Ngai Tahu Wakatipu Holdings Ltd has been granted the first of 25 consent applications it lodged with the Queenstown Lakes District Council for the landing and takeoff of 6595 aircraft a year from 25 sites spread across its Routeburn, Greenstone and Elfin Bay properties.
The consent granted, with conditions, was for a site alongside Pass Burn Hut in the Greenstone Valley.
It allowed for a variety of heli-ski, recreational, scenic, commercial and servicing activities via aircraft across an area totalling 3600ha.
The application was considered a discretionary activity and not notified because Lake Environmental was satisfied the environmental adverse affects would be minor and parties who may have been adversely affected had given their written approval.
The consent stated the helicopters used would be no more noisy than an Aerospatiale Squirrel, defined as a Eurocopter AS350 or AS355.
Ngai Tahu would keep and submit a log, the first log due for submission to the council on November 1, 2009.
If a helicopter was to be on a landing site for more than 10 minutes, the pilot must shut down to prevent unnecessary noise and dust disturbance, the decision stated.
Ngai Tahu stated in its application there would be no limit to the daily landings near Pass Burn Hut as they were likely to vary on a day-to-day basis.
Other sites Ngai Tahu applied for included Routeburn Rd Paddock, Greenstone Valley floor, Steel Creek Junction, Rats Nest Hut, Tooth Peak, and airstrips at Greenstone Station, Elfin Bay and Old Caples.
The 25 consents covered 5635 helicopter takeoffs and landings in addition to 960 fixed-wing aircraft takeoffs and landings each year.
Ngai Tahu Property Ltd chief executive Tony Sewell said he could see the need for some control over air movements in the locality.
The company had been working on the proposals since QLDC controversially introduced the resource consent process to secure landing rights on private land more than a year ago.
"Each helicopter operator applying for landing consent on our property was illogical," Mr Sewell said.
"It was better we, the landowner, had consent, then allocate to the helicopter operators as necessary. The majority of operators support that."
Mr Sewell said the manner in which the allocation worked would be "a private matter" between Ngai Tahu and operators, but would start once consents were received.
