Robert Gordon Whiting (16 March 1942 – 6 November 2018) was a judge of the
Environment Court of New Zealand
The Environment Court of New Zealand () is a specialist court for plans, resource consents and environmental issues. It mainly deals with issues arising under the Resource Management Act, meaning that it covers a wide range of potential future ...
and on boards of inquiry that dealt with many important environmental issues.
Early life
Whiting, who was of Irish descent, was born in
Oamaru
Oamaru (; ) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast; State Highway 1 (New Zealand), Sta ...
in 1942 and attended
St Kevins College in Oamaru.
[ He studied economics and law at the ]University of Otago
The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...
, graduating BA LLB
A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...
in 1967.Whangārei
Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...
, particularly in criminal law as both a prosecutor and defence counsel.
Career
Whiting was deeply involved in important and complicated issues including power generation, infrastructure, landfills, Commercial and industrial development, subdivisions, coastal issues and sensitive landscape (especially the productions of guidelines for the landscape profession)Resource Management Act 1991
The Resource Management Act (RMA) passed in 1991 in New Zealand is a significant, and at times, controversial Act of Parliament. The RMA promotes the sustainable management of natural and physical resources such as land, air and water. New Zea ...
.[
Some cases that he presided over for the Court, and later on boards of inquiry, included the Tongariro Power Development Flood Control Scheme reconnecting appeals, geothermal power station appeals, the Waikato Expressway Designation Hamilton Section Appeals; the King Salmon Board of Inquiry, the Basin Reserve Board of Inquiry, Canterbury water allocation cases for the Canterbury Regional Council, the Te Kuha Coal mine inquiry on the West Coast and the Rena wreck consents in the Bay of Plenty. Whiting also heard and determined a number of strategically important cases on policy instruments for infrastructure and natural resource use around ]Lake Taupō
Lake Taupō (also spelled Taupo; or ) is a large crater lake in New Zealand's North Island, located in the caldera of Taupō Volcano. The lake is the namesake of the town of Taupō, which sits on a bay in the lake's northeastern shore. With ...
and the Waikato River
The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...
.[
]
Death
Whiting died in Auckland
Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
on 6 November 2018.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whiting, Gordon
1942 births
2018 deaths
People educated at St Kevin's College, Oamaru
People from Oamaru
20th-century New Zealand judges
21st-century New Zealand judges
New Zealand people of Irish descent
University of Otago alumni