185Environment Court may order taking of land

1. An owner of an estate or interest in land (including a leasehold estate or interest) that is subject to a designation or requirement under this Part may apply at any time to the Environment Court for an order obliging the requiring authority responsible for the designation or requirement to acquire or lease all or part of the owner's estate or interest in the land under the Public Works Act 1981.

2. An application under subsection (1) shall be in the prescribed form and a copy of the application shall be served upon the requiring authority and the relevant territorial authority by the applicant.

3. The Environment Court may make an order applied for under subsection (1) if it is satisfied that—

4. the owner has tried but been unable to enter into an agreement for the sale of the estate or interest in the land subject to the designation or requirement at a price not less than the market value that the land would have had if it had not been subject to the designation or requirement; and
5. either—
   1. the designation or requirement prevents reasonable use of the owner's estate or interest in the land; or
   2. the applicant was the owner, or the spouse, civil union partner, or de facto partner of the owner, of the estate or interest in the land when the designation or requirement was created.

6. Before making an order under subsection (1) the court may direct the owner to take further action to try to sell the estate or interest in the land.

7. If the Environment Court makes an order to take an estate or interest in land under the Public Works Act 1981, the owner of that estate or interest shall be deemed to have entered into an agreement with the requiring authority responsible for the designation or requirement for the purposes of section 17 of the Public Works Act 1981.

8. Where subsection (5) applies in respect of a requiring authority which is a network utility operator approved under section 167—

9. any agreement shall be deemed to have been entered into with the Minister of Lands on behalf of the network utility operator as if the land were required for a government work; and
10. all costs and expenses incurred by the Minister of Lands in respect of the acquisition of the land shall be recoverable from the network utility operator as a debt due to the Crown.

11. The amount of compensation payable for an estate or interest in land ordered to be taken under this section shall be assessed as if the designation or requirement had not been created.