The Upper Clutha Environmental Society is facing tougher financial times and is considering not appealing a resource consent application granted last month to Clevermaker Ltd, the owner of a Roys Peninsula property.
The society has already spent at least $55,000 appealing a consent granted to another Roys Peninsula landowner, the Matukituki Trust, with the Environment Court completing that case in Wanaka last week.
Its decision has been reserved.
Society secretary Julian Haworth yesterday said it thought Queenstown Lakes District Council commissioners Trevor Shiels and Lyal Cocks had granted the wrong building platform site to Clevermaker Ltd, a company associated with Cardrona residents Mario Kiesow and Hils Stapper.
An alternative building platform would have far fewer environmental effects than the one granted and the society would argue on appeal that the site should be shifted, Mr Haworth said yesterday.
The society used a similar argument last month in its Environment Court appeal against the Matukituki consent.
Although the society has not yet decided whether to appeal the Clevermaker case, it appeared unlikely because of resources invested in Matukituki and other cases, such as the proposed Parkins Bay golf resort, which has still to come before the Environment Court.
"We really don't have the resources to appeal.
"It is because we are proceeding with [the cases of] Parkins Bay, Matukituki, Bald, Mead, and Pezaro that we don't have the resources to do any more.
"But we haven't made that decision yet," Mr Haworth said.
It was important for lobby groups not to bankrupt themselves fighting a cause, he said.
The society had been successful in obtaining funding from a Ministry for the Environment community advocacy fund to cover expert witness expenses and legal aid.
Applications are made on a case-by-case basis and grants have sometimes been between $20,000 and $24,000 per case.
In the Matukituki case, the society won $45,000 from the ministry and had paid at least another $10,000 for other costs, Mr Haworth said.
He estimated the society had less than $10,000 in the bank.
Mr Haworth said the society relied on membership fees, grants and donations to pay court costs.
Clevermaker Ltd was granted consent on August 18 to build a house and garage, and undertake earthworks and revegetation on a rural general-zoned, 23.8ha site on the northern arm of Roys Peninsula.
The peninsula is regarded as a highly sensitive landform and has an outstanding natural landscape designation.
Mr Shiels and Mr Cocks said in their decision Mr Haworth made some sensible and realistic concessions in his evidence at the resource consent hearing, but had a tendency to elevate assessment matters into pre-conditions for a consent.
The commissioners agreed parts of the development would be visible, but to a "very slight effect".
Positive effects included a contribution towards nature conservation values through revegetation.
A covenant against further subdivision had some, but not major, weight.
Any further development would need consent in any case, the commissioners said.
"Overall, we do not think that there would be any significant reduction in the naturalness of Roys Peninsula if we grant the consent subject to the rigorous conditions imposed," they said.
