Higher bar for consenting helipads on Waiheke and Aotea Great Barrier

Auckland Council wants your views on a proposal to tighten rules for consenting new helipads on Waiheke and Aotea Great Barrier islands. 

At today’s Policy and Planning Committee, the council proposed to raise the bar that must be met in applications for new helipads on the islands. As a result, the impact that of the noise and vibrations caused by helicopters on Māori heritage sites, ecological sites, breeding sites and nesting areas of threatened, endangered or rare species would be included in assessments of new applications for helipads. 

Councillor Richard Hills, chair of the Policy and Planning Committee says making this change will broaden what an assessment of a helipad application covers.  

“Local boards and community members on Waiheke and Aotea Great Barrier have come to the council with concerns over the number of helipads on the islands. They have said that the noise can be quite imposing and the council’s planning rules need to be strengthened. 

“Auckland Council has taken a look at what we can do to help improve this in the future.  

“Currently, the council considers the impact of noise when reviewing an application to build a helipad, and we introduced stricter standards last year. We are now proposing to broaden what an assessment of a helipad application covers, such as how the noise and vibration from a helicopter could affect nesting birds. You will be able to submit your views on this in the coming weeks. 

“I am grateful to both chair Cath Handley and chair Izzy Fordham and the Waiheke and Aotea Great Barrier local boards for their strong advocacy on this topic and their work to get the best outcomes for the communities they represent,” he says.  

The standards that need to be met in applications for helipads on Aotea Great Barrier and Waiheke islands would be raised with this change to the islands’ planning rules.

Under the proposal, the standards for assessing new helipads would be updated, and a reference to the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement would be added to the islands’ planning rules. Building a helipad on Waiheke or Aotea Great Barrier will remain a ‘restricted discretionary activity’. This means you need resource consent to build one, and that the council will apply the relevant laws when assessing each application, determining if it should be approved or not.  

Reviewing the Auckland Unitary Plan 

“This is a step that we can take ahead of our full review of the Auckland Unitary Plan, which will start at the end of 2026. It intends to help manage helipads before this starts,” says John Duguid, General Manager of Planning and Resource Consents. 

“Helicopter movements and landing pads will be considered again as part of the review of the unitary plan, particularly as the plan will be extended to include the Hauraki Gulf Islands,” he says.  

“Today’s decision by the Policy and Planning Committee is a step in the right direction but there’s still a long way to go,” says Aotea / Great Barrier Local Board chair Izzy Fordham.  

“Aotea / Great Barrier Local Board sees this as an interim measure that will add an extra layer of consideration to applications, and we welcome that.”   

Submit your views 

This plan change is due to be publicly notified in coming weeks. You will be able to make a submission on the Auckland Council website.