A proposal to build a $100 million milk processing plant near Glenavy will be considered at a two-day hearing in Waimate on December 21 and 22.
Oceania Dairy Ltd has applied for resource consents from Environment Canterbury (ECan) and the Waimate District Council to build the plant on a rural-zoned 5ha site at the corner of State Highway 1 and Cooneys Rd, about 4km north of Glenavy.
A three-member panel - made up of Waimate district councillor Peter McIlraith, ECan South Canterbury councillor Bronwen Murray and independent commissioner Bob Nixon - will consider the applications.
The company applied in September for resource consents and both councils have decided to hold a joint hearing at the Waimate District Council chambers to consider the applications and hear submissions, which closed early last month.
ECan received seven submissions - five in opposition, one in support and one neutral.
Four submitters opposing the consents want to be heard at the hearing.
The Waimate council received five submissions.
Oceania Milk announced plans for the plant earlier this year, establishing an office in Waimate in August to handle inquiries from the local community, outline its plans and its resource consent applications.
The company's chairman of directors is former Meridian Energy chief executive Keith Turner and its directors are former Reserve Bank Governor and National Party leader Don Brash and dairy industry leader Phil Lough.
Key features of the proposed plant are a 37m dryer tower; coal-fired boiler house; a 45m high boiler exhaust stack; dry store building for the finished product; tanker reception area to unload milk; effluent treatment and detention system.
The company believes there is a demand for a new plant in the central South Island because of the huge growth in dairying over the past few years, and planned in the future.
It has already received inquiries from potential suppliers.
Running 24 hours a day, seven days a week during the dairy season from late July to the end of May, it would handle milk from up to 50,000 cows, both from suppliers, who can also be shareholders, and from farms the company is looking at establishing in the next 10 to 15 years.
The company needs four consents from ECan for the discharge of stormwater, human, animal and dairy effluent and air discharges.
It needs a land use consent from the Waimate council to build, operate and maintain the plant.
If consents are granted, plant equipment would be ordered in April next year and construction could begin in May or June 2010.
The plant would be commissioned in June and July, 2011, with production starting in August.
Oceania plans to specialise in mid- to high-value milk powder products.
If built, Oceania's plant would be the second established in the Waimate area.
A new plant at Studholme, built by NZ Dairies Ltd and now owned by Russian company Nutritek Group, started production in September, 2007.
Summary
• What: $100 million plant processing milk from up to 50,000 cows into mid- to high-value milk powder products.
• Who: Oceania Dairy Ltd.
• Where: Corner of SH1-Cooneys Rd, about 4km north of Glenavy.
• Needs: Four resource consents from Environment Canterbury and one from Waimate District Council.
• Consents hearing: Waimate District Council, December 21 and 22.
• Hearings panel: Waimate councillor Peter McIlraith, Environment Canterbury councillor Bronwen Murray, independent commissioner Bob Nixon.
