Climate change: Lawyers say Auckland plan is 'unlawful' and emissions-boosting
The first serious challenge has been lodged against Aucklands 10-year transport plan , with Lawyers for Climate Action calling it unlawful and vulnerable if a judicial review was sought. The lawyers submission to the proposed joint council-government Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP) said it falls short of statutory obligations and commitments to halve carbon emissions by 2030. Instead, it provides for transport emissions to increase 6 per cent by 2031, or at best reduce by 12 per cent if the Government puts in place certain policies, said the groups president Jenny Cooper QC. It is baffling that Council and Auckland Transport (AT) have produced a draft transport plan that is fundamentally incompatible with the Councils own targets and policies in relation to climate change. READ MORE: * Climate group sues Government over controversial Mill Rd highway * Climate change: Bigger Auckland plan won't reduce emissions by 2030 * Auckland transport plan shows climate change dial is still set on 'talk' not 'do' The submission has been lodged by a group including the lawyers, which has already sought a judicial review of the governments proposed Mill Road southern Auckland highway, which is forecast to boost emissions. Submissions on the RLTP closed at the start of May, and the proposed transport investment plan will be considered by the AT-led Regional Transport Committee until June. Lawyers for Climate Action (LCA) has been clear for months that it is ready to legally-challenge plans and policies that dont deliver on political commitments on climate goals. The quandary facing the Regional Transport Committee is underlined by legal advice it sought , which said it had little room to make major change to the draft version, or alter some major government projects. The RTC (committee) cannot remove or amend any regionally significant expenditure on activities that are funded from sources other than the National Land Transport Fund, said a report from officials. An example of this is activities under the New Zealand Upgrade Programme (NZUP) as they are funded directly by central Government, said the officials. LCA said the transport plan failed on several fronts, including the right-to-life in the Bill of Rights Act. The scientific consensus is that the consequences of global warming for human life will be much more severe if warming exceeds 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels, said the groups submission. The lawyers pointed to a list of pledges, declarations and climate plans passed by Auckland Council, including a global agreement signed in Paris by the mayor Phil Goff in 2016. It said those have created a legitimate expectation on the part of Auckland residents that the Council will take action. Auckland residents have relied, and continued to rely, on the Council to do this, it said in its submission. The RLTP includes in it a list of major projects agreed between Auckland Council and the government, called the Auckland Transport Alignment Project (ATAP) . ATAP includes projects like Mill Road, initially costed at $1.3 billion, and which appear immovable in the RLTP deliberations. (If) the Council is not willing to alter the RLTP due to ATAP, it will have breached the consultation requirements in the Local Government Act 2002, said the lawyers. The lawyers want the RLTP changed to ensure the 64 per cent reduction in transport emissions, called for in Aucklands Climate Plan, can be achieved. The draft RLTP as it stands is in breach of the legal requirements and is not capable of lawful approval, the group said. We urge them (Auckland Council and AT) to live up to their own declarations and legal obligations and ensure that the final plan meets the demands of the climate emergency.