Councils, Runanga request ministerial call-in of Project Kea

Environment Canterbury, Waimate District Council, and local Runanga Te Waihao have requested a ministerial call-in of Project Kea. Requests were also made by Why Waste Waimate, Zero Waste Network, and the Waimate Doctors. In making their request to call in the application, the councils referred to the following:

  1. The proposal has aroused widespread public concern or interest regarding its
  2. actual or likely effect on the environment (including the global environment);
  3. The proposal involves or is likely to involve significant use of natural and
  4. physical resources;
  5. The proposal involves or is likely to involve technology, processes, or methods
  6. that are new to New Zealand, and that may affect its environment;
  7. The proposal is likely to be significant in terms of section 8 of the RMA; 
  8. The proposal affects more than one region or district.

Councils decision to request call-in contested by SIRRL

Upon receiving notification of the council’s intention to request a call-in for Project Kea, SIRRL’s legal counsel sent letters to both ECAN and WDC contesting the criteria used by council staff when making a call-in request. 

In the letter dated June 19, 2023, SIRRL’s lawyer, Mark Christensen, states, “None of the matters on which the officers rely for their recommendations meet the requisite standard to be worthy of a call-in. That is, there is nothing special about this application which takes it outside the usual environmental effects that your councils normally consider.” 

[Christensen’s letter can be read HERE on page 56 of the ECAN confirmed minutes, June 21, 2023].

Despite SIRRL’s counsel contesting that Project Kea is not a matter of national significance and stating, “There is nothing special about this application,”  SIRRL’s planning report, contained in their resource consent application, states, “Project Kea is the first of its kind proposed in New Zealand, and there will be initial concerns around accepting this technology. There may also be concerns about whether New Zealand’s relevant national standards adequately cover energy from waste facilities.”

 

Mr Christensen’s letter also contests that the Project Kea proposal affects or is likely to affect more than one region or district. 

Again, SIRRL’s planning report states that Project Kea will acquire and divert waste from Otago, Central Otago, and Christchurch, all of which are outside of the Waimate district or South Canterbury region. This diversion of waste from landfills outside of the Waimate district will not only significantly impact existing waste management practices in other areas and districts but also raises questions about the project’s broader implications. 

SIRRL request ministerial call-in

In a bizarre turnaround, SIRRL writes to the Environment Minister, requesting a call-in of Project Kea. In the jointly written letter dated June 29, 2023, SIRRL Chairman of the Board Debiao Cao and Director Paul Taylor state that “Given the strategic importance of this proposal, SIRRL considers that confidence in the RMA process would, in the circumstances, be best achieved if the application is called-in and heard by a board of inquiry.” [SIRRL’s request can be read HERE on page 30 of the EPA’s recommendation to Minister Parker]

The decision by SIRRL to request a ministerial call-in, which could have led to either a board of inquiry or environment court proceedings, is significant. This suggests that SIRRL, sensing the impending ministerial input, has attempted to steer the proceedings towards the path of least resistance for their application.