A fast-track proposal to expand The Remarkables skifield into a neighbouring alpine basin could destroy irreplaceable biodiversity, the Department of Conservation (Doc) warns. NZSki lodged an application with the Environmental Protection Authority three months ago to expand the Queenstown skifield into the Doolans Basin in a four-year, $150 million project that would increase its skiable terrain by nearly 60%. A Doc memorandum on the government’s fast-track website said the company’s proposal would cause a “considerable loss” of ecological function and biodiversity in an alpine basin with an “ecologically unique and exceptionally valuable ecosystem with irreplaceable biodiversity”. The document said draft reports and assessments provided by the company to-date underestimated those values and the scale of the proposal’s likely effects. Doc was concerned about the permanent loss of high-value wetlands, particularly a tarn NZSki was proposing to convert into a lined water-storage reservoir. The project could also disrupt natural water flows connecting “tarns, seepages, bogs and downstream wetlands”, and NZSki had not done enough work on establishing whether alternative water supplies could be found. Its other concerns included “high to very high” landscape and natural-character effects, impacts on the visitor experience — particularly for back country skiers — and the potential impacts on invertebrates, lizards and birds. Climate change meant a “precautionary approach” was needed in considering the application’s proposed 40-year concession, yet NZSki had not provided a current assessment by a suitably qualified climate scientist, the document said. Potential historic gold-mining heritage features also needed investigation, particularly around a proposed water intake and access track. Finally, it said a proposed 2.5% gross annual revenue fee for a concession — Doc’s permit system for commercial activity on conservation land — was “inadequate”. Before and since lodging its application on May 20, NZSki has produced a raft of draft reports on the proposal’s expected impacts, to which Doc has been providing feedback. NZSki has been responding to questions and concerns raised by Doc, the Queenstown Lakes and Central Otago district councils, Otago Regional Council and iwi. The submission of final reports was originally scheduled to occur by August 6, after which the expert panel making the decision on the application could be appointed. However, at NZSki’s request, the panel’s appointment has been delayed until early next month to allow more workshops and discussions to take place to narrow down areas of contention between the various parties. Doc said the “significance and complexity” of the proposal’s potential effects on the area’s ecology were such it considered expert conferencing and a hearing might be necessary. It recommended a landscape ecologist be appointed to the panel, and a generous timeframe be set by the panel to ensure it could make a “robust” decision on the application. If approved, the expansion would increase The Remarkables’ terrain from 449ha to 711ha, making it the largest skifield in the country. Estimated to cost $150m, the project would include the installation of a 2.7km-long gondola and the construction of a new hospitality building and other facilities. guy.williams@scene.co.nz
