Ken’s Comment

Akey message from central government is that resource consents, administered by local government, take too long and cost too much. This results in frustration and lost opportunities, thus impeding economic prosperity and social well-being.

As chairman of the Ōmokoroa Golf Club, I recently learned that our resource consent to continue taking groundwater from a bore to irrigate our greens requires renewal. The club has been taking groundwater for almost 50 years, and with its location at the bottom of several small local catchments, there are no downstream neighbours. Historically, much of the area was coastal swamp land.

Regional Council staff have been most helpful in advising that the compilation of a resource consent application is complex. In their letter, they further stated, “Probably the part that can take the most time is the iwi/cultural assessment.”

This came as a surprise to me, and I subsequently learned that it is critical to provide a well-prepared AEE (Assessment of Environmental Effects) with a minimum of six critical topics that must be covered, including ‘cultural effects’. These must be informed through consultation with tangata whenua. For an application to be considered for nonnotification, you must gain written approval from parties who may be affected by the proposal, including local iwi/hapū.

I have spoken with several groundwater users in the Te Puna, Whakamārama, Ōmokoroa locality, and apparently, the local iwi charges a minimum of $5,000 for each consultation. It seems that most of these cultural assessments are a simple ‘cut and paste’ replication.

Not surprisingly, many feel that this is an extortion racket and an authorised licence to print money.

All of this seems to be an extremely unwieldy and costly process for the renewal of such an inconsequential and simple activity.