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Former Marlborough MP Geoff Evans near his family’s Stronvar Station.
photo: Offers/Items
A former Marlborough councillor who took the council to court over the management of pine trees on his land has overcome the final legal hurdle.
Jeff Evans Taking Marlborough District Council to the Environment Court in 2022 Stopping the council from taking over control of the wild pine trees on his family property, Stronvar Station.
Council approved a new regional pest management plan that eliminated the field-led approach to treating pine trees at Stronvar Station. The field-led approach allowed Evans to control how pine trees were controlled on its land.
Evans told Local Democracy Report he was pleased the court process had come to an end after the council had gone to court “time and again”.
“The council is a very powerful organization and it’s great to see the court strictly follow the law and determine what is right and wrong.”
Evans won a first instance trial in the Environment Court back in 2022, but the council chose to appeal to the High Court, which was heard in September last year.
Once again, the Council failed.
Evans said he was disappointed the council had chosen to appeal.
“The merits of the case are very clear. The court has recognised the verdict,” he said.
“That’s not the case for the council.”
There is an isolated area for wild pine trees at Stronva Station.
photo: Offers/Items
In a “final decision” issued earlier this year, the Environment Court outlined what needed to be included in the council’s pest management plan to manage wild pine trees in Stronva.
The council was also ordered to pay Evans about $40,000 in costs.
Stronvar is located at the headwaters of the Waihopai River and has been owned by the Evans family since the 1940s.
In the Wye catchment just to the north, the former Marlborough Catchment Council planted mainly twisted pine – the most “aggressive” pest tree species.
The project was carried out from 1959 to the mid-1980s with the aim of controlling erosion on 370 hectares of land, but over the years the area of erosion expanded to 7,000 hectares, including the vulnerable Stronvar “uppermost slope”.
It meant the council created a “control area” on the estate, which is a retirement area in Stronva and is managed by Evans.
Evans and the council proposed slightly different changes to the plan, so both lodged applications with the Environment Court in mid-March seeking final directions on the contents of the plan.
The ruling said the court accepted that Stronva’s emerging native biodiversity was worth protecting.
“Our goal remains to control and remove nuisance conifers, as long as such control or removal protects the values of the site,” the decision states.
It was concluded that the following would be inserted into the plan:
“During the duration of the plan, all harmful conifers within the Stroanwa Retirement Area will be controlled or reduced through a site-led project to reduce adverse impacts on the environment, enjoyment of the natural environment and economic well-being.”
The decision says these measures will protect and, where possible, enhance native vegetation cover within the Stroenva retirement area and minimise downstream sedimentation.
If any control action is proposed for Stonvar, the council must work with Evans to identify and agree appropriate measures to maintain Stonvar’s native biodiversity values and minimise the risk of erosion.
Any measures identified and agreed between the council and Evans will be recorded in the management plan.
Management plans could take different approaches to controlling or reducing wild conifers in different areas of the Stroanva Retirement Area.
At an environment and planning committee meeting earlier this month, the council agreed to proceed with the changes to comply with the Environment Court’s direction.
LDR is a local news organisation jointly funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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