Along with the other councils in New Zealand, Westland District Council has been assisting the Ministry for the Environment and Local Government New Zealand to identify landfills in the district that are close to rivers or the coast.

David Inwood, Group Manager: District Assets says, “Westland District Council has assisted and supported the consultancy working on behalf of Ministry for the Environment and provided our data as part of the national review.”

Initial risk reviews of the known closed landfill locations have been conducted, “we acknowledge that there are a number of risks to landfills, which has been brought to the public’s attention by the breach of the closed Fox River landfill” reports Chief Executive, Simon Bastion.

Developing a good understanding of the closed landfill sites that are vulnerable to natural hazards and climate change will enable council to work on long-term strategies to improve the resilience of these sites and reduce the risks that they pose in the future. “Westland District Council has provided and will continue to assist the governments review of legacy landfills to ensure that future site options are addressed at a local and national level”, says David Inwood.

Council, DOC and the Regional Council remain committed to working on the long-term recovery plan for the closed Fox landfill. Recovery options of protecting the landfill or shifting the remaining rubbish will have a substantial cost for the small rate payer base, on top of the $712,000 that council has already spent on protection of the site, removing rubbish and developing the clean-up plan.

© Scoop Media