Planning for the Aggregate and Quarry Industry
Abstract
The construction of infrastructure and development within urban and rural areas of New Zealand depends on the ability to access, extract, process and transport aggregate (being crushed rock, gravel and sand) from quarries (collectively referred to as ‘quarrying’ in this note). Therefore, it is important aggregate resources are understood and effectively managed, including managing the effects of quarrying on the environment.
The potential effects of quarrying vary according to the type, scale, location, receiving environment and distance from the market. The effects produced by quarrying can often be mitigated or remedied but not always avoided. This creates the potential for quarrying to both adversely affect, and be affected by, surrounding land uses.
Regional councils and territorial authorities both play a key role in integrated planning for aggregate resources and managing any adverse environmental effects of quarrying through district and regional plans and the resource consent process.
This guidance note outlines the key matters in planning for quarrying, describes the key effects of quarrying and the methods available to manage these effects under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA), including examples of methods in practice.
The focus of this guidance note is on the planning and management of medium- and large-scale quarrying of aggregate from the ground, including river beds and beaches. It does not address small-scale quarrying, dredging, extraction from the coastal marine area below the mean low water springs or the extraction of other mineral resources such as coal, gold or oil. However, many of the resource management issues and associated management methods for quarrying are generally relevant to other forms of mineral extraction and smaller-scale quarrying activities.
Guidance note
This note is structured, as follows:
- integrated management of quarrying
- planning steps and timeframes for aggregate resources
- quarrying issues, effects and management methods.
Introduction
This guidance note was initiated by the Aggregate and Quarry Association of New Zealand (AQANZ), in partnership with the Ministry for the Environment and Local Government New Zealand, as a way of promoting best practice to deal with the complex range and scale of resource management issues associated with the aggregate and quarry industry.
The development of this guidance note was initiated with the development of a background paper identifying key resource management issues with quarrying. The main issues included:
- strategic planning for aggregate resources including the need for, and provision of, aggregate to meet current and future infrastructure and development
- management of on-site and off-site environmental effects of quarrying, which vary depending on the type of activity, scale of operation, location, receiving environment and distance to market
- reverse sensitivity pressures on managing the operation and expansion of existing quarries or the establishment of new quarries, in areas where there are conflicts or constraints with adjacent land uses
These issues and others were discussed with local government and industry participants at the ‘Planning for the Aggregate and Quarry Industry Conference’ held in June 2009 and are addressed throughout this guidance note. Other participants involved in the development of this guidance note are acknowledged at the end of this note.
Integrated management approach to planning for quarrying
Both regional councils (s31 of the RMA) and territorial authorities (s31 of the RMA) play a key role under the RMA in planning for aggregate resources and managing the effects of quarrying .
Aggregate resources are limited in quantity, location and availability, with demand and supply of aggregate often crossing regional and territorial council boundaries. Regional councils and territorial authorities should work together to strategically identify the future need for aggregates, their availability, and methods to provide for future access to aggregate resources, while avoiding remedying or mitigating the effects of quarrying.
Councils should be aware of the linkages between RMA documents and between non-RMA plans and strategies when developing an integrated approach to managing quarrying. General methods that can be used to integrate and strategically plan for aggregate resources and manage the effects of quarrying at regional and district levels include:
RMA related
Non-RMA related
Generally, a combination of these methods can be used by councils to achieve integrated management of quarrying.
Planning steps and timeframes for aggregate resources
A number of factors make planning for quarrying challenging. Without effective planning for aggregate resources there is the potential for incompatible activities to limit or prevent access to aggregate resources in the future. However, the need to access aggregate needs to be balanced with the effects of quarrying on the environment and any restrictions imposed on private property rights. This is a key resource allocation issue for councils to consider when reviewing plans and processing resource consents.
How aggregate and quarrying is planned for will vary depending on the needs, pressures and availability of aggregate in an area. Given the finite nature and strategic reliance on aggregate it is important these factors are adequately considered against any likely short-term, intermediate and longer-term changes in demand and supply both within, and adjoining, an area.
A 30 to 50-year planning horizon reflects consistently with other strategic planning processes including LTCCPs, RLTS and growth strategies, however, in Road Metals Company v Christchurch City Council and Canterbury Regional Council, a lead-in time of 50 to 100 years was considered a more appropriate timeframe given the constraints on availability of aggregate within the area and the need for certainty for future infrastructural development.
