Tēnā koe,

Thank you for contacting us. Your request has been logged under the Local
Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.

We will respond to your request as soon as possible and in any case no
later than within 20 working days.  

You can also call us freephone 0800 932 463. Please quote Request No.
OIA230902 if you require any further information.

If you would like to notify us about anything further regarding this
matter, you can reply to this email.

Ngā mihi,

Whangarei District Council

--EmailIdentifier---eyJJSWQiOiI1YWZmNTE0YS0wZDQ4LTQxMWItOTk2NS1jYzEwMWRiNjE3OGEiLCJIIjoiISFIQUhmbGZrZVNDaytBeWhoUnBKTS9KIn0=---EmailIdentifier--

 

Tēnā koe Tim

 

I refer to your request of July 31, 2023, for information regarding
“Cellular Network Towers” .  Your request was referred to Council’s RMA
Consents Department for consideration, they have provided copies of all
relevant resource consent files in support of your questions listed below:

 

o Does the WDC currently possess GIS data/maps on all existing and
future/proposed Cellular Network Tower locations within the Whangarei
District ?

 

o Are these data available to men and women of Whangarei District? If
so, may I have a copy?

 

o Is there specification data for existing and proposed Cell Towers,
including power, frequency, types of antennae,IP provider(s) and if
this data exists, may I have a copy?

 

Cell towers are regulated under Resource Management (National
Environmental Standards for Telecommunication Facilities) Regulations 2016
(NESTF). The NESTF set out permitted standards for the location and design
of cell towers. A copy of the NESTF permitted standards is included in
each cell tower applications, cell towers are maintained by the operator.
The files relevant to your request, OIA230902 – is too large to be
attached to this email and will be sent to you via Kiteworks. Please find
instructions of how to access and download files from Kiteworks attached
to this email.

 

The RMA Consents team reviews applications for Certificates of
Compliance made by telecommunications companies to check compliance
against the NESTF and then issues a Certificate of Compliance.  A
 “permitted activity” under the NESTF can be undertaken without Council
consent and there is no requirement for a Certificate of Compliance
application to be made for cell towers. 

 

Where a cell tower does not meet the permitted standard or the work is
listed in Subpart 5 of the NESTF, a resource consent is required. Resource
consents are processed in accordance with the requirements of the RMA by
the local authority. This would include assessing the actual and potential
adverse effects of the proposal and identification of any person
considered to be adversely affected (in accordance with section 95 of the
RMA). Adverse effects on human health could only be considered as part of
this assessment where the reason why resource consent was required
warranted this. If any person was identified as adversely affected as part
of this assessment they would be notified and given the opportunity to
make a submission in relation to the application. There is no requirement
under the RMA to consult with neighbours as part of making an application
for resource consent.

 

I note that some information has been withheld under section 7(2)(a) of
the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 to protect
the privacy of individuals (this does not include Whangarei District
Council Staff), section 6(a) of the Act to avoid prejudice to the
maintenance of the law, and under section 7(2)(c)(ii) of the Act to
protect information which is subject to an obligation of confidence where
the making available of the information would be likely otherwise to
damage the public interest.

 

The material represents our best efforts to locate relevant material.
However, the search process is by no means an exact science and given the
broad scope of your request it is possible that there may be other items
of relevance that have unintentionally been missed in the search. 

 

I hope this information is of some assistance in responding to your
request. If you believe we have not responded appropriately to your
request, you have the right by way of complaint, under section 27(3) of
the Act, to apply to the Ombudsman to seek an investigation and review of
the decision. 

 

Regards

 

 

 

Roger Quinton

Manager RMA Consents

Whangarei District Council | Te Iwitahi, 9 Rust Avenue | Private Bag 9023,
Te Mai, Whangārei 0143

P 09 430 4200 | M 021 198 3285 | [1]www.wdc.govt.nz

[2]Whangarei District Council logo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Tim Hunt <[3][FOI #23644 email]>

Sent: Monday, July 31, 2023 10:17 AM

To: Mail Room <[4][Whangarei District Council request email]>

Subject: Official Information request - Map of existing and proposed Cell
Tower locations, with specifications, in the Whangarei District

 

 

EXTERNAL: This email originated from outside Whangarei District Council.
Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and
know the content is safe.

