Base layers

Ngai Tahu Treaty Settlement Areas - to come...

Land Parcels - to come...

Local Authority Boundaries 
Territorial Authority (District) Council boundaries derived from the level 2 Meshblock dataset designed for the 2006 Census. Supplied by Statistics New Zealand. Full metadata.

Region Boundaries
Boundaries of current Regional Councils and Unitary Authorities within New Zealand. Provided by Statistics New Zealand. Full metadata to come...

Main Rivers
3rd level hydro features; major rivers; including rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, canals, water races, tunnels (canal), islands and coastlines; at 1:250000. Sourced from LINZ. Full metadata.

Towns
Point locations and names of towns; subset of LINZ Gazetteer (of place names); at 1:250000. Sourced from LINZ. Full metadata.

Main Towns/Cities
Subset of the Gazetter50k shape file showing location points for; Akaroa, Ashburton, Christchurch, Kaikoura and Timaru. Full Metadata.

Streams - to come...

Roads
Road centrelines from the LINZ cadastral database. Includes road names (normal and alternate) and road type attributes. Derived from Ollivier & Co's CORAX product, which itself is derived from LINZ Bulk Data Extracts. The road centrelines displayed in this layer may not necessarily reflect the centreline of the surveyed road; they are centrelines derived from the centre of a road land parcel. Full Metadata to come...

Runanga Boundaries - to come...

Reserves (DOC 1997)
Public Conservation Land ("DOC Estate") for the South Island. Supplied by DOC, Canterbury, March 2009. National Conservation Unit dataset. Nationally compiled dataset containing geospatial definitions of DOC management units (conservation units) defined by various acts of parliament and legislation. The national conservation unit featureclass is integrated with the Department's national land register to provide textual descriptions of land administered by the Department. Geospatial definition of Land administered by the Department of Conservation under legislation, and/or Land of interest to the Department. Full Metadata to come...

Transpower Lines - to come...

Transpower Structures - to come...

Environment Canterbury Land - to come...

Clean Air Zones
Contains Clean Air Zones 1 and 2 in Canterbury as defined by the Ministry for the Environment (MfE) and Environment Canterbury. Ambient Air Quality National Environmental Standards apply to Clean Air Zones 1. Clean Air Zones 2 are buffer areas around Clean Air Zones 1 and are also subject to air quality regulations so that Ambient Air Quality National Environmental Standards within Clean Air Zones 1 are met. Attributes: ZONE: area categorised as Clean Air Zone 1 or 2. LABEL: zone name; Christchurch, Kaiapoi, Rangiora, Ashburton, followed by zone number; 1 or 2. AREA_HA: Zone area in hectares. For further information about the Ambient Air Quality National Environmental Standards please see the "Updated Users Guide to Resource Management (National Environmental Standards Relating to Certain Air Pollutants, Dioxins and other Toxics) Regulations 2004 (Including Amendments 2005)" available from the Ministry for the Environment (MfE). For further information about Clean Air Zones in Canterbury, please see Chapter 3 of the Natural Resource Regional Plan available from Environment Canterbury. Full Metadata.

Natural resources

Land of regional significance 
Regionally Significant/Outstanding Areas made from CRC/Landcare NZ, derived partly from landscape units, in the Canterbury region. Full Metadata.

Land of national significance  - to come...

Significant vegetation of Canterbury water bodies
GIS layer showing significant indigenous aquatic, littoral and riparian vegetation of Canterbury water bodies. Prepared for Environment Canterbury Unpublished report U01/45 - Report Title - Significant indigenous aquatic, littoral and riparian vegetation of Canterbury water bodies and factors that affect its composition and condition. Report prepared by R. B. Allen May 2000. Full Metadata.

River and open water habitats for indigenous birds
GIS layer showing river and open water habitats for indigenous birds in Canterbury. Prepared to accompany Environment Canterbury Unpublished Report U00/37 - The significance of river and open water habitats for indigenous birds in Canterbury, New Zealand (June 2000). Report by Dr Colin F. J. O'Donnell, Science & Research Unit, Department of Conservation. Full Metadata.