Effective planning for aggregate resources is an ongoing process and requires a number of basic interrelated components:
Councils should work closely with the aggregate and quarry industry, tāngata whenua and affected landowners to develop a robust approach to manage aggregate resources and the effects of quarrying.
Projecting demand for aggregate resources
Understanding future demand for aggregate in a location will help inform how it is appropriately identified and managed in plans. The scale and detail of this exercise should be fit for purpose.
The need and location of future demand for aggregate can be identified through a range of methods including:
- Statistics New Zealand’s population and household projections for regions and districts
- National and Regional Transport Programmes (RTP) which provide details of planned and future road construction (available from regional councils and the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA))
- LTCCPs, RLTS and RTPs which provide details of planned and future infrastructure projects
- economic strategies which provide details of projected industrial and commercial growth
- growth strategies and asset management plans which identify infrastructure and areas for future development. These are often supported with more detailed studies which may provide general information about the potential future demand for aggregate resources in the area
- demand studies which project future demand based on a number of indicators and their relationship with past aggregate supply
- monitoring data from quarry operators which is either provided voluntarily (through surveys)or through resource consent conditions or by Crown Minerals. This data can show current and past demand for aggregates which can help predict future trends
- aggregate consumption rates which can help approximate quantities eg, it takes approximately 4000 tonnes of aggregate for each kilometre of sealed road and 250 tonnes to build a new house.
In considering future demand, councils should also take into account the need for, and impact of, the supply and demand of aggregate from adjoining areas.
Identifying aggregate resources
Identifying aggregate resources requires understanding of the location, scale, type and accessibility of the resource. Approaches used to identify aggregate resources vary in their level of detail and scale depending on the needs, pressures and availability of aggregate in an area. A common approach is to identify the aggregate resource in terms of its geological components and scale.
Identification of strategic aggregate resources should also identify other key factors that may affect access, to and viability of, an aggregate resource in relation to its location and surrounding land uses. The use of criteria provides transparency when considering the value and viability of aggregate resources and any subsequent level of protection provided to them and from quarrying them. It is also important to acknowledge that conditions will change over time (ie, new roads, urban growth) and this can also change the viability of the resource.
Information to help identify strategic aggregate resources and constraints can be gained from:
- geological surveys which can be used as a basis for more detailed exercises
- collecting monitoring data from quarries that estimates how much aggregate remains (including consented sites not yet in operation)
- council planning maps, overlays and schedules
- transport management plans
- community consultation exercises
- relevant studies into cultural and heritage values (including iwi management plans).
Approaches used to help identify aggregate resources include:
Where appropriate, councils should also identify the use of recycled aggregate that is, or is likely to be, available to meet future demand. The use of recycled aggregate is increasing with a number of councils promoting its uses through objectives and policies in plans. Recycled aggregate can help meet future aggregate demand and reduce the need for new aggregate through re-using material that would otherwise be cleanfilled or dumped.
Assessing and providing appropriate access to aggregate resources
Once the demand for, and location of, aggregate resources is understood, then objectives, policies and methods can be developed in plans to provide the appropriate access to them. Appropriate access to both existing and potential areas for future quarrying should be weighed up with Part 2 matters of the RMA, in particular, the adverse effects of quarrying and methods available to manage them.
A s32 assessment is a key requirement throughout the plan-making process. This process will help identify the degree and nature of issues and the effects around aggregate and quarrying in an area and provide a framework from which to consider and test appropriate objectives, policies, and methods in plans (refer to Section 32 – Methods of implementation for further information).
Undertaking an assessment will vary by location and circumstances. However, a number of points that councils should consider in assessing appropriate objectives, policies and methods may include:
- the extent to which the aggregate resource is known/identified
- the strategic value of the resource in relation to the demand for aggregate within/outside the region including:
- the amounts of aggregate needed
- the timeframe for expected demand
- the scarcity of the resource and alternative locations
- the positive benefits of quarrying
- how well existing quarries fulfil current and future needs versus the need for new sites
- the nature and density of surrounding land uses
- the different scale and nature of aggregate resources, the quarrying activity and its potential effects
- any particularly sensitive land uses (ie,, schools), areas of significant landscape value or areas of importance to iwi and waterways
- costs of restricting the rights of landowners
- competing values for a location (refer Winstone Aggregates v Rodney District Council [2009](A054/09)
- potential loss of high valued land for other activities
- the proximity of a site or resource to transport networks.
