Three Kings Quarry – a huge hole to fill

To fill or not to fill? That is the question.

Winstone, owner of the 15ha Three Kings quarry, has applied for resource consent to fill it in but many residents are concerned at the scale of the project and how it may affect them.

Three Kings United spokesperson Austen Bell says the community group is against the proposed infill project because it is concerned about dust pollution and traffic congestion.

“The operation is on a massive scale. It’s going to take millions of tonnes of rubble to fill the quarry, and it’ll be a massive upset to traffic,” he says.

“They themselves are estimating there’ll be almost a truck a minute going up and down Mt Eden Rd.”

By all accounts the project is set to be huge, with a predicted 80 to 100 trucks a day transporting infill to the quarry over 10 to 12 years.

Bell says residents are also worried the rubble used to fill the quarry will contain hazardous material.

“They say it’s ‘clean fill’ but it cannot be clean,” he says.

“Infill dust is very, very fine and it’ll go everywhere – into houses, round supermarkets – it’s a real environmental worry and it’s going to be a health hazard too.”

However Auckland councillor Grame Mulholland says Winstone have given expert evidence on where it intends to source the fill.

“You can get good clean natural fill from digging up SH20,” he says.

“The suggestion that it’ll be filled in willy-nilly with whatever comes through the gate is incorrect.”

It is not yet known what will become of the 15ha quarry area if and when it is filled.

Three Kings United hopes an alternative to filling the quarry, such as turning the area into a lake and park, will be considered.

“If they stop quarrying and allow water to build up to its natural level you could have a lake there. Contour the sides and you could turn the quarry into a park,” suggests Bell.

“The regional council and city council should consider it.”

The Auckland City Council has discussed seven different “end-use provisions” in the past, including a lake, recreational area and an industrial park.

“There’s tremendous interest in the whole area,” says Mulholland.

“It’s a huge project, part of the council’s future planning framework and identified as a key area for future development.”

In its application to the council, Winstone states that “the proposal does not involve any future building or development”.

“However the cleanfill works will be completed to a standard which will not prevent any future development.”

Submissions on the proposal closed on May 29, but a hearing date looks set to be some time away.

“There’s a lot of work still to be done,” says Mulholland. “I don’t expect a hearing date will be set until the end of the year.

“The commissioners need to consider all submissions plus all the information the applicant, Winstone, has made.”