L.P.G. storage area seen as too small

Press, 3 August 1983, Page 9

L.P.G. storage area seen as too small

Christchurch City Council planning arguments against a proposed Dallington Service Station L.P.G. storage and distribution site yesterday were similar to arguments the week before about a proposed Edgeware site. Mr M. J. G. Garland, a senior town planner, said that the site at the intersection of Woodham Road and Gloucester Street was too small for the facilities proposed. Unless existing buildings on the site were shifted, or the site were enlarged, the problem remained of failing to meet setback requirements from adjoining residential properties. The biggest demand for L.P.G. at the station would come from the 80-car fleet of Gold Band taxis based at the service station, said the applicants. Nine nearby residents have objected to the L.P.G. proposal, which calls for a

storage vessel with a water capacity of 7499 litres. In the reviewed City Council district scheme, special provisions for L.P.G. storage and distribution in residential zones restricts the maximum total storage to 200 litres water capacity. Mr Garland said there was no question about the value of L.P.G. as a fuel alternative to petrol. “Convenient filling points are essential if the motorist is to be encouraged into its use,” he said, “but this does not mean that such points should be established haphazardly, or that all, or even most, service stations should have such facilities.” “L.P.G. damage and fire risks, and the public perception of those risks, were different from those of petrol,” he said. The applicant was seeking an ’“oversized installation” of a type that was not considered suitable for the

residential zone. Mr R. J. D. Buddle, counsel for Dallington Service Station, Ltd, said that “objectors’ comments and their objections appear to be largely through ignorance based on fear.” Some New Zealand local bodies, particularly the Napier City Council, had become more liberal in revised district schemes in recent years, and had recognised the changing nature of service stations in marketing alternative fuels. Regulations concerning the control and dispensation of L.P.G. throughout New Zealand were "some of the most stringent throughout the world," said Mr Buddle.

“New Zealand’s safety standards for L.P.G. are exceptionally high compared with a lot of overseas standards,” said Mr R. S. Jordan, the southern regional supervisor for BP Gas New Zealand, Ltd.