In assessing the appropriate level of access to aggregate resources, councils need to have regard to any sites with existing use rights. It is important to establish baselines for effects as existing quarries can continue with their activities provided the level of effect does not change. Existing use rights need to be considered in developing plan provisions for quarrying and in developing appropriate mechanisms to manage the effects of quarrying.
The assessment may result in the need for more than one approach to manage quarrying in an area. The section 32 report for Proposed Plan Change 7 (now adopted) in the Hurunui District highlights the consideration of a number of the above factors, along with submissions, in developing the approach for quarrying in the district plan.
A range of methods that may inform, develop and deliver a policy framework to provide appropriate access to aggregate resources includes:
- growth strategies
- objectives and policies recognising the importance and management of aggregate resources
- methods such as zoning (including buffer areas and potential aggregate extraction areas), setbacks and no complaints covenants.
See case law for further points on the significance of planning for aggregate resources, existing use rights and reverse sensitivity issues.
Quarry resource management issues, effects and methods
Quarrying can generate a number of on-site and off-site environmental effects through the blasting, excavation, crushing, screening, stockpiling and transport of aggregate.
The degree and nature of effects caused by quarrying varies according to the type of quarry, the scale of operation, methods used to excavate aggregate, the geology of the area, the receiving environment and the surrounding land uses.
Effects are either on site, on neighbouring properties or completely off site, such as the transportation of aggregate. The environmental effects of quarrying primarily include:
- the disturbance of land and vegetation
- the disturbance of river beds or coastal marine areas
- dust
- vibration
- noise
- traffic
- visual effects
- impact on cultural and historic heritage values
- the discharge of contaminants into air, water, land and the coastal marine area.
The effects of quarrying need to be considered when developing appropriate objectives, policies and methods in plans to manage quarrying. Although the effects of quarrying can often be mitigated, they cannot always be avoided.
When establishing parameters around objectives, policies and methods to control the effects of quarrying, it is important to encourage effects to be internalised on site as much as possible. The need to internalise effects in developing objectives, policies and other methods also applies to resource consents, where the onus is on applicants to demonstrate they have internalised the effects of their activities as far as is reasonably practicable (see s17 of the RMA and case law on Winstone Aggregates Limited v Papakura District Council (A096/98)). Only where the internalisation of effects cannot be achieved, and protection is warranted, should off-site mitigation or reverse sensitivity measures be considered (refer to the discussion on buffer zones).
Existing use rights should also be considered when identifying effects and developing appropriate methods to manage them. See more on existing uses in the RMA Enforcement Manual.
The positive benefits of quarrying should be considered alongside any adverse effects. This includes:
- the contribution to the economic and social development of an area through the provision of raw materials to maintain and enhance community facilities, services and infrastructure such as water treatment plants, hospital’s, schools, airports, new roads, bridges, motorways and new buildings
- the provision of direct and indirect employment opportunities
- diversification of the local economy and support of ancillary services such as engineering, mechanic and construction businesses
- the reduced social and economic costs of having aggregate resources closer to demand
- opportunity for the end use of quarries, for example, recreational or habitat opportunities
- other flow-on regional benefits, including complementary businesses or services.
See further information on the importance of aggregate resources in case law.
Developing objectives and policies to avoid, remedy or mitigate quarrying effects
Councils should assess a variety of matters in developing appropriate objectives, policies and methods to avoid, remedy or mitigate the effects of quarrying.
The approach to managing the effects of quarrying is fairly common across plans. Many plans have objectives and policies that aim to avoid, remedy or mitigate the effects of quarrying. The objectives and policies can be general in nature or tailored specifically to quarrying activities. For example, general objectives and policies could be developed to manage all noise effects, and reference to quarrying may not be explicitly stated. Alternatively, specific objectives and policies particular to quarrying activities could be developed.
A number of plans have objectives and policies that highlight a range of considerations to reflect specific pressures and values within an area. These may include such considerations as the impact on sensitive and incompatible activities, sites of significance to tāngata whenua, natural hazards, amenity values and the end use of a quarry. Objectives and policies are typically implemented through rules that have one or more activity classes (ie, whether it is a permitted, controlled, restricted or discretionary activity). Rules generally include performance standards which establish the appropriate level of effects and matters for consideration when assessing quarrying activities. These might apply to quarrying within a particular zone or area, or across the entire region and/or district.