Recommended areas of protection (RAP)
Recommended Area and Protection under the DOC Protected Natural Areas Programme, which is a process of surveying the whole of New Zealand for areas meriting protection, and of negotiating with landowners to buy or provide other legal protection for the land in question. Full Metadata.

Site of special wildlife importance (SSWI)
The Sites of Special Wildlife Interest (SSWI) wildlife habitat ranking system was developed by the Fauna Survey Unit of the former New Zealand Wildlife Service. The Fauna Survey Unit surveyed the whole of New Zealand between 1977 and 1985 on a region by region basis to identify all "sites of special wildlife interest". All natural or semi-natural areas important as habitat for one or more species of wildlife were evaluated and each site ranked, according to a set of standard criteria, into five groups on the basis of their value to wildlife, i.e., outstanding, high, moderate-high, moderate and potential. SSWI ranking system is officially recognised and continues to be used by the Department of Conservation.
Full Metadata.

Wetlands of regional importance (WERI)
WERI (Wetlands of Ecological and Representative Importance), is a computer database which contains records on approximately 3,000 wetlands throughout New Zealand. Originated by the Department of Conservation. The Department holds inventories on wetlands: WERI database (Wetlands of Ecological and Regional Importance), Coastal Resource Inventory (including wetlands such as mangroves) and SSWI (Sites of Special Wildlife Interest). These inventories, particular WERI, form an important basis for the Department's advocacy of appropriate management of wetlands by private landowners. Conservation Management Strategies and Regional Policy Statements have provided Department of Conservation and Regional Councils with the chance to identify and state management goals for wetlands on a regional basis. Information includes size; location; land ownership; classification (hydro class, geomorphic origin, community class, dominant plant species); modifiers and threats; buffer, wildlife and vegetation values; other ecological values; cultural values; significance; and sources of information. Full Metadata.

Confining Layer Isopachytes
Confining layer isopachytes for the area. Derived from worked carried out by John Weeber.  Created by accessing and interpreting well logs and hand contouring the isopachytes, representing thickness of non-aquifer strata (clay, silt and sand) overlying Aquifer 1 strata (usually gravel). Digitised: 1st November by Howard Williams and John Knight (Groundwater Section). The layer shows that thicknesses of 'confining' strata increase coastwards in an irregular fashion. The meaning of this relationship is that the 'confined' nature of the coastal aquifer system increases coastwards. This layer is subject to change as new data becomes available. For more information, please see the Environment Canterbury technical report "Christchurch Groundwater Protection: a Hydrological basis for zone boundaries, Variation 6 to the Proposed Natural Resource Regional Plan" by John Weeber, May 2008. Full Metadata.

Silent Files - to come...

Depth to GW >6 m
Shows areas where the average depth beneath surface level to the top of the water table is greater than 6 metres. Depth was calculated by measuring the distance to the highest water level at wells that as at 2003 had greater than 12 recorded observations. Areas where depth to ground water was greater than 6 metres were then interpolated from these measurements. Areas not included are either where the depth to ground water is less than 6 metres or there was no available data. This layer is indicative only, and should not be used at scales less than 1:150,000. Full Metadata to come...

Coastal Confined Aquifers
The Coastal Confined Gravel Aquifer System is a relatively narrow band of confined gravel aquifers, situated near the coast between the Ashley and Rakaia Rivers, bounded by the coastal marine area, Banks Peninsula, and on the western side by the line where sediments in the overlying confining layer are three metres thick. The aquifer system consists of at least five permeable gravel layers containing water (aquifer), separated by relatively impermeable layers of sediments (confining layers). Recognisable surface features have been used to approximate the natural boundary because the latter is not obvious at the ground surface. Full Metadata.

Piezometric Contours
Gives the average height of ground water above sea level. This layer was created from a combination of shallow and deep aquifer ground water levels derived from averages of all available data in 2003 (approximately 20 years). Full Metadata.

