The Resource Consent hearing on Western Springs Forest closed on Monday 15 April 2019. We are now waiting for the Commissioners’ decision.
This has never been done which is shockingly irresponsible given the importance and sensitivity of this forest SEA.
The majority of the WLB were not willing to consider taking a leadership role on this issue until after the Commissioners' decision.
Let us remember, this plan proceeded to Notified Resource Consent on the decision of WLB. Having set the process in motion, when it was discovered that Community Facilities’ plan is deeply flawed, not following arboricultural or ecological best practice and being driven by a bunch of opportunists, the Local Board is now dancing around a pin-head unable to make a decision.
My submissions to the board related to a document I recently found in the Auckland Council archives. Produced by the NZ Ministry of Forestry in December 1988, it considers the very questions that are exercising the Commissioners.
The conflict between the retention of the forest, the public safety issues and the destructive nature of logging.
The Ministry of Forestry knew about clear-felling practices and had experience of pine forest management. Community Facilities and its experts do not. Unsurprisingly the report reaches a very different conclusion.
Unlike Community Facilities, the Ministry of Forestry proceeds with the overall objective to preserve and “perpetuate the forest and maintain its natural and aesthetic values.”
It looks at all the options, status quo, clear-felling, and two types of thinning and concludes “Clear-felling would result in a total loss of the aesthetic and natural values for at least the next 10 years while the forest regrows and then it would take a further 10-20 years to mature before the forest structure that exists at present begins to reform.”
Thirty more years of understory and biodiversity development takes that assessment to 50-60 years before the forest structure that currently exists begins to reform. The report recommends, as have the residents, the “Removal of the obviously unstable trees and a sign warning people of the dangers of being in the forest especially in high winds is considered adequate protection for the public.”
One board member raised objection that health and safety requirements had changed since 1988. However, since 1988 no sign has been erected, the council has not complied with the recommendation in this report let alone its health and safety obligations.
Another legally qualified submitter explained to the board that they needed only ensure they do their due diligence to comply with their obligations. Given that submitters, alone, have had three highly qualified arboriculturalists looking at this forest, it is quite clear that due diligence has been done.
The importance of this Forest Significant Ecological Area grows by the day. This week saw the publication of the new Government stocktake ‘Environment Aotearoa 2019’ which demonstrates that New Zealand’s environment is in trouble.
Forest & Bird's chief executive, Kevin Hague said of the assessment of the environment’s overall health, "things are very bad."
Auckland’s precious environment is currently under attack by lax Auckland Council environmental regulation, no protections and management by inadequately qualified opportunists who are ‘significant players’ in destroying Auckland’s ‘protected’ urban forest canopy.
By removing an SEA without proper process, council is responsible for the potential destruction of three 3 x 400-500-year-old kauri trees in Titirangi. One is vital for research purposes for kauri dieback.
Auckland’s large exotic trees are also habitat for our highly endangered long-tail bats and the bat management plans being proposed by council on the resource consent applications do not follow bat management best practice. Council is leading the charge in destroying our native biodiversity. I have seen bats on North Head.
Going forward, we want to see council recognise a greencorridor for Auckland’s biodiversity. And to include Western Springs, Meola Reef, Seddons Fields, Jaggers Bush, Meola Creek, the schools, Chamberlain Park, Fowlds Park and Arch Hill Reserve. We want a green bridge to reconnect Chamberlain Park with Western Springs lakeside reserve and the whole area to be declared a Biodiversity Focus Area.
We have to do this now for future generations of Auckland residents and for our very vulnerable endangered biodiversity. (WENDY GRAY)