MEDIA RELEASE
August 11, 2005
No Appeal For BML
Blue Mountain Lumber will not be appealing the Environment Court decision which stopped their $30m sawmill development
on the Coromandel.
General Manager Matthew Hitchings said, “Appeal to the High Court can only be made on ‘points of law’. If successful the
High Court decision is then referred back to the same Environment Court for further consideration.”
“We are advised that in our case there are no ‘points of law’ to warrant appeal to the High Court.
Mr Hitchings noted that the Environment Court confirmed the sawmill was a rural activity and also granted BML’s key
environmental consents. The declining of the land use consent was what stopped the mill.
Interestingly, the granted environmental consents all had predefined objectives. In contrast the declining of the land
use consent was a subjective decision.
The sawmill equipment will remain in Whitianga being refurbished until final decisions are made whether to relocate
elsewhere in NZ or offshore.
Mr Hitchings commented that while we are frustrated with the decision and the misinformation propagated by WEPS, we
recognise the Peninsula as a special place and had designed the project to take that into consideration. The Court’s
decision has further clarified the factors that need to be taken into account in future.”
ENDS