Rakaia Riparian
Rakaia Riparian sub-area of Chertsey and Rakaia-Selwyn Groundwater Allocation zones. This is an area where it may be possible to grant additional shallow groundwater takes, without causing any significant cumulative adverse effects. However this does not preclude the need for consent applicants to assess stream depletion effects as per Schedule WQN7 of Chapter 5 of the proposed Natural Resources Regional Plan (NRRP). On 30 May 2005 the Council’s Water Allocation Panel (WAP) accepted a staff recommendation to formally recognise the Rakaia Riparian sub-zone. At this stage it is not intended to create a formal "sub-zone" within the Chertsey and Rakaia-Selwyn Zones (and recalculate allocation limits); this may be pursued at some future stage through a variation to the NRRP. In the meantime any consent granted within the new sub-area will be counted as part of the "parent" zone. Full Metadata.

Proposed SW Irrigation Schemes
Extent of proposed major surface-water supplied irrigation schemes in Canterbury. Created when compiling a review of surface water irrigation schemes in Canterbury and their impacts on groundwater resources (Environment Canterbury report U05/07). Attributes include scheme name, consented area, actual areas in border-dyke and spray (for some schemes), the maximum rate of take inter alia. Full Metadata.

Surface Water Irrigation Schemes
Extent of major surface-water supplied irrigation schemes in Canterbury.  Created when compiling a review of surface water irrigation schemes in Canterbury and their impacts on groundwater resources (Environment Canterbury report U05/07). Attributes include scheme name, consented area, actual areas in border-dyke and spray (for some schemes), the maximum rate of take inter alia. Described in Environment Canterbury report U05/07 (James Dommisse). Note availability of companion shape files of proposed irrigation schemes. Full Metadata.

Land Resource Inventory
Including: (1) Inventory of physical factors controlling land use; Rock (grouped by type on basis of common physical characteristics relevant to soil conversation and land use planning), Soil (from Landcare Research soil surveys), Slope (recorded as seven different classes A-G, e.g. G being all land >35˚, Erosion (14 erosion types with severity assessment scale 0-5), Vegetation (subdivision of five main group; croplands, grasslands, forest, scrub, miscellaneous). (2) Land Use Capability (LUC) assessment by map unit; Class (I-VIII i.e. 'most versatile and productive' to 'most limitations to use'), Subclass (dominant limitation recorded i.e. e-'erodibility', c-'climate', w-'wetness', s-'soil limitation within rooting zone'), Unit (number indicates LUC and denotes management/conservation requirements). (3) Fundamental Data Layers (FDL) containing key NZ soil attributes. (4) Pastoral & forestry production parameters, administration and natural boundaries. Full Metadata.

Effective irrigation season rainfall
Effective irrigation season rainfall exceeded 80% of the time. Full Metadata.

Irrigation Demand Zones
Indicative zones for irrigation demand as shown in the Proposed Canterbury Natural Resources Regional Plan. Full Metadata.

GW Allocation Zones - to come...

Trace Elements Level 2 (CHCH)
This layer is a selection from "Trace_Elements_Level_2" of sampled soil groups in the Christchurch urban area. This data is the result of a detailed investigation into the background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury's major soil groups from samples taken between 28/2/2006 and 16/3/2006. Canterbury soil groups identified by the Land Resource Inventory (LRI) and Canterbury Soils (CS) datasets were used in this investigation and are retained in this layer. A total of 90 sample sites were distributed across these soil groups; 17 in the Christchurch urban area and 73 through-out the rest of Canterbury. This layer contains the data from the 17 sample sites in urban Christchurch only. From these samples concentrations of; Arsenic, Boron, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, and Zinc were measured in mg/kg. Level 2 gives the maximum concentration values of the above trace elements measured in each soil group plus half the interquartile range (buffer). It is recommended new soil sample results be compared against both "Trace Elements Level 1" and "Level 2" to assess whether the site is contaminated. For a detailed account of the site selection and sampling method employed in this investigation and recommend user guidelines please see Report No. R07/1 "Background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury soils" prepared for Environment Canterbury by Tonkin and Taylor Ltd, July 2006. Full Metadata.

