Wilkin River Jet's claim for more than $130,000 in costs over failed appeals by would-be rival Southern Alps Air Ltd to gain consent to operate commercial jet-boats near Wanaka has been rejected by the Environment Court.
Judge Jon Jackson said the court had been "sceptical at the outset" about the motivations of Wilkin River Jet (WRJ) as a third party in the hearings as it was a "potential trade competitor" of Southern Alps Air Ltd (SAA).
"It is still my view that the predominant consideration for WRJ in joining these proceedings was its own commercial interests," Judge Jackson said in last week's decision.
In 2005 scenic flights operator SAA appealed against the Queenstown Lakes District Council's rejection of its consent bid to operate 10 return jet-boat trips a day on the Makarora and Wilkin Rivers, which merge and empty into the northern tip of Lake Wanaka, using two boats to be launched at West Makarora.
WRJ operate 16 return jet-boat trips a day on the same rivers, also using two boats and launching from the same spot.
The Environment Court first rejected SAA's appeal in December 2006. The following July the company appealed the decision in the High Court, putting the matter back before the Environment Court, which in April this year again refused consent.
At that hearing SAA's lawyer argued "10 trips per day to a river that currently allows a commercial operation of 16 trips a day and does not limit private jet-boat use of the river is not a significant increase over any current adverse effects."
In July WRJ lodged a claim for costs of $125,000 in legal fees and $7245 in specialist fees it says were incurred fighting SAA's appeals.
Judge Jackson said the costs were to "lie where they fall" and said he was satisfied SAA had not abused the appeals process and had conducted its case in a responsible manner. The company's appeal was "not lacking merit", he said.
