Joel Ngātuere, marae environment spokesman and Emma Jones of Clear the Air Mount Maunganui stroll the harbour edge by Whareroa Marae. Photo
/ George Novak
Joel Ngātuere, marae environment spokesman and Emma Jones of Clear the Air Mount Maunganui stroll the harbour edge by Whareroa Marae. Photo
/ George Novak
An independent commissioner has turned down an oil company's application to build a jet fuel tank farm near a 150-year-old marae in Mount Maunganui.
Emotions were running high today among supporters of the Whareroa Marae, and the residents who live and work around it, as news of the decision filteredthrough.
The marae, of Ngāi Te Rangi hapū Ngāti Kuku and Ngāi Tukairangi, opposed resource consent applications by Timaru Oil Services Ltd to build and operate four 20m-high tanks to store A-1 jet fuel and diesel at 216 Totara St.
The industrial-zoned site, owned by the Port of Tauranga, is about 300m away from the marae, with a community including a kohanga reo, office buildings and 14 private homes with about 80 residents in between.
Independent hearing commissioner Gina Sweetment considered the applications at a hearing late last year under delegation from the Tauranga City Council and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.
She found consent could not be granted, with her reasons including the cultural and visual effects of the tank farm.
Whareroa Marae environment spokesman Joel Ngātuere, who lives near the marae community with his family, told the Bay of Plenty Times he was "feeling a whole lot of emotions" - but chiefly, relief.
"To say I am relieved is sort of an understatement.
"I am happy and grateful for all the effort that a number of people put in. I am grateful to the wider community who stood up and said we don't want this for Whareroa but also we don't want this for the future of the Mount."
He said there were tears among the people who live in the residential street next to Whareroa when the decision was released.
"People are crying because it is such an emotional predicament whānau are in. Living here, they have no faith in the system, no faith that our health means anything to anyone, whether central government, local government or industry.
Whareroa Marae environment spokesman Joel Ngātuere. Photo / File
"This is one thing that hopefully we won't have forced upon us."
He said there was still the question of whether Timaru Oil Services would appeal and what the Port of Tauranga might seek to do with its land.
Emma Jones of Clear the Air Mount Maunganui, a grassroots group that stood with Whareroa in opposition to the applications, said she was encouraged by the decision.
"I actually got really emotional when I read it. I felt listened to, they saw the bigger picture and heard the plight of the people down at Whareroa."
She said it was a step towards the group's shared goal with Whareroa to see a managed retreat of heavy and polluting industry from Mount Maunganui.
"It's a tiny step on a big mountain but we'll take it. People are putting in a lot of work to fight the big boys and it does feel like David and Goliath."
Emma Jones of Clear the Air Mount Maunganui. Photo / File
Regional council consents manager Reuben Fraser said the council had not yet received any notice of an appeal but there was a 15 working day timeframe from the decision's release for appeals to be lodged.
"This decision demonstrates the importance of the local community around Whareroa Marae being able to participate in this resource consent process and that the independent commissioner heard the community's concerns," Fraser said.
Tauranga City Council also confirmed it had not received any notice of an appeal.
Following public outcry over the tank farm and pressure from Whareroa Marae, both councils last year agreed to explore the possibility of a future managed retreat of polluting industries from the Hewletts Rd industrial area in Mount Maunganui.
A request for comment on the decision emailed to Timaru Oil Services managing director Philippe Dubau did not receive a response yesterday.
The Port of Tauranga, which was not part of the consent application or hearing, declined to comment.