Trace Elements Level 1 (CHCH)
This layer is a selection from "Trace_Elements_Level_1" of sampled soil groups in the Christchurch urban area. This data is the result of a detailed investigation into the background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury's major soil groups from samples taken between 28/2/2006 and 16/3/2006. Canterbury soil groups identified by the Land Resource Inventory (LRI) and Canterbury Soils (CS) datasets were used in this investigation and are retained in this layer. A total of 90 sample sites were distributed across these soil groups; 17 in the Christchurch urban area and 73 through-out the rest of Canterbury. This layer contains the data from the 17 sample sites in urban Christchurch only. From these samples concentrations of; Arsenic, Boron, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, and Zinc were measured in mg/kg. Level 1 gives the maximum concentration values of the above trace elements measured in each soil group. It is recommended new soil sample results be compared against both "Trace Elements Level 1" and "Level 2" to assess whether the site is contaminated. For a detailed account of the site selection and sampling method employed in this investigation and recommend user guidelines please see Report No. R07/1 "Background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury soils" prepared for Environment Canterbury by Tonkin and Taylor Ltd, July 2006. 
Full Metadata.

Trace Elements Level 2
This layer gives the results of a detailed investigation into the background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury's major soil groups from samples taken between 28/2/2006 and 16/3/2006. Canterbury soil groups identified by the Land Resource Inventory (LRI) and Canterbury Soils (CS) datasets were used in this investigation and are retained in this layer. A total of 90 sample sites were distributed across these soil groups; 17 in the Christchurch urban area and 73 through-out the rest of Canterbury. From these samples concentrations of; Arsenic, Boron, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, and Zinc were measured in mg/kg. Level 2 gives the maximum concentration values of the above trace elements measured in each soil group plus half the interquartile range (buffer). It is recommended new soil sample results be compared against both "Trace Elements Level 1" and "Level 2" to assess whether the site is contaminated. For a detailed account of the site selection and sampling method employed in this investigation and recommend user guidelines please see Report No. R07/1 "Background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury soils" prepared for Environment Canterbury by Tonkin and Taylor Ltd, July 2006. Full Metadata.

Trace Elements Level 1
This layer gives the results of a detailed investigation into the background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury's major soil groups from samples taken between 28/2/2006 and 16/3/2006. Canterbury soil groups identified by the Land Resource Inventory (LRI) and Canterbury Soils (CS) datasets were used in this investigation and are retained in this layer. A total of 90 sample sites were distributed across these soil groups; 17 in the Christchurch urban area and 73 through-out the rest of Canterbury. From these samples concentrations of; Arsenic, Boron, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Manganese, Mercury, Nickel, and Zinc were measured in mg/kg. Level 1 gives the maximum concentration values of the above trace elements measured in each soil group. It is recommended new soil sample results be compared against both "Trace Elements Level 1" and "Level 2" to assess whether the site is contaminated. For a detailed account of the site selection and sampling method employed in this investigation and recommend user guidelines please see Report No. R07/1 "Background concentrations of selected trace elements in Canterbury soils" prepared for Environment Canterbury by Tonkin and Taylor Ltd, July 2006. Full Metadata.

Catchment
Catchment boundaries within the Canterbury region.  Created originally by Landcare NZ, and modified for consent purposes.  Each catchment is assigned a hierarchical identification number which relates its position within parent catchments. This layer is best used at scales no greater than 1:50,000.
Full Metadata.

Soil Moisture-Effective Rainfall by Land Parcel
This layer is the result of combing PAW (Profile of total Available Water) average values from the layer 'GIS.DBO.LAND_NZMG_DetailedSoils' with mean annual rainfall information in the layer 'GIS.DBO.LAND_NZMG_EffectiveIrrigationRainfallBands' and then intersecting this information with individual land parcels. This layer can be used to give an indication of the relationship between soil moisture and mean annual rainfall at individual land parcels. Full Metadata to come...

Detailed Soils - to come...

Wells - to come...

