bad as each other.
The previous article comments suggested a move to Bridge Pa – not just for bird strikes – but for reasons of reduction of risk in the event of a natural disaster that could almost certainly knock out the airport in its current position. To my mind that still applies and such a move (admittedly very expensive) would clear all that land for development and allow expansion of the wet lands to a much greater degree without the attendant risks to air travel
Tom, you show a photograph of a godwit here. Have they ever been the subject of bird strike?
It does seem crazy developing this park in the Airport flight path.
Make sense To allow commercial activity adjacent to Prebensen drive. Where else is Napier going to expand. No all development is going over to Hastings. Just as well the expressway extra lanes are on their way.
Thanks for your comment, Mark. Are you from the Airport or Mana Ahuriri? Do flights go over your property 24/7? If not, please ask the airport to reroute over your place.
Absolutely crazy idea! Leave it well alone.
It may well be boring to some.
However, in the real world of things that truly matter! NCC needs to fully concentrate on its core business, “critical infrastructure”. Adequate stormwater / sewage disposal, clean drinkable tap water, rubbish removal, roading and footpaths……
And put a stop, to making rates bills unaffordable!
Time for a change
I choose birds over planes and ratepayers keeping their $ over a $20 million wetlands. Mana Ahuriri, you want it? You pay for it. We’ve given you more than enough.