Residents fight managed fills

Paparimu and Ararimu residents are celebrating after Auckland Council confirmed the applicant behind a massive proposed managed fill site on Ararimu Road has withdrawn their resource consent application.

More than 500 submissions opposing the proposed fill at the Paparimu end of Ararirmu Road were sent to Auckland Council in September. The proposal would see the dumping of 1.3 million cubic metres of excavated material, including construction waste, on rural land over a 16-year period.

Hunua Ararimu Paparimu Valley Residents Association (HAPVRA) co-chair Geraldine Schnauer said residents were anxiously waiting for a hearing date when news of the applicant’s abrupt U-turn came through.

“It was so unexpected. One minute, we were gearing up for more fundraising to pay for experts to present at the hearing, and the next, we were cheering because it was all over.
“We’re so pleased for the neighbours who were directly impacted by the noise and dust of the operation, as well as the many small rural communities who would have suffered up to 120 truck movements a day, six days per week.”

HAPVRA’s opposition campaign was jointly supported by the Ararimu Residents and Ratepayers Association, which helped raise funds, as well as drop-in sessions to advise on how to prepare submissions.

“We couldn’t have done it without them. Our combined skills and energy really made a difference,” Schnauer said.

But it’s not over yet for valley residents.

They are preparing for the next big fight: The proposed managed fill on Jones Road in Hunua has an upcoming resource consent hearing. It was planned to take place in Manukau at the end of this month, but has been suspended to allow the applicant more time to prepare.

HAPVRA says the proposed fill application, if approved, would see an area the size of Wellington’s Cake Tin stadium, with 192 daily truck movements through the narrow, winding Hunua Gorge. The gorge road is prone to landslips and rockfall, often closing during the winter months. Temporary traffic lights have been in place since September on a section of the road that is closed to one lane due to rockfall and slips.

Franklin ward councillor Andy Baker has previously said clean fills should be located near quarries and arterial roads, “where it’s not going to destroy a road or create safety issues”.
Opponents have received some good news with an Auckland Council planner recommending the application be refused on both potential traffic safety concerns and negative impacts on the area’s rural character.

Schnauer said she was surprised the council planner wasn’t concerned by potential run-off to the Hays Creek Dam catchment, which supplies water to Papakura.

“We are horrified that a proposed fill could be built so close to an essential water supply, and we hope Watercare’s experts will be able to provide a robust opposition.”

HAPVRA will hold a public meeting once a new hearing date has been scheduled. The applicant has until May 21 to resume the process.

“We may be small, but we are a determined, highly organised community. We’re looking forward to our time at the hearing to show that rural voices do matter, and we’re expecting that our Ararimu and Paparimu friends will now join this fight too. There is only one Hunua Ranges in the whole world, and we are determined to keep it beautiful.”

A fundraising page has been set up to help pay for HAPVRA’s defence experts: www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/hunua.