Effects and management methods
The following table outlines the issues/effects associated with quarrying and a number of methods that can be used to avoid, remedy or mitigate them.
Methods relate to the control of the effects of quarrying operations both on and off site. The choice of appropriate method/s will vary depending on circumstances, and include those listed in Assessing and providing appropriate access to aggregate resources.
Resource consents
Quarry proposals generally trigger the need for resource consents from both regional councils and territorial authorities. It is good practice for councils to work together as appropriate to consider the effects of a proposal in an integrated manner. This approach can be established through pre-application meetings with the relevant councils and then subsequent joint applicatiozn meeting(s), joint hearings (when notified) and the circulation of draft conditions to relevant parties. Councils can also determine not to proceed to notify or hold a hearing of an application under s91 of the RMA if they consider on reasonable grounds that other resource consents are required and need to be made before proceeding, for the purpose of better understanding the nature of the proposal.
When assessing the effects of a quarry application it is often necessary to seek specialised information on the measurement and quantification of effects. When this is the case, useful guidance may be contained in other plan topic guidance notes.
Refer to resource consents for more information on the resource consent process and examples of resource consent conditions relating to quarrying, a number of which have been developed to address specific effects from the above table.
Best practice examples
Given the differing nature, pressures and effects of quarrying around New Zealand, practices reflecting the planning and management of adverse effects vary. A number of examples of approaches and methods used by councils are highlighted in the Assessing and providing appropriate access to aggregate resources and Quarry resource management issues, effects and methods sections .
Other specific examples of best practice are included below.
Integrated approach to identifying and managing quarrying
The FutureProof Growth Strategy and Implementation Plan, Waikato Regional Policy Statement (also see the Proposed Change Number 2 – Future Proof) and the Proposed Waikato District Plan, provide an example of integrated plans that all recognise and provide for quarrying and its effects, across regional and territorial authority plans.
This approach identifies strategic issues and pressures in the region. Access to aggregate resources and the adverse effects of quarrying are considered alongside the provisions for growth including transport and infrastructure planning, which has been integrated into the district plan.
Provision for potential future aggregate resources
A number of plans recognise the need to provide for access to significant aggregate resources in the future and the need to limit incompatible activities in these areas. This is generally achieved through the resource consent process and considerations. However, the Proposed Waikato District Plan example goes further in using a set of specific criteria to identify which resources require additional consideration as opposed to giving protection to all potential aggregate resources. Although this approach is relatively new and yet to be tested in operation, it provides more specific identification and consideration of certain aggregate resources. This, in turn, gives more certainty to landowners and quarry operators.
Quarry management plans
Although not always a formal requirement (ie, through a policy or consent condition), Quarry Management Plans are a useful way to outline a range of operational details relating to the use and management of aspects of sites. In particular, the Three Kings Quarry – Quarry Management Plan provides for periodical meetings of a site liaison group consisting of the quarry operator, council and local community representatives. During these regular and ongoing meetings matters associated with the operation of the quarry which affect the community or of mutual interest are discussed.
Application forms for mines and quarries
Environment Waikato provides a number of consent application forms , including one for small and large-scale mining and quarrying activities. The form covers all the associated discharges to air, water and land from quarrying and provides useful guidance on what to include in an application at the outset. The form also requires information on water take and overburden placement and provides a comprehensive guideline of what to include in the assessment of environmental effects for applications relating to quarrying operations.
Guidelines and education material for quarrying
An example of guidelines to help applicants and the industry manage the effects of extraction is the River Gravel Management Guidelines produced by Environment Bay of Plenty. These guidelines provide useful reference material on gravel management and are intended to be used for education, to complement the regulatory controls in the River Gravel Management Plan, and to lead to environmental improvement. The guidelines include background information on gravel sources and processes, principles to manage adverse effects and operational guidelines for extraction and associated monitoring and reporting.
The Greater Wellington Regional Council has guidance on the extraction of gravel and shingle on its website. This provides information on the rules and activity class of extraction across coastal, river and inland environments.
Relevant case law
Significance of the aggregate resource
Golden Bay Cement v Whangarei District Council [2005] (A15/2005) : This decision noted the regional and national importance of a quarry resource and its authorised externalisation of effects. The decision only allowed the furthermost part of an adjoining land parcel to be rezoned from rural to residential due to the potential reverse sensitivity effects it would cause on the quarry.
