Tuesday 9 April 2024 

Port-link Industrial Park update

We’re getting in touch to let you know the latest information on the Port-link Industrial Park site operations, particularly about the status of the appeals the applicants have lodged. We’ve also included answers to questions people have recently asked.

Status of appeals

Objection to resource consent conditions
The Resource Management Act (RMA) allows applicants for resource consent to object to the Council about consent conditions in the Council’s decisions granting consent. The objections are decided by an independent commissioner. People can then appeal to the Environment Court.

On February 29 2024, the Port-link Industrial Park applicants lodged an objection to the conditions imposed in the resource consent. Council staff are currently processing this. There will be an Independent Commissioner decision on the objection and then, possibly, an appeal by the applicant to the Environment Court.

Appeals
The Port-link Industrial Park occupier and the landowner have appealed to the Environment Court against the Independent Commissioners’ decision to decline the Certificate of Compliance and against the abatement notice that requires them to comply with District Plan Rules as they relate to building height in the zone.

Abatement notice
The Environment Court has granted the appellants’ request that the abatement notice cannot be enforced until Court proceedings are finished. The Court order of 19 March 2024 includes conditions agreed to by the Council that require containers to be kept at a “staggered” series of heights. It does not allow containers to be placed in the landscaping and stormwater area. Beyond that area, the maximum heights in the Court order are: 11.6m maximum within 19.8m, 14.5m within 40m, and 17.4m outside of that area.

The appeals against the Certificate of Compliance decisions and the abatement notice are likely to be heard in an Environment Court hearing later in the year if they do not remain on hold for the Declaration application (see below).

Declaration
In February 2024, the Independent Commissioners’ decision on the Certificates of Compliance determined that as a matter of interpretation of the District Plan containers are buildings, and as such are subject to building-related rules such as maximum heights and minimum setbacks.

The Port-link Industrial Park owner and the operator have lodged their application in the Environment Court regarding the definition of “building” and whether stacked containers are included in the District Plan definition.  There are no dates currently set for the legal proceedings. The Court is likely to leave the appeals on hold until the Court answers this legal question about interpretation of the District Plan in the Declaration proceedings. 

Regional Council Resource Consent Application

Environment Canterbury has confirmed that the following application is on hold: CRC240726 – Discharge Permit (s15) – Discharge Contaminants to Air (Methyl Bromide Fumigation). This relates to the adjoining log storage site, not the Port-link container operations. You can view the application here.

In relation to a query about diesel fumes from forklifts operating at the Port-link site, the Canterbury Air Plan imposes controls on home heating and industrial discharges, not on motor vehicle emissions which are the province of central government. This means the Regional Council wouldn’t manage emissions from the forklifts.

Noise monitoring

The resource consent applicant contained acoustic assessments which led to a suite of conditions being imposed to manage noise from the operations. The conditions have been objected to; therefore, they are not currently in effect.

In the meantime, while the objections to the resource consent conditions are considered, the Council’s Environmental Health Team is carrying out attended monitoring of the site to ascertain compliance with the District Plan Noise Standards. Compliance action will be taken if excessive noise is detected.

The Council’s Environment Health Team advise that constant monitoring by an unmanned device is not the best way of monitoring noise from Port-link Industrial Park operations. The noise measurements cannot definitively confirm that the noise levels being measured relate to the activity at the site. Attended monitoring, where an officer is present, is required to confirm which activity is creating the noise.

Officers visited the site on the 9 April and took noise measurements while operations were taking place. The levels taken were below the District Plan noise standards. Officers plan further visits to take measurements and determine compliance.

Light glare

We’ve been asked about rules in the District Plan that relate to glare from lights operating at nighttime. We have confirmed with the Port-link Industrial Park site operator that the activity is not being undertaken during nighttime hours. However, we are aware that other sites in the vicinity operate 24/7, and Council staff will monitor the area to confirm light glare is in accordance with the District Plan requirements.

Get in touch and stay updated

Our compliance staff are responding to complaints and answering queries. If you have an urgent complaint about operations on the site such as noise, please phone 941 8999.

If you have any questions about the Resource Consent process, please contact John Higgins, Head of Planning and Consents at John.Higgins@ccc.govt.nz or +64 3 941 8224.

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