 

Dear Whangarei District Council,

Does the WDC currently possess GIS data/maps on all existing and
future/proposed Cellular Network Tower locations within the Whangarei
District ?

Are these data available to men and women of Whangarei District? If so,
may I have a copy?

Is there specification data for existing and proposed Cell Towers,
including power, frequency, types of antennae,IP provider(s) and if this
data exists, may I have a copy?

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Tim Hunt

 

 

References

Visible links
1. Link to the Whangarei District Council's website.
https://www.wdc.govt.nz/
3. mailto:[FOI #23644 email]
4. mailto:[Whangarei District Council request email]

hide quoted sections

[1]Whangarei District Council - Secure File Sharing

[2][email address] sent you a secure message
[3]Access message
Tēnā koe Tim, I refer to your request of July 31, 2023, for information
regarding “Cellular Network Towers” . Your request was referred to C..
Attachments expire on Sep 27, 2023

[4]PDF 1 PDF
OIA230902 - Cell Phone Towers Consents.pdf
This message requires that you sign in to access the message and any file
attachments.

[5]Protected by Kiteworks-enabled Private Content Network (PCN)

References

Visible links
2. file:///tmp/foiextract20230828-26394-weut7e#
3. https://wdc.kiteworks.com/w/xHu0Zhp7owAq...
5. https://www.kiteworks.com/?em=19

Good afternoon, Tim,

 

I understand you are having issues with downloading the files via
Kiteworks. I am resending you the instructions and the file again.

 

Please don’t hesitate to reach out you are having any further
difficulties.

 

Regards,

Georgina Ellis

Official Information Requests Team  

Whangarei District Council | Te Iwitahi | Private Bag 9023, Whangarei 0148
| [1]www.wdc.govt.nz

WDC Call Centre 09 430 4200

 

[2]WDC - Final email sig

 

 

 

From: Roger Quinton <[email address]>
Sent: Monday, August 28, 2023 1:48 PM
To: [FOI #23644 email]
Subject: OIA230902 - Cell Towers

 

 

Tēnā koe Tim

 

I refer to your request of July 31, 2023, for information regarding
“Cellular Network Towers” .  Your request was referred to Council’s RMA
Consents Department for consideration, they have provided copies of all
relevant resource consent files in support of your questions listed below:

 

o Does the WDC currently possess GIS data/maps on all existing and
future/proposed Cellular Network Tower locations within the Whangarei
District ?

 

o Are these data available to men and women of Whangarei District? If
so, may I have a copy?

 

o Is there specification data for existing and proposed Cell Towers,
including power, frequency, types of antennae,IP provider(s) and if
this data exists, may I have a copy?

 

Cell towers are regulated under Resource Management (National
Environmental Standards for Telecommunication Facilities) Regulations 2016
(NESTF). The NESTF set out permitted standards for the location and design
of cell towers. A copy of the NESTF permitted standards is included in
each cell tower applications, cell towers are maintained by the operator.
The files relevant to your request, OIA230902 – is too large to be
attached to this email and will be sent to you via Kiteworks. Please find
instructions of how to access and download files from Kiteworks attached
to this email.

 

The RMA Consents team reviews applications for Certificates of
Compliance made by telecommunications companies to check compliance
against the NESTF and then issues a Certificate of Compliance.  A
 “permitted activity” under the NESTF can be undertaken without Council
consent and there is no requirement for a Certificate of Compliance
application to be made for cell towers. 

 

Where a cell tower does not meet the permitted standard or the work is
listed in Subpart 5 of the NESTF, a resource consent is required. Resource
consents are processed in accordance with the requirements of the RMA by
the local authority. This would include assessing the actual and potential
adverse effects of the proposal and identification of any person
considered to be adversely affected (in accordance with section 95 of the
RMA). Adverse effects on human health could only be considered as part of
this assessment where the reason why resource consent was required
warranted this. If any person was identified as adversely affected as part
of this assessment they would be notified and given the opportunity to
make a submission in relation to the application. There is no requirement
under the RMA to consult with neighbours as part of making an application
for resource consent.