Brookby Quarries Limited v Manukau City Council [2006] (A153/2006): This decision allowed a quarry proposal to increase truck movements by applying mitigation measures to address effects on residents. The case also highlighted the positive benefits of the proposal in making efficient use of the resource and enabling local supply of aggregate to meet demand in the Auckland region.
Waireka Valley Preservation Society Inc v Waitaki District Council [2009] (C058/09 and C127/08): This decision found in favour of an application for a cement plant after considering iwi cultural issues, landscape effects, historic heritage, economic effects and tourism against the positive effects including enhancement and diversification of the local economy and population, work and wealth generation, and flow-on regional benefits.
Planning for the aggregate resource
Roads Metals Company Limited v Christchurch City Council and Canterbury Regional Council [2006] (C163/2006) : This decision raised issues over the insufficient timeframe allowed for planning future aggregate supply within the Christchurch area after a proposal to extend an existing quarry face into adjoining properties (with different zoning), made the activity non-complying.
The Court considered that, based on a Regional Gravel Report produced by the Canterbury Regional Council, there were some serious issues concerning the source for the future supply of aggregate for the region and it suggested the planning timeframes for aggregates was insufficient. The Court stated that, given the lead-in time for developments and the need for certainty for infrastructural development, a planning horizon of 50 to 100 years for aggregate resources is more appropriate (than the 20 years identified in the report).
Winstone Aggregates v Rodney District Council [2009] (A054/09) : This decision identified plan provisions which recognise an area as having value as both a mineral resource and a significant natural area. The decision recognises the tension between both matters of importance, identifying vegetation removal to obtain access to undertake mineral extraction as a restricted discretionary activity. The Court considered the proposed provisions were a reasonable response to the resource management issues arising from mineral extraction in the significant natural area as they made broad considerations available to council to address the effects of vegetation removal.
Existing use rights
Existing use rights in the context of quarrying are important, as councils have been known to respond differently to the expansion of existing quarries when deciding whether resource consents are required.
Russell v Manukau City Council [1996] NZRMA 35: This decision highlighted that it is the effects of the use rather than the use itself that is relevant in determining whether an activity remains the same or similar in character, intensity and scale.
The Court concluded that reasonable evolution of the activity is permitted, but it cannot alter to the point that the activity becomes something different altogether, ie, the relativity of the similarity of character, intensity and scale to what it was before it changed, considering each point mutually exclusive of each other.
Omya New Zealand Limited v Selwyn District Council (C123/2003): This case involved a declaration as to whether the company, Omya, could rely on existing use rights under s10 of the RMA to continue to mine an area that extended over two properties where mining had not been continuous and there had been no mining undertaken on one property at all. It was found that while only part of the land was actively mined, the fact that the balance of the land was held in reserve and intended for future use did not change the fact that, in law, the whole of the land was used for mining and retained its existing use rights.
Reverse sensitivity and internalisation of effects
Winstone Aggregates Limited v Papakura District Council (A096/98) : This appeal addressed the extent to which the environment should be protected from the adverse effects of quarrying; and the extent to which quarrying and its extraction sites, as natural and physical resources, should be protected from the adverse effects of incompatible activities.
The Court stated that in controlling undesirable effects, territorial authorities should impose restrictions to internalise adverse effects as much as is reasonably possible. Restrictions on other sites are only appropriate when the effects of an activity cannot be controlled by restrictions aimed at internalisation.
The Court established that local authorities have the jurisdiction to provide a buffer zone to provide for reverse sensitivity where it has reasonably internalised the duty to avoid, remedy and mitigate adverse effects and is consistent with the overall functions and obligations of the territorial authority. In this case, while the Court was not opposed to the use of a buffer, it was not certain that all reasonable measures had first been implemented to internalise adverse effects within the quarry site.
Winstone Aggregates Ltd v Auckland Regional Council (A113/02) [June 2002]: This was a further interim decision where a consent order approved provisions which ensured important aggregate resources of the district were not compromised by other sensitive land uses.
