Following Cyclone Gabrielle, Gisborne District Council received an Order in Council (OIC) under the Severe Weather Emergency Recovery Legislation Act 2023 for the burning of cyclone and flood waste. This was a temporary law change for commercial affected properties and finished 1 November 2023.
Cyclone-damaged commercial horticulture and agriculture properties (especially orchards, viticulture, vegetable and pastoral farms) that had been impacted by the sheer volume of flood-related mixed waste on their property could apply to burn the waste.
Removal of the mixed waste was a critical first step before the land can be returned to productivity. Given the complexity of some waste piles, it's likely that material that would normally release toxic gases and particulates would be present throughout the mixed waste debris and to burn these would normally require resource consent.
Council ensured compliance and monitoring of this temporary law change.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s regulatory, enforcement and emergency response functions and powers are unaffected by this Order in Council.
Legislation
Severe Weather Emergency Recovery (Resource Management - Burning of Waste) Order 2023 Order in Council relates to severe weather events around the open burning of waste.