Take action: Pakiri/ Mangawhai Sand Mining Update
Just over a year ago, we asked our community to write into Auckland Council opposing sand mining operations off the Auckland East Coast between Mangawhai and Pakiri. This stunning area is home to many beloved surf spots and wildlife. Read the background & more info into sand mining in the original blog post here.
WE NEED YOUR VOICE AGAIN!
The company, McCallum Brothers, have lodged TWO MORE resource consents to council (after the original renewal consent lodged in June 2020 last year which is currently in the courts.)
“Sand miner McCallum Brothers in seeking 3 consents to mine vast quantities of sand from the waters off Pakiri Beach and Mangawhai - if granted the equivalent of 300,000 20ft containers over a period of 35 years!” -GreenpeaceNZ.
Beyond the destruction of this habitat - right next to marine reserves, coastline home to the rarest bird in NZ and full of stunning beaches and surf spots- this sand IS A FINITE RESOURCE akin to oil. It does NOT get quickly replenished. (Globally the world is running out of sand like we are oil but that is a whole different ecological crisis we will not get into now). We are also the ONLY developed country to allow nearshore sand mining so we need to get our sh*t together people.
Photo: Doug Moores
WHAT CAN I DO?
Get informed: follow Save our Sand Mangawhai, Friends of Pakiri Beach, Stop Sand Mining- sign up to newsletters or follow on facebook for anymore protests or actions.
Short on time? Sign the petition at Greenpeace and/or Action Station.
MOST IMPORTANTLY/ THE BIGGEST IMPACT: make a submission against the two resource consent applications with Auckland Council - 'In shore' and 'Mid Shore'. Deadline is 10th Dec 2021. The two consents can be found HERE:
https://bit.ly/31rlLCd | https://bit.ly/3bQPvucSHARE. Please please share this, in your local surf or boardriders group, anywhere people might also write in. The government needs to know the public care about it.
SUGGESTED SUBMISSION:
To make it easy, here is a suggested text and a guide for the submission (courtesy of the above groups)
Box 1 - Specify the aspects of the application you are submitting on:
The non-complying activity and the form(s) of its exercise. Being the offshore, gross extraction of sand from, and disturbance to, the sea bed, using a (trailing) suction pipe, in the Mangawhai-Pakiri embayment.
Box 2 - What are the reasons for your submission?
- causal offshore and onshore adverse environmental effects to: coastal processes, flora, fauna, sea bed, water quality, biodiversity & the onshore beach system
- recent science has clarified closure depth, effective sand inputs & the overall annual sediment balance for the near shore Mangawhai Pakiri embayment
- the near shore sand system is in annual deficit from effective sand inputs minus total dredging extraction volumes
- the beaches have lost significant volumes of onshore sand reserves & are in a critical state
- the consent Holder has breached many key conditions of the consent, on and off the water
- significant & persistent seabed trenches have been created further offshore by the dredgers, which they never revealed
- there are alternative & sustainable sand supply sources
- a finite, precious resource as enjoyed by the greater public, is being depleted for private profit
- near shore sand dredging is out of step with the Hauraki Gulf, Regional and National directives and Climate Change considerations, protocols and commitments
- Auckland Council, via its Coastal Consents unit, is an incompetent and ineffective Regulator
Box 3 - What decisions and amendments would you like the council to make?
The ending of all dredging in the Mangawhai-Pakiri embayment and the non renewal of any consent(s) or amendments thereto.
Mangawhai, Jess Holdaway
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT
