Forest owner Whitikau Holdings Ltd was fined NZ$57,000 after pleading guilty to five charges of contravening the Resource Management Act. The fines relate to a pine forest south-east of Ōpōtiki. Source: Stuff NZ
District Court and Environmental Judge Melanie Harland said the actions of Whitikau Holdings Ltd was extremely reckless and bordered on deliberate.
Whitikau was fined NZ$57,000 after pleading guilty to five charges of contravening the Resource Management Act.
Forest owner Whitikau Holdings Ltd and harvesting contractors Paturakau Ltd and Neville Walker were fined over a harvesting operation south-east of Ōpōtiki.
Harvesting contractors Paturakau Ltd and Neville Walker also pleaded guilty and were fined NZ $4000 and NZ$3000 respectively.
The charges brought against Whitikau relate to disturbance of stream beds and discharging trees, debris and sediment into streams.
Judge Harland said Whitikau and its contractors caused large amounts of sediment and bark to be discharged into waterways, including the Whitikau stream.
The Whitikau Stream flows into the Mōtū River.
It’s estimated the stream will take between five to 10 years to recover.
Whitikau was granted resource consent in 2014 to harvest a 197-hectare pine forest.
Forestry operations started in June, 2015 but concerns were quickly raised by a member of the public about the impact the operation was having on the environment, in particular on native eels and duck populations.
A visit by a council inspector found several compliance issues. Subsequent visits raised further concerns such as the condition of one of the tributary streams flowing through the forest.
During an inspection in October, 2016 an officer found logging machines working directly in a waterway and hauling logs through the stream. Logs were also found on the stream bed.
Abatement notices were issued but follow-up inspections in late 2016 found the harvesting operation was still non-compliant.
Judge Harland said Whitikau was obliged to comply with the conditions of its recourse consent.
“If there were difficulties with the infrastructure to the extent that conditions were breached then its options were to either cease the harvesting operation or ensure necessary infrastructure was provided,” Judge Harland said.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council regulatory compliance manager Alex Miller said resource consents were designed to avoid, mitigate or remedy any adverse effects on the environment.
“In this case there was a clear disregard for the environment, with heavy machinery operated in and near streams, logs dragged through streams and tracks cut through areas that didn’t hold and ended in the water,” Mr Miller said.
