October 17, 2014
Blakeley tackles scare tactics around Maori input
Auckland Council’s chief planning officer Roger Blakeley says the council is trying to strike a balance between protecting the region’s cultural heritage and making sure consent applicants don’t find themselves tied up in unnecessary red tape.
Democracy Action, a group opposed to parts of Auckland’s draft Unitary Plan that offer protection to Maori heritage, is holding a public meeting at the Aotea Centre tomorrow.
It says giving mana whenua the right to make cultural heritage assessments when a proposed development is within 50 metres of a site of significance amounts to an erosion of Aotearoa’s democratic inheritance.
Dr Blakely says the proposed rules aim to meet the council’s broad obligations under the Resource Management Act, including provisions relating to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
He says in the past six months Auckland Council has processed over 6000 resource consents.
Less than 200 triggered a possible assessment, and there were only 50 site visits and 12 cultural impact assessments formally requested.
He says the council has worked closely with iwi to find ways to minimise the impact on landowners and introduced a facilitation service to simplify the process.
Copyright © 2014, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com