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| The Weston Option |
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Building a new cement plant near Weston, close to Oamaru is the preferred option being considered by Holcim New Zealand as it investigates future manufacturing and importing options to meet long-term growth in demand for cement in New Zealand. The key site being considered in relation to this new cement plant option is near Weston, close to Oamaru. Situated between the Weston-Ngapara and Airedale Roads, this company-owned land is provided for in the Waitaki District Plan as a Cement Policy Area, and is being considered for a cement plant and associated quarry activity. In addition, the Company has investigated the possibility of quarrying mineral reserves on company-owned land at nearby Windsor and Ngapara. In February 2008 Holcim New Zealand received 46 resource consents under the Resource Management Act for these sites. These consents came with a number of conditions covering areas such as hours of operation, noise limits, air quality and traffic management. |
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| The decision is available on the Otago Regional Council website. | ||
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| While Holcim is not opposed to conditions in principle, we want to ensure that the conditions associated with the consents are reasonable and workable and are based on the effects that technical experts have identified would result from the construction and operation of the proposed plant. The company therefore appealed some of the conditions to the Environment Court. | ||
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The Environment Court hearing was held over 15 days between March and May 2009. In August 2009 the Environment Court decision granted Holcim New Zealand all consents to operate a cement plant and associated quarries and pits. These consents were granted with a range of conditions. |
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Previously Evaluated The Weston site was extensively evaluated by the company 25 years ago as a potential site for a new cement plant. Land was acquired for this purpose and the required zoning and consents were granted for a new plant. A lack of confidence in the cement market at the time was a major factor in the decision being made in the mid 1980s not to commence construction of a cement plant at that site. |
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Updated Appraisals To help make an informed evaluation of this option, updated appraisals of these sites were carried out from May 2006 to March 2007. These included a range of environmental, technical and community impact reports needed for the consenting process. The range of assessments included, but was not limited to landscape, ecology, transport, noise, air emissions, quarrying, water, social impacts and cultural impacts. Key information from the findings of these technical investigations was made available to the public as the work progressed. This information formed the basis of the ongoing consultation process and enabled the community and individuals to better understand the proposal. |
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| Contact |
| Holcim (New Zealand) Ltd |
 Contact
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