A concept drawing of what Paewira, the planned waste-to-energy plant for Te Awamutu, could look like.
The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has weighed in on the controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in Te Awamutu.
The EPA is a government agency responsible for regulating activities that affect New Zealand’s environment.
The agency said it considered the proposal one of national significance and supported Waikato Regional Council and Waipā District Council’s decision to ask the Minister for the Environment to get involved.
The proposal, made by Hamilton-based company Global Contracting Solutions (GCS), would see 150,000 tonnes of rubbish being incinerated at a purpose-built plant on Racecourse Rd, Te Awamutu, to generate electric power.
GCS launched resource consent applications with the two councils in 2021. The councils recently asked the Minister for the Environment to “call-in” the applications.
A call-in means that the proposal would be heard by either a Board of Inquiry or the Environment Court and would allow for greenhouse gas emissions to be considered.
Minister for the Environment Penny Simmonds has yet to decide if she calls in the application.
In March, she asked the EPA to provide advice on whether the proposed plant could be considered a proposal of national significance and if called in, who it should be referred to for decision.
Now, the EPA responded and recommended Simmonds to call-in the application. The authority wouldn’t provide a recommendation on whether to refer the matters to a board of inquiry or the Environment Court.
If the minister does agree to call in the proposal, she will decide how to proceed.
In its response to the minister, the EPA said it considered the proposed plant, called Paewira, “may contribute to significant changes to the environment, including the global environment”.
The EPA said Paewira would be the first of its kind in New Zealand and involved technology, processes, or methods that “may affect its environment”.
“There are numerous waste-to-energy plants in operation around the world. However, there are no waste-to-energy facilities incinerating the type of waste proposed by [GCS] in New Zealand that have yet been authorised.”
GCS has previously said the plant’s emissions would be “benign” and the plant was designed to be “compliant and safe”.
The EPA said the Paewira’s greenhouse gas emissions were estimated to be higher than the ones of the proposed Waimate plant which was a larger facility.
“MfE [Ministry for the Environment] officials have noted that, when standardising for the amount of input waste, the estimated [greenhouse gas] emissions [for the Te Awamutu plant] are higher than that estimated for the larger proposed facility in Waimate that was called-in on 31 August 2023.
“This is because the Te Awamutu facility is proposing that 20 per cent of its feedstock is plastic only, which creates a significant amount of [greenhouse gas] emissions.
“Waste to energy by incineration of fossil-fuel-derived materials is not considered renewable energy because the raw materials are largely derived from fossil fuels.”
The EPA said the plant could also have an impact on New Zealand’s “international obligations to the global environment”.
“Under the Paris Agreement, New Zealand has committed to a 50 per cent reduction of net emissions below our gross 2005 level by 2030.
“There is currently a gap between that target and projected emissions. New emission sources, such as the proposed facility, will widen that gap and increase the cost to the government of meeting its international commitment.”
When Waikato Regional Council and Waipā District Council asked the minister to call in the application, they were in favour of referring the matter to a board of inquiry.
Meanwhile, Global Contracting Solutions’ preference is for the matters to be referred to the Environment Court, to be consistent with the call-in of the Waimate consent application.
Waikato Herald approached Global Contracting Solutions for comment.
Waikato Herald also asked the minister for an update on the decision.
The EPA’s full response can be found on the Waipā District Council website.
Paewira proposal timeline
• In December 2021, Global Contracting Solutions launched resource consent applications to build a waste-to-energy plant in Te Awamutu with Waipā District Council and Waikato Regional Council
• In March 2022, the regional council asked GCS for more information on a number of matters including flooding, air quality, and waste acceptance
• In April 2022, Waipā District Council asked GCS for further information in regards to acoustic effects, operational effects and mitigation
• In July 2022, GCS responded to both requests
• In September 2023, the councils decided to jointly process the consent applications and invited feedback from the community
• Submissions closed in October 2023
• In October 2023, the district council asked GCS to provide further information on landscape, national, regional and district policy instruments and waste sources
• The same month, the community group Don’t Burn Waipā organised a protest against the proposed plant
• In December 2023, the regional council also asked for more information. GCS has not yet responded to the regional council’s request
• The same month, Waikato Regional Council asked the minister to call in the application
• In February 2024, Waipā District Council joined the regional council in asking the minister to call in the application
• The same month, Te Nehenehenui, the post-settlement governance entity for Maniapoto, wrote a letter to the Minister for the Environment in support of the council’s application for a call in
• In March 2024, Tukoroirangi Morgan, the chairman of Te Arataura, the executive entity for Waikato-Tainui, wrote a letter to the Minister for the Environment in support of the council’s application for a call in
Danielle Zollickhofer is a multimedia journalist and assistant news director at the Waikato Herald. She joined NZME in 2021 and is based in Hamilton.
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