Ranges at Risk Again

The Waitakere Ranges Protection Society (WRPS) is horrified to discover that the latest Government bill on the Auckland Super City proposes gutting the protection provided by the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act (WRHAA).

The WRHHA, passed in 2008 after 35 years of campaigning by local people and proposed by the Waitakere City Council, draws a line in the sand regarding further subdivision and development on private land in the foothills of the Ranges.

The popular Act has saved the foothills from becoming yet another Auckland suburb and retained the rural buffer that is so important for protecting the Regional Park wilderness from the invasion of weeds and pests.

However the 3rd Super City bill, currently open for submissions until 5pm Friday 12 February, proposes gutting the protection afforded by the Act by requiring the new Auckland Council to produce a Spatial Plan that ignores it's provisions.

The Spatial Plan will replace the current Regional Growth Strategy, which is required to be consistent with the provisions of the WRHAA (in Section 18), but the Spatial Plan is not (the bill proposes repealing Section 18) and so the protection afforded by the Act will be lost.

"The new Auckland Council could choose to move the Metropolitan Urban Limit up to the edge of the Regional Park, or to create a new development zone for say Swanson or Henderson Valley, and open up the area to uncontrolled sub-division" says Society President John Edgar.

"The Heritage Area Act will become toothless and pointless unless the Spatial Plan is required to be consistent with it. The protection we have battled for 35 years to gain will be lost and Auckland's greatest asset will be cut up and sold off."

In another part of the bill (Schedule 3) there is a proposal to change the ownership of the Regional Park and repeal Section 77 of the Local Government Amendment Act which defines that the ARC currently owns the park. John Edgar suspects that this is another example of trying to sneak important changes past people without consulting them.

It's a disgrace that these kinds of changes are being introduced by stealth via this bill. No one is being told the implications or consulted on the real issues. It's a corporate and Wellington land grab for big business and developers, right across the city. The Waitakere Ranges is just one more asset to be exploited by the few."

The Society is urgently calling on people to make submissions opposing Schedule 3, p163 (repeal of Section 77 of Local Government Amendment Act 1992) and p176 (repeal of Section 18 of the Waitakere Ranges Heritage Area Act 2008) of the Local Government (Auckland Law Reform) Bill.

ENDS

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