J Swap bid to quarry on QEII covenant land rejected by Court of Appeal

Tuesday, 26 November 2024, 8:57 pm
Article: RNZ

Farah Hancock, Data journalist, In Depth

A quarrying company owned by J Swap has lost a court appeal to extend its operations into land protected by a QEII covenant.

Kaimai Properties Ltd wanted to mine andesite rock from 42 hectares of protected land close to Matamata in South Waikato.

The company owns the land, but it was already protected in perpetuity by a QEII covenant when it was purchased. These covenants protect private land with high conservation values and can be applied for by landowners. Once a QEII covenant is in place, land cannot be developed, even if ownership changes.

The rock from the quarry is used in infrastructure projects and J Swap has said it will run out of material if it is unable to access the protected land. Accessing the protected land would extend the quarry's life by 100 years.

The company claimed in court that the covenant should not have been placed on the land, as even though Kaimai Properties did not own the land when the covenant was applied, it did have an interest as the farmer allowed the company to quarry on bordering land.

The Court of Appeal rejected the company's argument and awarded costs to the QEII Trust.

Speaking previously to RNZ, QEII Trust chief executive Dan Coup said it has never had a covenant challenged so extensively, with four cases brought by J Swap over the past eight years.

Coup said the repeated court proceedings had come at a cost to the trust, estimating it had spent about $200,000.

"Defending covenants is something we feel very strongly about. We make an agreement with the landowner at the time the covenant is signed that we will defend the area if it's ever threatened - it would undermine the whole model of the trust if we didn't then step up and enforce the covenant."

Currently, 187,758 hectares is protected by a QEII covenant, less than one percent of New Zealand's land mass.

The company's attempt for the Matamata quarry to be included in a list of projects included in the Fast-track Approvals Bill was also unsuccessful.

When J Swap presented its submission to the Bill to the select committee, its environment manager Dudley Clemens told the Environment Committee that access to land the company wanted to quarry was tied up in the area which fell under the QEII covenant, "through a faulty process".

J Swap donated$11,000 to NZ First in December, after the coalition was formed. It also gave $5000 to NZ First's Shane Jones in August 2023 and $3000 to National's David MacLeod in September 2023. In total $19,000 was donated in 2023. A spokesperson for the company told RNZ the $11,000 donation was five tickets to a business dinner hosted by NZ First.

An expansion project for J Swap's Katikati quarry into Department of Conservation land has been included in the list of projects to be included in the Fast-track Approvals Bill.

© Scoop Media

RNZ

New Zealand's public broadcaster, providing comprehensive NZ news and current affairs, specialist audio features and documentaries.

Radio New Zealand is a Crown entity established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. Radio New Zealand News are vital elements in our programming, providing impartial news and information to New Zealanders every day. Radio New Zealand (RNZ) provides listeners with exciting and independent radio programmes in accordance with the Radio New Zealand Charter.

Contact RNZ

• Website - www.radionz.co.nz
• Twitter - @rnz_news
• Facebook
• Link - Contact RNZ