The trust behind a popular trail linking Te Anau to Manapouri is facing a potential $5000 bill from Environment Southland to retrospectively seek consent for a 35m-section already built.

Fiordland Trails Trust chairman Dr Stephen Hoskin said a lengthy legal discussion was happening well after the trail was built that risked costing the trust thousands of dollars that could be used on maintenance instead.

In September 2018, Environment Southland issued an abatement notice relating to a 35m section of the Lake2Lake trail near Manapouri that encroached onto a wetland.

The trust says it considered the requirements of Environment Southland's draft Southland Water and Land Plan prior to construction. The trail was specifically located to avoid wetlands and its location was consented by Southland District Council and approved by the Department of Conservation.

Dr Hoskin said trustees initially did not believe the trail went through a wetland when they built it. They now accept the 35m does cross wetland, however, the abatement notice was issued before they could have any discussions with the regional council around a potential solution, he said.

The maximum penalty for not complying with the notice, either by removing culverts in the trail or retrospectively applying for a resource consent, brought with it up to two years in jail or a fine worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, he said.

Dr Hoskin said it left the trustees wondering why Environment Southland appeared to be taking the most punitive path possible.

The trust opted to retrospectively apply for a resource consent for wetland modification covering the construction and use of the trail and the two culverts in the affected area.

After being publicly notified, it received 71 submissions in favour of the trail retaining its status quo, two neutral submissions, and none against it. The ecologist the trust consulted to assess the area conculded the impact of the trail was "less than minor" on the environment, but this was at odds with the council's own assessment.

While the trust hoped public submissions would be the end of the road (submissions closed earlier this month), it appears the resource consent will now go to a public hearing, at an estimated cost of $5000 to the trust.

The Fiordland Trails Trust is still hopeful Environment Southland will have a change of heart and waive the hearings fee. But in the larger picture, Dr Hoskin said the long legal process disincentivised grassroots, charitable groups from doing something similar.

"It feels like it’s only going to be wealthy, big business that can undertake such activities if this kind of approach is taken," he said.

"We have zero pecuniary gain out of this. [...] The reward is seeing trail made, seeing people out and enjoying it. And the reality is it's an enormous amount of effort getting that much done."

Environment Southland staff said they were unable to discuss the resource consent as it was in a public process.

“Discussing the consent could influence the participants’ prejudicially by introducing new information to the public."