Battle over Tasman plan

Forest and Bird, Issue 282, 1 November 1996, Page 10

Battle over Tasman plan

MEMBERS OF THE Tasman and Golden Bay sections are angry at the decision by the Tasman District Council to gut the district’s proposed Resource Management Plan of its natural

heritage provisions. The plan identified 200 important natural areas such as native forest, wetlands and estuaries, and required a resource consent for clearance, earthworks and other modification. However, the list of natural heritage areas and the associated policies and rules were controversial with farming and commercial interests who wanted the entire plan withdrawn or key sections deleted. Forest and Bird members lobbied hard to retain the protections and processes contained in the plan. At a meeting in late October, councillors caved into the opposition, ignoring the requirements of the Resource Management Act to protect significant indigenous vegetation and habitats. The council’s hasty move, while public submissions on the plan were still being received, means the wider community has been denied a chance to comment on what were progressive natural heritage provisions.

The decision is a real step backwards for nature conservation in the huge Tasman district. What remains of the plan is still open for submissions until late February.