Court date may delay dam

The site for the Contentious Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme project, which may not have its judicial review heard until next year. Photo / File

The Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme could face yet another delay because the High Court may not hear the judicial review concerning it until next year.

This is despite the fact all parties - Forest and Bird (F&B), the Department of Conservation (DoC) and the Hawke's Bay Regional Investment Company (HBRIC) - jointly applied for urgency.

The review was initially requested by F&B who are challenging the decision by DoC director general Lou Sanson, relating to the revocation of the conservation status of 22 hectares of land in the Ruahine Forest which is part administered by his department.

In a minute issued at Wellington High Court Justice David Collins said he was satisfied an urgent fixture is warranted to hear the judicial review.

"Because of the financial and economic implications of any delays that might occur in commencing the construction of the Ruataniwha Dam and Irrigation project," he said.

The Ministry of Justice then proceeded to set out a timetable leading up to the requested two-day fixture for the hearing.

"The court will do what it can to accommodate a two-day fixture during the course of December 2015," Justice Collins said.

"But if no fixture can be allocated in December, every effort will be made to allocate a fixture in February 2016."

He then set out a timetable for the filing of statements of defence and affidavits, which is how evidence is given during such a review.

After December 4 the ministry will convene a conference call with counsel to "progress matters to a hearing".

F&B house counsel Sally Gepp said all parties involved in the hearing will be on this call.

"This is not the hearing that is just the telephone conference to progress matters to a hearing," she said.

"It may be that the court can find the time between then and Christmas to hear it or it may be that that date is saying we will be hearing it in February.

"I don't know one way or the other."

HBRIC chief executive Andrew Newman said his company had welcomed the decision by the court to hear the review as a matter of urgency.

While there is a prospect that the fixture for the judicial review will not be heard until next February, he said it is in everybody's best interests to have the hearing held pre-Christmas if at all possible.

"The court has said it will do what it can to accommodate the two-day hearing before the end of the year," said Mr Newman.