Time to take anti-pollution decision, says councillor

Press, 6 November 1984, Page 7

Time to take anti-pollution decision, says councillor

Electrical supply authorities had taken the soft options for too long when it came to implementing antigillution measures, said a iccarton Borough councillor, Cr Pat Marriner. It was time to make some decisions, he told a meeting of the council’s works and services committee last evening. Councillors were debating whether to approve in principle the Canterbury United Council’s proposal to extend the Clean Air Zone Order to all premises in the zone within eight years. “We have been messing around with this for too long. The time has come when we just have to put a time limit on it,” said Cr Marriner.

Cr Gerald Hunt said that ratepayers should have the chance to debate the issue before the council supported the eight-year time limit. By approving the move in principle, it could become a fait accompli without ratepayers getting the chance to have their say, he said. The committee decided to hold a decision over until the council meeting. It recommended that the borough engineer investigate the cost of converting open fires in council-owned houses to electric heating. Waste disposal The development of a treatment plant for hazardous and toxic waste disposal in the Christchurch Metropolitan area should be given

a high priority, the committee decided. t Such a plant should be modelled on one in Auckland, which rendered the waste either completely or relatively harmless. Councillors were not in favour of a proposal from the North Canterbury Catchment Board whereby toxic wastes would be dewatered and deposited in selected sites. This was not a very satisfactory process from the Sint of view of protecting e groundwater aquifers and down-stream ecologies and environments, said a report from the borough engineer, Mr Peter Nichols. The Mayor, Mr Richard Harrington, said toxic waste disposal was not a job for

local authorities. The committee recommended that the treatment plant be run by either the public or private sector, and on a user-pays basis. Town centre Architects from the borough and for Riccarton Mall, Ltd; will work on a joint landscaping project for the mall frontage. Agreement had recently been reached with the mall owners to work on a joint development plan, said Mr Harrington. Mr Nichols said that contract documents for stage three of the town centre redevelopment project would be ready for tenders to be called on November 17.