Community Supply Wells - to come...

Groundwater Takes - to come...

Resource Consents - to come...

Groundwater Quality - to come...

Surfacewater Quality - to come...

Springs
Data in this layer is drawn from Environment Canterbury's Springs Database. The Springs Database contains a list of springs that have been found during field work since 1998 and that have been classified by their; spring type, spring character, morphology, variability and geology. Accuracy of spring location is given by a QAR (Quality Assigned Rating) value;1 - Location captured using GPS, accurate from <2 m to 15 m. 2 - Location confirmed by site visit, sketch plan showing distances from boundaries, checked by GIS. Accurate to <20 m. 3 - Location estimated from GIS or NZMS 260 series maps (1 :50,000 scale). Accurate to <50 m. 4 - No location sketch map and location not checked. Includes data collected from other sources. Accurate to 300 m.
Full Metadata to come...

Community Supply Protection Zones - to come...

Wetland Study Area - to come...

Wetland Study Points - to come...

Discharge to Land Consents - to come...

NES drinking water treatment plants
A database containing drinking water treatment plant sites sourced from the Ministry of Health's WINZ database. This has been extracted and converted into ESRI Shape files for use in mapping. Purpose: The Ministry for the Environment is distributing a database to assist councils with implementing the national environmental standard for sources of human drinking water.  The national environmental standard is a new regulation which will require councils to consider the effects of some activities on the quality of drinking water supplies when making decisions on resource consents, and also on permitted activity rules in regional plans. The database contains information on the location of water treatment plants and the places where drinking water is taken from rivers, groundwater or other sources to supply these plants.  This will assist council consent officers and planners to determine whether a particular activity for which resource consent is sought could affect a drinking water supply.  The database also contains information on whether individual treatment plants deliver water that complies with health quality criteria (i.e. whether they are delivering water that is safe to drink).  This information is necessary because it will determine how the new regulation applies to a particular consent or permitted activity. The data is extracted from the Ministry of Health's Water Information New Zealand (WINZ) database and includes coordinates for both treatment plants and sources (abstraction points). The new regulation takes effect on 20 June 2008. Consent officers and planners in councils have previously been informed of the new regulation, and workshops have taken place around the country to explain it in detail.  As GIS staff, you will not need to understand the regulation; this just gives a brief overview of the role of the database in assisting with implementation of the regulation.  However, if you would like more information about the regulation, please refer to these links:
http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/standards/drinking-water-source-standard.html
http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/standards/drinking-water-standard-implementation-update.html
Full Metadata.

NES drinking water source abstraction points
A drinking water source database containing drinking water source abstraction points obtained from the Ministry of Health's WINZ database. This has been extracted and converted into ESRI Shape files for use in mapping. Purpose: The Ministry for the Environment is distributing a database to assist councils with implementing the national environmental standard for sources of human drinking water.  The national environmental standard is a new regulation which will require councils to consider the effects of some activities on the quality of drinking water supplies when making decisions on resource consents, and also on permitted activity rules in regional plans. The database contains information on the location of water treatment plants and the places where drinking water is taken from rivers, groundwater or other sources to supply these plants.  This will assist council consent officers and planners to determine whether a particular activity for which resource consent is sought could affect a drinking water supply.  The database also contains information on whether individual treatment plants deliver water that complies with health quality criteria (i.e. whether they are delivering water that is safe to drink).  This information is necessary because it will determine how the new regulation applies to a particular consent or permitted activity. The data is extracted from the Ministry of Health's Water Information New Zealand (WINZ) database and includes coordinates for both treatment plants and sources (abstraction points). The new regulation takes effect on 20 June 2008. Consent officers and planners in councils have previously been informed of the new regulation, and workshops have taken place around the country to explain it in detail.  As GIS staff, you will not need to understand the regulation; this just gives a brief overview of the role of the database in assisting with implementation of the regulation.  However, if you would like more information about the regulation, please refer to these links: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/standards/drinking-water-source-standard.html
http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/standards/drinking-water-standard-implementation-update.html
Full Metadata.