Council to consult widely over nitrogen limits after legal threat

REACHING OUT: Rotorua Lakes Council is engaging with small block owners to reduce nutrient discharges into Lake Rotorua.PHOTO/FILE

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council is investing in its consultation process around draft rules for nitrogen restrictions in a bid to avoid unnecessary legal bills, according to its chairman Doug Leeder.

In a statement released yesterday the council said it had made changes to the proposed draft rules in response to last year's consultation process.

Mr Leeder said over the last two-and-a-half years officials had consulted with the Rotorua community on ways to reduce nutrient discharges into Lake Rotorua, and form rules "to achieve a clean lake that we can all be proud of".

"It is important for council to continue to listen and engage with all small block owners within the Rotorua catchment as we recognise their divergent views."

He said the council had invested in the consultation process "as we are funded by ratepayers we would like to avoid diverting any funds to finance potentially unnecessary legal bills". His comments come after landowners almost unanimously agreed at a public meeting last Sunday to commission high-profile lawyer Mai Chen to represent them in the on-going battle.

In its statement, the council said small block owners had had a number of representatives involved in the process and it now planned to "broaden those conversations" to enable all small block owners to have the chance to discuss the draft rules.

An outline of the proposed rules in their current draft state has been compiled and the council will work with small block owners over the coming week to determine what other information they need.

The council is also preparing a guide to the formal RMA process, to ensure all Rotorua residents will understand how they can be involved in defining the rules. Once timings have been determined this guide will be reissued to include the dates of the public submission process, and an advertising campaign will be implemented to ensure everyone is aware of how and when they can be heard.

Ms Chen told the Rotorua Daily Post she would be writing to the council next week about "illegalities in the process to date on behalf of affected Rotorua people".

Any small block owners within the Rotorua catchment who wish to receive information directly from the council may do so by emailing their preferred contact details to rules@boprc.govt.nz.