Mana whenua 'absolutely gutted' Dome Valley landfill has received green light

Mana whenua are "absolutely gutted" the controversial Dome Valley landfill was given a conditional green light by Auckland Council  yesterday.

A panel of independent commissioners granted Waste Management resource consent for the 60 hectare landfill 5 kilometres from Warkworth, although they were split in their decision. 

The approval is subject to about 400 conditions, which includes environmental and noise monitoring.

Auckland Council’s Ian Smallburn said yesterday the council realised many in the Dome Valley community would be disappointed in the decision.

"The council understands this long-awaited news is not the outcome many will have been hoping for.

"We would like to reassure iwi, submitters and the community that their views and concerns were heard and taken on board by the independent commissioners who have made this decision."

Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust’s Terrence Hohneck told Breakfast he did not feel mana whenua had been heard. 

"We're absolutely guted as mana whenua ... We totally oppose it. There's been strong opposition ... we're pretty gutted that the council made this decision," he said.

"Putting 26 million cubic metres of landfill waste and destroying 14 kilometres of our waterways ... I would say that they haven't heard us."

Michelle Carmichael of Fight the Tip, Save the Dome said it was "absolutely devastated and dismayed" by the decision.

"There was so much opposition to this that it just bewilders you as to how they can approve it."

She said the incorporated society would not back down and was prepared to go to the Environment Court. 

"You don’t go dumping rubbish into the land that feeds into a major harbour that supports our fishing industry, our people that live around it. It’s just ludicrous," she said. 

"There’s millions of dollars being invested in cleaning up the Kaipara Harbour … and yet you’ve got an industry that wants to do polluting activity in its headwater. It doesn’t make sense. I tell you what it does make and that’s dollars."

There is a 15 working day appeal period for the decision to be taken to the Environment Court, which began yesterday.