Rubbish-tip letter ‘easy way out’

Press, 10 March 1982, Page 5

Rubbish-tip letter ‘easy way out’

By failing to object to a proposed rubbish tip in Pound Road, near the main runway of Christchurch Airport, the regional planning committee of the Canterbury United Council would be taking the easy way out, the committee was told. Initially, the committee planned to send an advisory letter to the Paparua County Council about the future of the site, once its use as a tip was over. But after some discussion, the committee decided to make a formal objection to the proposed tip. The proposal before the county council was to excavate a 0.4-hectare site, seal it, fill it with rubbish, and level the land. “The applicant making the proposal deals with contamination of underground water.

bird hazard to aricraft, vermin. fire, wind-blown debris, earthquake damage to the pit liner, and restoration of the surface,” the committee was told. , < Cr Rex Lester said the recommendation before the committee, to send an advisory letter to the county council, was “a soft, option.” “This is an important area, a flight path to our airport, and I move instead that we should formally object to the proposal.” he said. Mr J. L. Robb, the rgional traffic engineer, speaking in favour of the initial recommendation, said that othe rlocal bodies were better qualified than the regional planning committee to give expert evidence in objection to the proposal. .“It is best to leave it up to

the bodies such as the Airport Authority and the Civil Aviation Division, to deal with and we will, stick to the regional planning issues,” he said. “I still think is a soft option.” said Cr Lester. “As a united council, we should look at things in a broad field. It will be of tremendous regional concern if we allow near an airport, activity that is hazardous to aircraft. We must support those other bodies who object.” Cr I. G. Clark said that he was also concerned about the possibility of pollution from the proposed rubbish tip. “Christchurch has a precious water resource, and nothing should be allowed to contaminate it,” he said.