The approval of a four-month, 24-hour-a-day oil drilling operation on Stewart Island has horrified some residents, who say it will destroy a move towards ecotourism spanning two decades.
The Southland District Council yesterday granted Auckland-based Greymouth Petroleum Ltd consent to carry out petroleum exploration, and to drill a well site on private land on Horseshoe Bay Rd.
The non-notified resource consent, which allows for 24-hour drilling operations, temporary buildings and minor earthworks, has angered some residents, who say they were shut out of decision-making.
In a press release, council senior resource management planner Jennifer Green said the council had received written approval for the drilling from all adjoining landowners and occupiers.
It is understood they include nine affected landowners, as well as Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu and Te Ao Marama. Contacted landowners declined to comment yesterday.
Greymouth Petroleum Ltd also declined to comment yesterday, but it is understood drilling at the former quarry could begin as soon as next week.
Stewart Island resident Dr Britt Moore said she was appalled by the "crazy" non-notified decision, which had angered many of the 380-strong island's population.
"The lack of public input is disgraceful. We were never even given a chance to fight against it."
A petition would be made available at the local RSA hall tomorrow. That, with support from the Green Party and Greenpeace, was likely to result in protest action.
Earlier this week, Dr Moore, who owns Stewart Island Spa, spoke to residents about the proposal, and found at least 80 were opposed.
The former Unesco World Heritage Centre employee said the move would effectively destroy any long-held ambition of making the island a world heritage site.
"It is established all over the world that fossil-fuel drilling ruins ecotourism."
Since the fishing quota system was introduced in 1989, the Southland District Council had helped the island's population "transition from a fishing economy to an ecotourism economy".
Stewart Island Community Board chairman Jon Spraggon said the board was supportive of the initial "one-off well, and then the whole thing would be re-evaluated".
A spokeswoman for Prime Minister John Key said he had "consistently said that if New Zealanders want to have better jobs and better incomes, we should be exploring the natural resources we have".
"However, economic benefits must be balanced with environmental protection."
Thirteen conditions, including returning the land to its original state, were imposed as part of the consent.
After the consent expired, Greymouth Petroleum would "go through a rigorous consent process again if it wanted to drill any further wells".
"Legitimate exploration work can benefit the New Zealand economy and this Government will encourage that, as long as environmental protections are in place," the spokeswoman said.
However, Green Party mining spokeswoman Catherine Delahunty said the Government was failing to protect areas of natural beauty and this was a "threat to our economically valuable clean, green image".
According to a 2007 permit, for an onshore and offshore Great South Basin block around the Southland coast, the company had until the end of this month to "drill or drop" the application.
A Department of Conservation spokeswoman said Stewart Island staff had checked the former quarry site and were satisfied there were no protected species at the site.
Southland Mayor Frana Cardno declined to comment until she knew more about the consent.
Environment Southland was yet to grant consent for the project. A decision was expected within a week.
The Great South Basin has not been drilled since Hunt Petroleum sank eight test wells in the 1970s and '80s.