Winstone Aggregates v Matamata-Piako District Council (W055/04) : In this case, the Court cautioned against a view that “reverse sensitivity” consequences should necessarily be avoided by constraint on sensitive new activities. The first principle should be that the activity causing the effects should internalise them as much as it is practical to do so. To justify constraints on land adjoining an effects emitting site, the industry must be of some considerable economic or social significance locally, regionally or nationally.
In this case, the Court found there could be little doubt that the regional importance of the resource, the impracticality of internalising all noise effects and the vulnerability of the quarry to reverse sensitivity pressures, justified controls on subdivision and erection of dwellings in a carefully delineated buffer zone. The Court considered the appropriate restrictions to protect industry should be in the form of discretionary or restricted discretionary activity status for subdivision or residential activity.
For more information on case law relating to reverse sensitivity see the article Reverse Sensitivity – the Common Law Giveth, and the RMA Taketh Away and some other key cases specifically relating to reverse sensitivity and noise.
Consent conditions – timeframes
Huntly Quarries Ltd v Waikato Regional Council [2008] A010/08: Decision to extend Huntly Quarries granted consent term of 25 years to 35 years, the maximum permitted by section 123(d). The Environment Court allowed the appeal on the basis that:
- the consent conditions would effectively manage the environmental effects over the term of the consent (while there have been instances of non-compliance in the past the applicant has demonstrated commitment to operate in accordance with the consent conditions)
- the receiving environment was not sensitive and is being managed to avoid adversely affecting the local community
- the effects are variable depending on both operational factors and weather conditions but are addressed by the conditions of consent
- the quarry was a considerable resource and the applicant was entitled to reasonable certainty and security which should be reflected in the term of the consents.
See the Resource consent conditions guidance note for other relevant case law on consent conditions.
No complaints covenants
South Pacific Tyres NZ Ltd v Powerland (NZ) Ltd [2008](CIV427/08) : This case involved a summary judgement against Powerland who agreed to and then later attempted to cancel a no complaints covenant. The Court considered it was apparent from case law that participants could freely waive their rights to participate under the RMA, especially in cases where the developer obtained direct benefit from doing so. The Court also found such covenants were not contrary to public policy. Therefore, the covenant was upheld in favour of South Pacific Tyres as being valid and enforceable and the Court made an order to that effect.
Ngatarawa Development Trust Limited v Hastings District Council [2008](W017/08): This decision involved declining consents with no complaints covenants. Whereas the covenant was valid, the Court noted that such covenants were not a “panacea for reverse sensitivity issues”. Although no complaint covenants are a useful measure to address secondary effects, they are not a complete answer to reverse sensitivity and should not sway the consent authority’s overall broad judgment in favour of an application.
For more information on case law relevant to no complaint covenants see the Bell Gully article on no complaints covenants and the Reverse Sensitivity – Are No Complaints Instruments a Solution? article from the New Zealand Journal of Environmental Law.
Traffic
Winstone Aggregates v Franklin District Council [2002](7NZED442): This case considered the extent to which consent authorities and the Court had the power to control the movements of vehicles on a public road due to a proposed condition that limited both the destination and maximum tonnage of aggregate transported per year.
The Court held a consent authority has (a limited) jurisdiction to control the manner in which a public road is used to control effects on the environment. The Court established the volume, rate, hours and route of heavy vehicle movements had the potential to cause adverse effects on the area in the immediate vicinity of the quarry. Therefore, the consent condition limiting the destination and amount of aggregate transported out of the site were valid to mitigate the effects of traffic on residents of the area.
The Court also held it was both legally valid and enforceable for quarry owners to monitor truck movements and that Winstone was required, and had the ability to, accurately monitor and record all vehicle movements to and from the quarry including destinations and routes used. The Court considered this monitoring could be carried out through any contractual relationship the quarry operator had with other companies.
Pike River Coal Limited v Grey District Council [2006] (C173/06) and Pike River Coal Limited v Grey District Council [2007] (C060/07): This interim decision focused on how far the Court should go in setting conditions of consent in relation to the use of public roads and properties affected by the traffic movements that are some distance from a mining site.
The Court granted consent for the alternative route subject to confirmation of conditions to provide reasonable protection to the residential communities along the route. The Court gave directions the hours of operation and number of vehicles should be the primary method to manage the noise effects from the traffic but there should be sufficient flexibility in those restrictions. Other methods include the use of an alternative route for emergency purposes, the distance for noise assessment, acoustic insulation timeframes and traffic movements, hours and recording of traffic movements.
