ARC appealing to court to stop mining of sand at Pakiri Beach

Scientific opinion is divided on the effects of mining sand at Pakiri Beach. File picture

The Auckland Regional Council is heading back to court to try to stop sand mining near the shore at Pakiri Beach where it is setting up a new northern regional park.

Last month the Environment Court upheld an appeal by companies Sea-tow and McCallum Bros against a council committee's refusal to renew their coastal permits.

The bids to take a total of 76,000cu m a year in water 5m to 10m deep drew stout opposition on grounds of serious environmental effects.

ARC environment chairwoman Dianne Glenn said the ARC yesterday lodged an appeal in the High Court.

The important coastal environment needed protection and included the habitat of two threatened bird species, the New Zealand fairy tern and the New Zealand dotterel.

In the Environment Court case, scientific opinion clashed about whether further loss of sand from the Mangawhai-Pakiri sand system would cause erosion in the beach and foredunes.

A critical question was whether the sand system was closed to significant inputs of sand from outside it.

The ARC notice of appeal says the court had no evidence for its finding that the breakdown of shell on the seabed to sand-sized material added 90,000cu m a year of sand to the system.