Accelerated erosion* is often caused by historical and current clearance of woody vegetation* and earthworks such as tracking, particularly on land use capability classes* VII and VIII land. The Region has approximately 274,000 ha of hill country land at risk of moderate-severe erosion (Figure 4.1), 116,000 ha of which were affected by the storms of 2004. Approximately 200 million tonnes of soil was eroded during the February 2004 storm, causing approximately 30 million tonnes of sediment to enter the Region’s rivers. The sediment discharged by rivers in the Region during this single storm event was likely to be several times the average annual sediment discharge for the Region.

The Region’s western coast, particularly the foredune and associated inland soils, is easily eroded when the protective vegetation cover is removed as part of coastal development, and as a consequence of activities such as land recontouring and vehicle movement. Vegetation clearance* and land disturbance* expose these fragile soils to wind erosion.

The present extent of erosion has occurred despite the work by catchment boards and other individuals and organisations to manage soil erosion since the 1940s. Where these activities brought about meaningful land use change, the results have been successful in decreasing erosion rates. For instance, in steep hill country, tree cover has reduced erosion rates by approximately 75% when compared with grass. However, the size and scale of the erosion issue is such that to date no agency has been able to deal with all erosion-prone land. Further, in some areas, large-scale land use changes are likely to be required, to which there is understandable landowner resistance.

Accelerated erosion* can cause a number of on-site and off-site impacts:
  1. to the landowner – loss of soil and productive capability, reduced stock carrying capacity, impacts on property and assets such as tracks*, fences and buildings, and the costs of carrying out repairs
  2. to the environment – reduced water quality in terms of nutrient loads (much of the phosphate load in water is the result of sediment run-off), reduced water clarity, and major impacts on instream life
  3. to others in the Region – damage to infrastructure and loss of flood protection to lowland communities as river beds within river and drainage schemes fill up with silt.
Soils that are damaged by slipping take a very long time to recover. Studies have shown it can take in the order of 20 years to regain 80% of pre-erosion productivity levels, and more than 100 years to achieve near-full recovery. Some soil types may never fully recover. Efforts to maintain farm productivity on land that has been affected by slipping generally increase pressure on less damaged parts of the property*, thereby increasing the likelihood of further erosion and the loss of nutrients from increased fertiliser* use.

Disturbed sandy soils can take many years to revegetate and stabilise naturally. In the interim, large quantities of sand can be eroded by the wind, threatening buildings and property and causing the inundation of productive land.
 
Figure 4.1 Distribution of hill country land subject to an elevated risk of accelerated erosion*

In addition to the damage that can be caused to the Region’s fragile land types and soils discussed above, erosion rates and sediment run-off from other parts of the Region can be increased through activities that involve significant vegetation clearance* and land disturbance*. Such activities are typically involved with major infrastructure development (for example, road construction and upgrades or energy projects such as windfarm development), land development (such as new residential or industrial subdivisions on the edge of urban centres or recontouring of land associated with dairy conversions or intensification), or aggregate extraction (for example, gravel pits or quarries).

Insufficient attention to batter slopes, stormwater management, fill compaction, overburden containment, debris clearance and revegetation can significantly increase sediment loads in adjoining streams or sediment discharges onto neighbouring properties.