Yvonne Pflüger celebrates 20 years

Yvonne has been a driving force in landscape and visual assessment, environmental planning, and natural character evaluation. She is respected by colleagues and clients for her dedication, depth of knowledge, and collaborative spirit.

Yvonne’s expertise lies in assessing environmental and visual effects for development projects in sensitive environments. Her project work spans large-scale infrastructure projects as well as tourism developments including ski and golf resorts, particularly in the Queenstown region. She has also led assessments for urban residential upgrades and Special Housing Areas, balancing development with landscape integrity.

Yvonne was lead author and project manager for a number of district and regional level landscape studies, including: the Milford Sound Landscape and Natural Character Assessment, Canterbury Regional Landscape Study Review, the multi-award-winning Riverscape and Flow Assessment Guide, and the Milford Opportunities Project (Stage 2) Masterplan.

Fellow landscape planner James Bentley worked with Yvonne to undertake a Natural Character, Landscape and Visual Amenity Assessment for investigations of fin fish farming in Pikihatiti | Port Pegasus, in a part of the remote and isolated east coast of southern Rakiura | Stewart Island.

"Yvonne and I have undertaken some memorable site visits, including that 3-hour boat trip to Port Pegasus, when we endured 3-metre swells whilst both feeling slightly ‘green’," says James.

"Other fantastic trips included a plane ride along the entire Canterbury coast and a trip to Kaikoura to explore the landscape and coast for their District Plan Review. We've worked closely together for many years and I thoroughly appreciate Yvonne’s support, collegiality and determined attitude; we often share ideas and use each other as sounding boards for complex situations."

Yvonne's work has shaped regional and district planning through territorial landscape studies, identification of Outstanding Natural Landscapes, and the integration of GIS into landscape assessments. She has provided evidence for Council and Environment Court hearings, and her insights have guided plan reviews for numerous South Island councils.

Originally based in Christchurch, she moved to Queenstown in 2018 and has played a significant part of growing the office and client base there.

Technical lead for Landscape Planning, Rhys Girvan says, "I have known Yvonne for most of the time she has worked for Boffa Miskell, initially as one of her external Council peer reviewers in Queenstown and now as part of a collaborative team. 

"When working with Yvonne, I am frequently impressed with her very direct, yet engaging approach. This serves well to bring others on board and ultimately influences positive landscape outcomes which shape our practice," Rhys continues.

Queenstown managing partner Chris Ferguson agrees. "Yvonne has cemented a strong presence in this regional market. Many clients seek her out by name, and her reputation amongst lawyers and clients as a reliable expert witness is well-established.

"She is passionate about the environment and her profession, highly respected by and supportive of her colleagues, generous with her time and driven to succeed."

Yvonne is a shareholder director on the Boffa Miskell board; a Certified Environmental Practitioner (EIANZ); a registered member of the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architects (NZILA); and a member of the Resource Management Law Association (RMLA).