Belmont Regional Park is under threat from a local quarry Winstone Aggregates. Photo: RNZ
Native bush within Wellington's Belmont Regional Park is under threat from a local quarry.
Winstone Aggregates is seeking to acquire 29 hectares of land in the hills between Lower Hutt and Porirua - Crown-owned but controlled and managed by the Greater Wellington Regional Council - to use as a dumping site for excess soil and rocks.
In exchange, it has offered to swap it for three parcels of land, totalling about the same land area, of which 40 percent is protected by a QEII covenant and cannot be used for quarrying or dumping waste.
It intends to apply through the new Fast-track Approvals Act for permission to go ahead with the project, which would enable the extraction of about 20 million cubic metres of aggregate.
It is one of 12 Wellington-based listed projects to be included in the new legislation - six housing and urban development projects, five infrastructure projects and this one quarry expansion - out of a total of 149 listed projects nationwide.
According to the company's application, Belmont Quarry supplies about 40 percent of the region's aggregate needs, and over 50 percent specifically for concrete and roading.
The company told RNZ in a statement that reliable access to high-quality aggregate was "essential for infrastructure projects like road construction and urban development".
With the quarry nearing capacity, the land acquisition was necessary to ensure the region had a long-term supply.
"We want to reassure the community that a primary aspect of the land swap process is ensuring we maintain the environmental integrity of the area, and ensuring we meet DOC's standards."
That would include a full ecology assessment, and "a proposal setting out the ecological values and proposed mitigation to ensure no net loss" accompanying the fast-track application.
It said it had a "proven environmental track record" of engagement with the local community, and welcomed ongoing dialogue.
"We believe this project is no different and are confident our proposal will result in significant ecological and recreational benefits for Belmont Regional Park."
A map showing the areas intended for swap. Photo: Winstone Aggregates
But when the regional council's environment committee met on Thursday morning, it heard from locals who feared the environmental effects would bedevastating.
Anthony Davies, the convenor of the Friends of Belmont Regional Park, said the replacement cost would be huge.
"We do not believe that the proposed land for exchange is suitable, or of a significant enough gain to offset the overall loss of forested area," he said.
The land contained 50 to 60-year-old regenerating bush, even older in some of the steeper gullies, and was home to a native pigeons/kererū, whitehead/pōpokotea and fantail/pīwakawaka.
Using the council's own data on the cost of planting trees, Davies estimated it would cost $25-$30,000 per hectare, plus maintenance, for a total of $1 million at least to replace what was lost.
"If it wasn't going to be a significant loss, we wouldn't be here," he said.
Local park user and conservation volunteer in the Dry Creek area for the past twenty years, Jonathan Ravens, said there was no environmental gain to be had by swapping the land, as the area on offer was already protected.
"However they gild the lily, it boils down to bulldozing a large area of bush to help their profits," Ravens said.
"We are asking you [the council] to do your best to advocate against this proposal."
What can the council do about it?
Two versions of the information board shown in the carpark at Belmont Regional Park. The top as it is today and the bottom as it would need to be to reflect the new quarry site. Photo: Jonathan Ravens
Councils, under the new law, would not be decision-making authorities for fast-tracked projects - rather, they would provide advice to the decision making panels.
Under the legislation, listed projects must be granted approval, unless they are ineligible or have "disproportionately" negative effects.
That was an area of law which was mostly untested, council officers told the meeting.
But it could mean the council's hands were tied.
There would be some risk to declining the land swap, councillors heard, as the fast-track process might allow the land acquisition to go ahead anyway, and then they would be at a net loss.
A finalised application was yet to be lodged by Winstone, with council officers saying they understood that was three to four months away, and details were scant at this stage.
Councillors asked for a workshop, preferably open to the public, to discuss the Belmont case in particular, with committee chairperson Penny Gaylor requesting it happened sometime in March.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
