Minister Of Works On Pollution

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32305, 25 May 1970, Page 16

Minister Of Works On Pollution

(New Zealand Press Association/ WELLINGTON, May 24. It was only a matter of time before pollution levels in the New Zealand environment became a problem, said the Minister of Works (Mr Allen) at the week-end, when addressing the closing session of the Physical Environment Conference in Wellington.

“We have perhaps a decade longer within which to develop our strategy for handling the situation,” Mr Allen said. “A good start has already been made in this field.” he said. The Health Department had the question of air pollution in hand, but the control and prevention of land pollution required further initiative “from us all.” In the use of land, the traditional tendency to divide town from country in people’s thinking had to be guarded against. What was done in the town affected the country, and what happened in the country had repercussions ip the towns. Totality of Relationship It was essential that the to-| tality of the urban-rural relationship was understood and appreciated when thinking! about the use and development of the physical environ-1 ment—whether forest, farmland, suburb, or city. As a nation, New Zealand! must ensure that its urban environment was soundly! based. Towns should not be allowed to become sociologi-i cally sterile, no matter how economically efficient they were.

t “The future has no room ,!for mere residential dormi--1 tories without facilities for r working, recreation, and a f! sense of identity and oppori tunities for a full life,” Mr Allen said. Finance would have to be ■ found to improve standards si of design and environmental •management. The Govern•'ment would give thorough s; consideration to the conferfence’s recommendations on -finance. “Polluter Must Pay” It would be a tremendous - help if local government, comj I merce, and industry were also ' i prepared to make independent contributions, where the ■ costs of land, water, and air '! pollution were concerned. ' "The necessary finance must ;be secured at the grass-roots level,” said Mr Allen. “We .! shall have to devise more effective measures to make I sure that it is the polluter .who pays.” New Zealand would continue to send engineers and I others to the United States to ! bring back answers to some of the pollution problems existing there, he said. Just before Mr Alien’s speech, the full conference adopted almost all the recommendations of its different forums of delegates, who considered reports on particular

environmental issues during the week. The conference decided that the creation of large, uniform low-cost housing areas should be discouraged. Housing Questions A more balanced mixture of types and grades of housing should be aimed at within smaller groups of newlydeveloped areas. - Attempts should also be made to encourage a more balanced proportion of State, group and private housing including high-cost housing —' in the catchment area of any new primary school. The conference considered that industries in residential areas should be grouped together, preferably in close association with retail centres, and carefully sited and con trolled to minimise their less attractive features. To achieve a balanced development, it was essential for some ser vice industries and light in dustries to be provided with new residential districts. On land resources and use, the conference decided that the proposed Physical Environment Council should aim to strengthen and co-or dinate the work of present agencies, and ensure a continuing survey of the need for harmonising development and conservation. The Government should recognise the fundamental importance of conservation, viewed both as the maintenance of aesthetic and scientific values and the enlightened management of natural resources and scientific values. When this was done, the principles and aims of conservation should be given prominence by educational and information agencies.