RMA provisions
RMA provisions identified below can be viewed through the following link.
Section 2: Interpretation – best practicable option
Section 10: Certain existing uses in relation to land protected
Section 15: Discharge of contaminants into environment
Section 16: Duty to avoid unreasonable noise
Section 17: Duty to avoid, remedy or mitigate adverse effects
Section 20A: Certain existing lawful activities allowed
Section 30: Functions of regional councils under this Act
Section 31: Functions of territorial authorities under this Act
Section 35 Duty to gather information, monitor, and keep records
Section 60: Preparation and change of regional policy statements
Section 64: Preparation and change of regional coastal plans
Section 65: Preparation and change of other regional plans
Section 73: Preparation and change of district plans
Section 91: Deferral pending application for additional consents
Section 104: Consideration of applications
Section 108: Conditions of resource consent
Section 109: Special provisions in respect of bonds or covenants
Other provisions
Local Government Act 2002 – LTCCPs (Section 93–97)
Related guidance notes
- Air quality
- Resource consent conditions
- Indigenous biodiversity (currently being updated)
- Managing earthworks under the RMA
- Managing land transport noise under the RMA
- Landscapes (currently being updated)
- Noise management in mixed-use environments
- Recommending the duration and lapse of consents
- Subdivision
- Surface water quality
- Structuring and organising regional and district plans
- Water allocation – planning for
- Writing provisions for regional and district plans
- Relationship between the Local Government Act and the RMA (LTCCP)
- Facilitating consultation with tāngata whenua
- Frequently asked questions on iwi management plans
Relevant publications
New Zealand documents and websites
- Aggregate and Quarry Association of New Zealand (2006)
- environmental policy
- recycled best practice
- information on quarrying processes
- Auckland Regional Council (2008). Technical Publication No.90: Erosion and Sediment Control Guidelines for Land Disturbing Activities in the Auckland Region
- Auckland Regional Council (2003). Technical Publication 10: Design Guideline for Manual Stormwater Treatment Devices
- Ministry for the Environment (2001). A Good Practice Guide to Assessing and Managing the Effects of Dust Emissions
- Ministry for the Environment: Waste Minimisation Act 2008
- New Zealand Mineral Industry Association information on aggregate uses and processes
Overseas documents and websites
- Allington R and White T. (2009). An overview of design and management approaches to reducing the environmental footprint of the supply chain for land-won aggregates
- Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (2009). Biodiversity Offset Handbook
- Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria, Australia (2006). Assessing Applications Involving Native Vegetation Removal Practice Note
- United States Environmental Protection Agency (1998). Available Information for Estimating Air Emissions from Stone Mining and Quarrying
- www.sustainableaggregates.com (UK)
- www.goodquarry.com (UK) The Mineral Industry Research Organisation, and the Department of Mining, Quarrying and Mineral Engineering at the University of Leeds
- Planning for Minerals – A training resource – The British Geological Survey
- Minerals Policy Statement 1: Planning and Minerals (2006), Communities and Local Government (UK)
- Minerals Products Association (UK)
Challenges in practice
Identifying and developing potential resources
Two key challenges face providing future access to aggregate resources. The first challenge is obtaining information on the location of, and the demand for, aggregate resources. Undertaking research to identify aggregate resources can be an expensive process particularly for smaller councils. Often the need to identify and provide appropriate access to aggregate resources is balanced against the demand and availability of resources in an area, and the access to resources with regard to incompatible land uses. Regions can play an important role in working with territorial authorities to support the appropriate identification and access to resources, and taking into account regional considerations over a longer timeframe.
The second challenge is the provision of appropriate access to future sites which needs to balance the provision of suitable opportunities for quarrying far enough into the future, against a limited knowledge and certainty of where and when future quarrying sites may emerge, which is ultimately a decision of commercial enterprise. This makes planning challenging especially where determining the weight and approach to provide for longer term access by placing constraints on private landowners. However, without undertaking this process there is a danger that securing future aggregate needs will come at an increased social and environmental cost. Refer to the Provision for potential future aggregate resources in the best practice section and assessing and providing appropriate access to aggregate resources for further discussion.
