Bird hazard may rest with M.O.T.

Press, 29 June 1983, Page 1

Bird hazard may rest with M.O.T.

The Ministry of Transport Civil Aviation Division should consider using its powers to close the Waimairi District Council rubbish tip near Christchurch Airport because of the bird hazard to aircraft, the City Council’s public utilities committee said yesterday. Under Civil Aviation regulations, action can be taken to have landowners or occupiers remove or deal with waste food and other materials that attract birds. Councillors said that the Director of Civil Aviation, Captain E. T. Kippenberger, should be asked to consider the immediate shut down of the Sawyers Arms Road tip, the target of criticism by airline pilots. The New Zealand Airline Pilots’ Association has decided to boycott the use of the airport’s future extended runway until the tip is closed. Cr Morgan Fahey, the new international chairman of the Airport Safety Committee, said that reaction so far to the boycott decision “seems to be an awful lot of duck-shoving.” Re said it was embarrassing that the area had neglected a serious safety hazard for so long. His committee is the consultant body to the International Civil Aviation and World Health organisations.

Cr Fahey said the tip problem was a case of “a safety situation taking second place to public convenience and local body wills. “I think the power is available to close that tip tomorrow. Rubbish problettis could be sorted out later.” Airline pilots have told city councillors that closing the tip to public access, which would would mean better control of the landfill, would not solve the problem. It had gone “beyond the stage of meeting on tip sites,” said Cr A. J. Graham of a proposed meeting at the Waimairi tip. “If we have the power to take direct action, we should do it.” Cr Graham said he was appalled that a neighbouring local body had “such a frightening lack of concern” for the safety of airline passengers. “It is particularly frightening to have responsible senior pilots describing what can happen with a bird strike,” said the Mayor of Christchurch, Sir Hamish Hay. “These hazards exist right now. You know, our luck might run out on this.” Sir Hamish said he was surprised that Civil Aviation had not “done something about it” through exercising powers in its regulations. “The pilots say there is no

way controlled tipping would solve the problem,” said Cr Rex Lester, the committee chairman. Mr M. W. Atkinson, the airport director, said that a decision on whether to shift landing lights into the runway extension would have to be made if the boycott held until the project was completed next year. Because pilots would have to adjust their glide slopes if they used only part of a longer runway, they would require more visibility to use the airport. “The airport would be closed on certain days it is now working,” he said. “In the last week, we would have been closed down three times at least.” Councillors said that a meeting should also be sought with Waimairi District councillors and the Christchurch Refuse Disposal Committee to discuss the closing of the tip. Cr Lester said the airline pilots had sought a Crown Law Office legal opinion which indicated that the power of Civil Aviation to close a tip might not be as straightforward as it seemed. The city had received adifferent legal opinion. Under the Civil Aviation regulations, bird-attracting v?aste material must be dealt with within 28 days of a notice.