Community awareness turning to community concern

BY KEN RAYWARD

The three current sand mining consent applications which pose threats to our coastal environment have had their hearings set for over the next few months, and are creating heightened awareness and increased concerns across Mangawhai, Te Arai and Pakiri communities.

People are becoming more aware that even if one of these consent applications becomes successful, the consequential coastal mining activities will disfigure and detrimentally change the dynamics of our coastal marine life ecosystem, impacting our sea beds, fish life and shellfish habitats, along with surf wave formations and the safety of our beaches for swimming.

The subsequent coastal erosion will endanger the existence of our wonderful sand spit and dunes, opening our estuary to the open sea, and threatening our unique bird life habitats including that of the fairy tern.

The Mangawhai Harbour Restoration Society (MHRS) and Friends Of Pakiri Beach are working together to ensure our communities are kept up-to-date with ongoing developments, and at the right time, will inform how each person or organisation can lend their support in a combined opposition action against these threats.

The current status is three mining consent applications are being presented, the first by Kaipara Limited, and the second and third applications from Auckland company McCallum Brothers. It is worth noting that McCallum also contract to Kaipara Limited to do their mining work, so one mining operator would do all three operations if approved.

The Kaipara Limited application is to be heard first, with the announcement just out that the hearing is to be held at the Warkworth Town Hall March 1-12. It is a public hearing, with the outcome to be advised 15 working days from the end of the hearing, and any subsequent appeals, which would be expected, to be lodged within 15 working days of the decision. The date to lodge objections to this application has passed, it is now a matter of the hearing proceeding.

However, the two applications being put forward by McCallum’s have yet to be notified, this is expected shortly, with hearings planned for March/April.

These applications will be open to opposition from the public, and through the MHRS and Friends of Kaipara, we will ensure our communities are aware and enabled to voice the highest possible level of opposition to both applications.

New Zealand is the only developed country in the world that permits near shore sand mining which makes a mockery of our global image as the most environmentally aware country in the world!

The subsequent coastal erosion will endanger the existence local coastlines and threaten unique bird life habitats. PHOTO/JULIA WADE