Willowbank Quarry

Update:

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The quarry management plan for the quarry, on the 650ha Willowbank Farm near the top of the Pauatahanui and Hutt River catchments, has been approved by local councils. In February and March 2024 the focus is on silt and sediment controls and drainage, and building the 395m visual bund that will be formed with overburden material extracted from the quarry.  The bund will be covered in topsoil, hay mulched and hydro-seeded with grass.

In late February work also started on widening the farm road to the fill site on Willowbank Farm. Upgrading the intersection at the quarry’s entrance on to State Highway 58 has been approved by Waka Kotahi and Porirua City Council and work is due to begin in early March.

Background:

Willowbank was first operated as a quarry by the previous owners of Willowbank Farm in 1993. After being closed for a number of years from 1999, consents were gained to reopen the quarry in 2018 by the CPB / HEB alliance to source aggregate for their nearby Transmission Gully project.

Following the completion of Transmission Gully, Willowbank Trustee Ltd partnered with Fulton Hogan to obtain a long term (35 year) consent to operate the quarry, which was granted in January 2023. Willowbank Quarry will provide affordable and high quality aggregate to a region with relatively limited quarry resources and strong demand.

The resource consent application included an ecology impact study (by Cardno NZ), erosion and sediment control plan (by Ridley Dunphy Environmental), a full traffic study including micro modelling of traffic on State Highway 58, a stormwater management plan, a comprehensive blasting report, a geotech report and air quality assessment (all by Beca), and a complete study on the effects of noise.

The independent reports showed that any adverse environmental effect would be minor and manageable, able to be appropriately managed through best practice quarry operations, management plans, monitoring and reporting and standard conditions of consent. As the operator of numerous quarries around New Zealand, Fulton Hogan is bringing to Willowbank the benefits of extensive management planning, environmental monitoring and reporting experience.

In mid-2023 Willowbank Quarry won New Zealand’s quarrying sector’s premiere environmental award, the 2023 MIMICO Environmental Award. The Willowbank Farm Trust holds the consent for the quarry, and Farm Manager Paul Nation calls the award “the icing on the cake” of a number of environmental initiatives in recent years, including planting 60ha in native trees.

“The quarry is an opportunity to diversify with the same environmental principles and attitude that drives the rest of our operation. It’s pretty exciting, and we’re delighted for everyone involved with this recognition.”

The award was for a fish passage that allows native and introduced fish and invertebrates to reach the upper catchments of the hills behind Wellington. Quarry Manager Shane Hagai managed final construction of the fish ramps, addressing almost 300m of stream that had disappeared below ground through fractured rock. The fish ramps are designed for fish to pass under any conditions, from low water to storm-generated high-water flows, and have 17 fish resting pools and 54 baffles.

CLG makeup and purpose:

As part of the consent relating to the operation of the Willowbank Quarry, a Community Liaison Group (CLG) was required to be set up. The CLG was to consist of local residents, local associations, local regulatory bodies (PCC and GWRC) and Iwi representatives. The CLG meets regularly when required under the chairmanship of John Spence. The CLG is a mechanism for local people and residents etc. to meet with FH staff on a regular basis to discuss ongoing operations at the quarry and address any issues raised.