 

I note that some information has been withheld under section 7(2)(a) of
the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 to protect
the privacy of individuals (this does not include Whangarei District
Council Staff), section 6(a) of the Act to avoid prejudice to the
maintenance of the law, and under section 7(2)(c)(ii) of the Act to
protect information which is subject to an obligation of confidence where
the making available of the information would be likely otherwise to
damage the public interest.

 

The material represents our best efforts to locate relevant material.
However, the search process is by no means an exact science and given the
broad scope of your request it is possible that there may be other items
of relevance that have unintentionally been missed in the search. 

 

I hope this information is of some assistance in responding to your
request. If you believe we have not responded appropriately to your
request, you have the right by way of complaint, under section 27(3) of
the Act, to apply to the Ombudsman to seek an investigation and review of
the decision. 

 

Regards

 

 

 

Roger Quinton

Manager RMA Consents

Whangarei District Council | Te Iwitahi, 9 Rust Avenue | Private Bag 9023,
Te Mai, Whangārei 0143

P 09 430 4200 | M 021 198 3285 | [3]www.wdc.govt.nz

[4]Whangarei District Council logo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Tim Hunt <[5][FOI #23644 email]>

Sent: Monday, July 31, 2023 10:17 AM

To: Mail Room <[6][Whangarei District Council request email]>

Subject: Official Information request - Map of existing and proposed Cell
Tower locations, with specifications, in the Whangarei District

 

 

EXTERNAL: This email originated from outside Whangarei District Council.
Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and
know the content is safe.

 

Dear Whangarei District Council,

Does the WDC currently possess GIS data/maps on all existing and
future/proposed Cellular Network Tower locations within the Whangarei
District ?

Are these data available to men and women of Whangarei District? If so,
may I have a copy?

Is there specification data for existing and proposed Cell Towers,
including power, frequency, types of antennae,IP provider(s) and if this
data exists, may I have a copy?

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Tim Hunt

 

 

References

Visible links
1. Link to the Whangarei District Council's website.
http://www.wdc.govt.nz/
3. Link to the Whangarei District Council's website.
https://www.wdc.govt.nz/
5. mailto:[FOI #23644 email]
6. mailto:[Whangarei District Council request email]

hide quoted sections

[1]Whangarei District Council - Secure File Sharing

[2][email address] sent you a secure message
[3]Access message
Hi Tim, I am resending this as I understand you have had issues with
downloading the files. Regards Georgina From: [email address].n..
Attachments expire on Oct 11, 2023

[4]PDF 1 PDF
OIA230902 - Cell Phone Towers Consents.pdf
This message requires that you sign in to access the message and any file
attachments.

[5]Protected by Kiteworks-enabled Private Content Network (PCN)

References

Visible links
2. file:///tmp/foiextract20230911-5716-5eqe6l#
3. https://wdc.kiteworks.com/w/3FCIi5K6vXLd...
5. https://www.kiteworks.com/?em=19

Tēnā koe,

Thank you for contacting us. Your request has been logged under the Local
Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.

We will respond to your request as soon as possible and in any case no
later than within 20 working days.  

You can also call us freephone 0800 932 463. Please quote Request No.
OIA230966 if you require any further information.

If you would like to notify us about anything further regarding this
matter, you can reply to this email.

Ngā mihi,

Whangarei District Council

--EmailIdentifier---eyJJSWQiOiI3OTdhOTkxMy1hOGZkLTRlOTUtYjYxMC03ZWE2OWNlMDNlZDQiLCJIIjoiISFIQU5VbzhCOGZwdlJzck9leGRUQ05zIn0=---EmailIdentifier--

 

Tēnā koe Tim,

 

I refer to your request of September 27, 2023  for further Information
about “Cell Towers in Whangarei”. Your request was referred to council’s
RMA Department for consideration to your following questions:

 

o You have requested a map of cell towers within Whangarei district - I
note that the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act
allows any member of the public to request official information held
by council. However, for the Act to apply, the information must be
held by council; there is no obligation for council to create new
information simply to answer a request.  This aspect of your request
is therefore refused under section 17(g) of the Act on the basis that
the information requested is not held by council . We do not have a
map of cell towers in the Whangarei district.