Future use of quarries
Old quarries are increasingly being used for a range of ancillary industrial activities such as cleanfill sites making positive use of sites often strategically located to transport routes and urban areas. An example is the Mt Wellington Quarry which is now a new commercial and residential area, or the Puketutu Island Quarry which is also operating as a cleanfill site. However, the ability to plan for the use of sites can be limited where it is an existing use, and plans to remediate the site may not be a condition on the use of the site unless part of the original authorisation of the activity. However, the future use of quarries should be considered where new quarries are established as appropriate. This may include ongoing remediation of the site as works progress or a condition providing for a remediation plan to be submitted at a certain time and updated over the life of the consent.
Roading contributions
The effects on traffic from a proposed quarry development are often a resource consent consideration. This includes the general wear and tear from heavy vehicle use on the council’s roading assets. Some councils address this by way of a specific financial contribution levied under the RMA or the LGA, but the way in which this contribution is calculated can vary significantly between different councils. This is because there are a number of factors that need to be considered when determining when roading contributions should be required and what their appropriate level is. These factors include:
- the road damage from the additional loadings above what would occur anyway
- the type of road and whether it should be able to absorb the additional truck movements
- the role of public roading agencies (ie, councils and the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA)) in providing heavy haulage routes
- the wider public good benefit from any roading upgrade and who should pay for these wider benefits
- whether roading contributions should be an upfront payment or an ongoing levy.
Collectively, these factors make calculating the appropriate roading contribution for a proposed quarry a challenging task and one which will generally require input from industry and technical specialists. Refer to some matters to consider for calculating roading contributions for a more detailed discussion. Also see case law on quarry traffic.
Methods to offset adverse ecological effects
Often aggregate resources are located within areas of indigenous habitat or of high natural value. Where it is not possible to avoid the removal of vegetation or disturbance of ecology, restoration or protection of a natural habitat elsewhere can, in some instances, be an appropriate method to offset unavoidable adverse ecological effects. However, determining the appropriateness of offset methods, including its form (such as habitat establishment, restoration, or protection), is a challenging task. This issue is exacerbated when there is a lack of guidance in the plan as to the appropriate methods to offset ecological effects. See Indigenous biodiversity and ‘Biodiversity offsets – An overview of Selected recent developments: New Zealand – where to from here?’ (Andrew Lloyd Lawyers, 2007).
Key terms, definitions and concepts
Definitions are provided in the context of aggregates and quarrying only.
- Aggregate: Particles of crushed rock, sand or gravel.
- Best practicable option: As defined in the s2 of the RMA.
- Blasting: The detonation of explosives to break rock.
- Offsetting: Undertaking actions to compensate for adverse environmental effects that cannot be avoided after appropriate mitigation measures have been taken.
- Overburden: Material, whether consolidated or not, that has to be removed before a mineral can be worked.
- Recycled aggregate: Aggregate resulting from the processing of inorganic material, previously used in construction.
- Screening: The separation of solid materials of different sizes by causing part to remain on a surface provided with apertures through which the remainder passes.
- Quarry: An open pit or excavation from which stone, sand, gravel or mineral is extracted.
Refer to the Dictionary of Quarrying Terms for more definitions relating to quarrying.
Acknowledgements
This guidance note was initiated by the Aggregate and Quarry Association of New Zealand (AQANZ) in partnership with the Ministry for the Environment and Local Government New Zealand.
The note was prepared by Mark St Clair, Jerome Wyeth and Rachel Pinson from Hill Young Cooper Limited, and was further shaped and reviewed by:
- Hamish McGillivray and Amanda Moran, Ministry for the Environment
- Irene Clarke, Local Government New Zealand
- Allan Turner, Waikato District Council
- Blair Dickie, Environment Waikato
- Fraser McRae, Otago Regional Council
- Jonathan Streat, Auckland Regional Council
- Keri-Davis Millar, Christchurch City Council
- Nick Williamson, Whangarei District Council
- Steve Markham, Tasman District Council
- James Boyce, Holcim New Zealand
- Mike Lord, Perry Group
- Jonathan Green, Fulton Hogan
- Kevin Bligh, Winstone Aggregates
The Ministry for the Environment would also like to thank the following people for:
The peer review of this material:
- Brett McKay – Wellington City Council
- Graeme Hansen – Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
- Joy La Nauze – Papakura District Council
- Marian Whitehead – Papakura District Council
The editorial review of the material:
- Jan Crawford, Planning Consultants Ltd
- Robert Schofield, Boffa Miskell Ltd.
This guidance note was published in March 2010.
