People spell out the words Say No! on Ruakaka Beach, in protest of plans to establish sand-mining operations there. Photo: Supplied
A petition of 14,000 signatures in opposition to sand mining at Te Ākau Bream Bay has been handed to Greens MP Hūhana Lyndon.
Tāngaro Tuia Te Ora - Endangered Species Foundation co-chair Tāwera Nikau said he was 'very humbled' to present the petition to Lyndon on behalf of the Whangārei community, on Wednesday.
"I was very proud of the local community, whānau, hapū, and iwi up in Northland because as a co-chair of Tāngaro Tuia Te Ora - Endangered Species Foundation, we've been very supportive of what they're doing and the opportunity to present it in Parliament to one of the MPs from Northland was absolutely fantastic."
Nikau said the the foundation have backed mana whenua all the way.
"This is an ongoing matter that the locals in the local community are very, very passionate about."
For the past six months, people from Northland, Bream Bay in particular, have been protesting the Auckland-based sand mining company McCallum Brothers Limited's proposal to dredge nine million cubic meters over the next 35 years.
Tara Iti - Fairy Tern, is said by DOC to be the rarest breeding bird in Aotearoa. Photo: Supplied / Darren Markin
The proposed sand mining site lies five kilometres offshore from Waipū, Langs, Uretiti, and Ruakākā beaches, which are vital habitats for sea life such as Tara Iti [New Zealand fairy tern], where there are 40 adult birds left, and endangered hawksbill turtles have been spotted there.
"That area in Te Ākau, Bream Bay, is very historically and culturally significant to some of the wāhi tapu in the areas that they have there, but, also in terms of the ecological restoration of that area, it will have a detrimental effect ongoing," Nikau said.
No Sand Mining posters and signage around Waipu and Ruakaka Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Green Party List MP from Whangārei, Hūhana Lyndon, accepted the petition at parliament.
Lyndon said she doesn't want to see the McCallum Brothers in Bream Bay, instead hoping there will be a turn to other options that would not affect ākau (coastlines), pātaka kai, fishing, recreational activities, and te taiao (the natural world).
"There are other options in terms of what we can do to provide concrete into our community. There are land-based options that exist already."
Another of the No Sand Mining Bream Bay protest banners, at Ruakaka Beach. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Currently, McCallum Bros Limited is in the process of applying for resource consent to extract sand. Their website states it is their way of being transparent with the public.
While the company is still finalising the full Assessments of Effects list, finalised commissioned reports have already been made available regarding Surf Breaks (MetOceans), Water Quality (SLR Consulting), and Fisheries (R Boyd).
Lyndon said it's the fast track process that is the worry, calling it the fast track to destruction for Whangārei.
"The issue is that we're going to see legislation in place that will shut out the community. It will shut out hapū and iwi, and in particular in southern Whangārei, we've got six projects coming. Six projects and more to come because the fast track is the issue."
"That's one of the issues, is that we're only worried about today and how much concrete we can supply into community or into business. No, this is about our tomorrow. Where is our thinking for te taiao and where is the thinking for our mokopuna who will inherit the decisions of today?" she said.
The petition was handed in to Parliament with 14,000 signatures, but there are hopes to get that number up to 20,000.
An on-water 'great boat' protest is to be held on 16 March at Bream Bay Waters, Whangārei.
"We're going to roll out with a big flotilla and get those boats in the water and they're going to go out large and say 'no, not in our backyard, not in our moana, not in the takutai moana of Te Ākau te Paepaeroa, No absolutely we don't want to see sand mining'," Lyndon said.
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