 

o The index provided does not match the documents - After reviewing the
list of applications and cross referencing it with the documents
provided by us. I have identified the following items missing:

o CC1800009
o CC1800004
o CC1700007
o CC1600003
o LU2300019
o LU1100039
o LU1900081
o LU2100042
o LU1500036

These documents are to large to attach to this email and will be sent to
you via Kiteworks. Instructions on how to down load this documents are
attached.

 

o You have identified 2 towers that you are requesting documents for.
Cell towers are regulated under Resource Management (National
Environmental Standards for Telecommunication Facilities) Regulations
2016 (NESTF). The NESTF set out permitted standards for the location
and design of cell towers. A  “permitted activity” under the NESTF can
be undertaken without Council consent and there is no requirement for
a Certificate of Compliance application to be made for cell towers.
WDC does not have documentation for towers that meet a “permitted
activity”. I have searched the words Onerahi, Whangarei Heads and
Hinemoa Street to try to identify the 2 towers you have asked about.
CC1900009 address is 99 Onerahi Road, I cannot identify if this is the
correct tower based on your description (This document is attached for
easy reference).  I have been unable to locate anything on the other
tower based on the description provided and researching through Google
Maps.

 

I note that some information has been withheld under section 7(2)(a) of
the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 to protect
the privacy of individuals (this does not include Whangarei District
Council Staff)

 

The material represents our best efforts to locate relevant material.
However, the search process is by no means an exact science and given the
broad scope of your request it is possible that there may be other items
of relevance that have unintentionally been missed in the search.

 

I hope this information is of some assistance in responding to your
request. If you believe we have not responded appropriately to your
request, you have the right by way of complaint, under section 27(3) of
the Act, to apply to the Ombudsman to seek an investigation and review of
the decision.

 

 

Regards

 

Roger Quinton

Manager RMA Consents

Whangarei District Council | Te Iwitahi, 9 Rust Avenue | Private Bag 9023,
Te Mai, Whangārei 0143

P 09 430 4200 | M 021 198 3285 | [1]www.wdc.govt.nz

[2]Whangarei District Council logo

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Tim Hunt <[3][FOI #23644 email]>

Sent: Wednesday, 27 September 2023 4:00 pm

To: Mail Room <[4][Whangarei District Council request email]>

Subject: Re: FW: OIA230902 - Cell Towers

 

 

EXTERNAL: This email originated from outside Whangarei District Council.
Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and
know the content is safe.

 

Dear Whangarei District Council,

Att: Roger Quinton,

Hello Roger,

I was eventually able to download your pdf thanks to the kind help from
some council staff.

To be honest, I was disappointed on opening and 'ploughing through' the
more than 2000 pages in the report, to find that more than a couple of
celltowers within the Whangarei City area were not listed, one of
particular interest being the Spark tower on the corner of Onerahi Road
and Whangarei Heads road.

Also missing are 2 sites within 1km of this one on Onerahi Road on the
city side of the Onerahi shops. Why are these missing? May I have details
of them? Does a map of celltower locations not exist?

I appreciate the trouble you've gone to , but I feel my original questions
have not been adequately answered. I note incidentally that within the pdf
provided , the index doesn't match the documentaion; ie, there are quite a
few missing versus the spreadsheet listing the docs on page one and two.

I look forward to your response,

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Tim Hunt

References

Visible links
1. Link to the Whangarei District Council's website.
https://www.wdc.govt.nz/
3. mailto:[FOI #23644 email]
4. mailto:[Whangarei District Council request email]

hide quoted sections

[1]Whangarei District Council - Secure File Sharing

[2][email address] sent you a secure message
[3]Access message
Hi Tim, As per email you have received from Roger Quinton, manager RMA
Consents. Attached are the documents referenced in the email as missi..
Attachments expire on Nov 25, 2023

[4]PDF 1 PDF
OIA230966 Cell Towers Redacted File.pdf
This message requires that you sign in to access the message and any file
attachments.

[5]Protected by Kiteworks-enabled Private Content Network (PCN)

References

Visible links
2. file:///tmp/foiextract20231026-34-3o5ko7#
3. https://wdc.kiteworks.com/w/aoVsDGtUaDZt...
5. https://www.kiteworks.com/?em=19