ARC congratulates Waitakere for sorting out its landfills

The ARC congratulates Waitakere City Council for meeting all of its responsibilities for its old closed landfills.

Waitakere City Council has met required standards for all of the closed landfill sites in the city that it owns after a major commitment over the last 18 months to complete what has been a 9-year process of investigation and reporting.

“We congratulate the Waitakere City Council for being proactive in sorting these sites out,” said ARC’s Waitakere representative, Councillor Paul Walbran. “They’re setting a good example for other landowners.”

The ARC has been working with Waitakere City Council as it worked towards ARC requirements.

Under the Resource Management Act, the ARC is responsible for making sure that impacts on the environment are minimised from waste disposal activities. The proposed Air, Land and Water Plan being developed by the ARC includes specific rules to govern closed landfill management for the first time.

“As we learn more about the effects from these old landfills, and as the region grows and we need to make efficient use of every bit of land, the rules have got tighter,” said Cr Paul Walbran.

There are about 142 old landfills in Waitakere City including clean fills. 64 sites are owned by Waitakere City Council now. Sites that are actively managed by the Waitakere City Council include Ceramco Park, Archibald Park and Corban Reserve. Most sites are very small and some may have been closed for up to 50 years.

Old closed landfills are dotted around the whole country. Every local council or landowner with old sites on their property is having to deal with current-day environmental effects caused by these historical activities. Old landfills can pose an environmental risk because they discharge landfill gases and because they leak. The leachate can contaminate groundwater and nearby streams.

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