Greater Chch to be clean air zone?

Press, 29 April 1981, Page 1

Greater Chch to be clean air zone?

An increase of 50 per cent in smoke levels recorded in Christchurch air in the last three years had prompted the City Council’s Health Department to do a big survey of the city’s smoke pollution, said Mr D. R. Pullen, the city chemical inspector, yesterday.

Mr Pullen, speaking at a meeting of the air pollution committee of the Canterbury United Council, said the survey should show, by the end of this winter, if the pollution problem was localised in certain parts of the city, or if it involved the whole city.

Analysis of figt .es in the last three years had shown that the rising smoke levels were 70 to 80 per cent caused by open fires, he said. Because of delays in Wellington, results of lead lew! readings in Christchurch air last ye:- were not yet available. Mr Pullen said that inferior types of coal coming into Christchurch for domestic use last winter had done nothing to ease the pollution problem. “At one stage last year, there wer. 14 different types of coal nuts, supposedly for use in space heaters, on the market, but the one most suitable for space heaters — Ohai

nuts — was not available,” he said. Mr P. V. Neary, f om the Clean Air Society and a member of the committee, said that there would be a 50 per cent reduction in smoke levels if merchants of coal and coal burners were more responsible. “But the vested interests have to keep their livelihood gr ig, so they continue to advertise and persuade more people to buy the coal c.~d the burners that help to create air pollution,” Mr Neary said.

Once the United Council had a legal definition of its powers to enforce clean air zones and other anti-pollution measures, the sale of coal might be one area the council could cover, the committee was told.

But until speh legal definitions were available, the council was pow- less to act.

Earlier in the meeting,

the committee was told that Health Department legal officers were looking into the possible powers the Canterbury United Council might have to declare a clean air zone all over metropolitan Christchurch.

If such a move was possible, it could only be made with the agreement of the constituent councils concerned in Riccarton, Waimairi, Paparua, and Heathcote, where no clean air zone already existed.

The committee was told that, while it should be aiming to bring in a full clean air zone in stag-; in metropolitan Christchurch, in the meantime it had to accept that coals with a high sulphur content could be sold for use in those premises not subject to a Clean Air Order. Cr G. Stone said that making pollution-free coal available to the public was all very well, but it had to be available at a price that people could afford.