My Account
Waste Management is coming under increasing pressure to halt the resource consent process for its proposed new regional landfill in the Dome Valley until the Covid-19 lockdown ends.
Local MPs Marja Lubeck and Jenny Marcroft and Rodney Councillor Greg Sayers are all calling for the submission period to be extended or postponed while widespread community restrictions and closures remain in place.
“I don’t think it is in any way acceptable to push ahead with this process while the community is locked down,” Cr Sayers said. “Indeed, I believe going ahead with a consent of this magnitude while we live under lockdown is anti-democratic and comes across as bullish to the average person. I would hope the applicant would reconsider its timing.”
Auckland Council publicly notified Waste Management’s resource consent and zone change applications on March 26, meaning public submissions could be made for the next 40 working days, or until May 26. However, that date was also the first day of Alert Level 4, meaning Council offices and libraries with hard copies of all relevant application documents and submission forms were shut and inaccessible.
Cr Sayers said he immediately asked for the process to be extended or postponed, and was told on Monday that Council planners felt an extension or suspension would indeed be best, but Waste Management remained “keen to pursue the matter”.
In a letter to Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, Labour MP Marja Lubeck said the national lockdown had “severely limited” the chances for people to challenge the applications at public meetings, with Council project managers and at Council premises.
New Zealand First MP Jenny Marcroft has also written to Mr Goff, saying it was extremely difficult for the public to participate in the democratic process during quarantine.
“The community’s ability to get together to be informed of the process and to be able to contribute in a meaningful way at this time is just not possible due to the lockdown restrictions,” she said.
Cr Sayers said Council planners were currently unable to suspend the submission period under the Resource Management Act, but they had asked the Government to consider changing this as part of emergency legislation.
Waste Management NZ was approached for its response to these issues via email and phone on Monday morning, but did not respond.
Last month, just after public notification, the company stated: “Due to the Covid-19 shutdown, physical copies of the application documentation cannot be accessed from the usual Council service centres or libraries at this stage. You can, however, contact Auckland Council, by email at unitaryplan@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz or by phone (09) 365 3786 to arrange a copy of the resource consent and/or private plan change documentation to be provided electronically.”
