Services

Effects assessments are our bread and butter at Ecological Solutions.

With extensive experience at developing and implementing plans to obtain resource consents for a wide range of industries and activities in environments that range from highly modified to highly sensitive, we can help you with:

• Water abstraction and use
• Treated wastewater discharge
• Stormwater discharge
• Damming and diversion of watercourses
• Land development
• Stream and wetland restoration (see more on this below).

We specialise in implementing environmental monitoring programmes that not only meet the requirements of regulatory authorities but maximise the benefits to resource consent holders.

We can help with:

• Water and sediment quality surveys
• Aquatic plant surveys
• Instream habitat surveys
• Benthic invertebrate surveys
• Terrestrial plant, habitat, and fauna surveys
• Freshwater native, exotic, and sports fish surveys
• Recreational use surveys

With the spotlight on stream and wetland protection, it is important to identify any freshwater habitats within your site early in a project.

We are experts in classifying and mapping streams in accordance with regional plan criteria and wetlands in accordance with RMA and National Policy Statement definitions.

The principles of ecological offsetting and compensation are firmly embedded in the National Policy Statements for Freshwater Management 2020 (NPS-FM) and Indigenous Biodiversity 2023 (NPS-IB) for the management of significant adverse residual effects.

We are skilled at assessing, designing and monitoring fit for purpose ecological offset and compensation packages using best practice tools and models to assist in achieving ‘no net loss’ or a ‘net gain’ in ecological values.

Our services include:

• Ecological assessment and planning to minimise adverse residual effects
• Robust quantitative and qualitative offset/compensation design
• Offset and compensation performance monitoring to ensure compliance with consent conditions and realisation of the ecological gains envisioned

With the rehabilitation of NZ’s biodiversity on the rise, we’ve been part of a number of exciting restoration projects.

As a result, we can advise you on the principles and practices of effective restoration through the following activities:

• Freshwater and terrestrial restoration plans
• Consent acquisition and monitoring
• Stream ecological valuations
• Fish barrier remediation
• Pest and native fish management
• Native fish relocation
• Terrestrial fauna relocation
• Planting plan preparation and post-planting audits

We are experienced in providing robust technical assessments for water takes, using instream habitat modelling (SEFA software).

Our services include:

• Effects assessments on instream flora and fauna from habitat surveys and modelling
• Determining minimum flow requirements for water takes
• Fish screen advice for water take infrastructure

New Zealand’s indigenous bats are cryptic, highly mobile and absolutely protected fauna. Our expert habitat assessment, mitigation, and management planning ensure compliance with consent conditions and the Wildlife Act. 

We offer comprehensive support for landowners, developers, and local authorities throughout all project phases – from initial surveys to post-development monitoring.

Our services include:

• Habitat suitability assessments including potential bat roost risk assessments
• Bat activity & roost surveys
• Bat management planning and the implementation of bat roost protocols for vegetation clearance
• Habitat creation and enhancement
• Bat activity monitoring pre and post development

Bryophytes (mosses, liverworts and hornworts) play vital roles in ecosystems including water retention, soil formation, nutrient recycling, and provide habitats for microfauna. They are also indicators of environmental health.

We can help you with:

• Terrestrial and freshwater bryophyte identification
• Instream and terrestrial habitat surveys
• Rehabilitation assessments
• Conservation priority mapping

Our ecology services include expert representation at hearings, caucusing and the Environment Court.

Richard Montgomerie and Gary Bramley have prepared and presented evidence at many hearings and are adept at presenting expert evidence in a manner that is readily understood by a non technical audience.

We want to understand your specific needs so that we can tailor our comprehensive expertise accordingly.

Our goal is to help your projects succeed whilst meeting their environmental obligations, on time, and on budget.
Working together, we can:

• Develop and implement effective resource consent strategies that minimise risks to project timelines and budgets
• Form and manage project teams as needed
• Develop and implement effective project communication strategies
• Engage stakeholders and members of the public as required
• Secure the consent conditions that are practical and manageable for your organisation
• Evolve our services to your changing needs

Having worked on a diverse range of projects across NZ and Europe, we are experts at developing integrated catchment management plans.

We can help your business develop sustainable plans for urban and rural waterways throughout New Zealand. Our catchment management services include:

• Developing management plans for urban catchments
• Nutrient assessment and management in waterways
• Land use and land management effects assessments
• Providing expert assessment of ecological values and ecological management
• Defining and managing nutrient sensitive zones

Spatial conservation priority / zonation mapping involves delineating an area based on ecological factors to help make informed decisions about land use and conservation by identifying areas that are crucial for maintaining biodiversity, habitat quality, and connectivity.

Applications include:

• Land use planning
• Planning for ecological impact avoidance
• Development projects, targeting of habitat restoration
• Spatial planning for biodiversity offsets

We have worked alongside iwi/hapu to assess the cultural and biological health of streams and catchments using the Cultural Health Index (CHI) methodology.

This begins by engaging with key stakeholders to gain a solid understanding of the relevant cultural considerations, working with iwi/hapu to ensure the survey design is fit for purpose, and integrating CHI and scientific survey results to measure stream, river and catchment health.

The way that an organisation responds to spills can have significant impacts on the severity of environmental effects.

We act as quick-response freshwater specialists that can:

• Rapidly assess effects and potential interventions
• Quantify and assess the sources of contamination, its pathways and receptors
• Prepare remediation plans
• Prepare monitoring plans