Report on Patea site needs thorough study Tariana Turia.

“It is good news that the environmental risk assessment of the Patea Freezing Works site shows there is no reason for panic, said Te Tai Hauauru MP Tariana Turia.

“This is a substantial report that needs careful examination,” she said. “The summary I have seen indicates that the main contaminants are the ones we already knew about – asbestos and PCBs – and they are more or less under control.

“I am concerned about the presence of heavy metals in leachate from the site, and I’m not reassured that the toxins are quickly diluted in the estuary.

“Toxins get diluted by being spread around. They all end up in the environment, with the likelihood that they will enter food chains.

“People fish in the Patea River and at the rivermouth, for whitebait, mullet and kahawai. Species like flounder and gurnard feed on the bottom, eating worms and crabs that live in the mud where these metals end up settling. The effects of metal poisoning can take years to become obvious.

“This will need to be addressed, and I will want to look into the report properly. However I guess it’s better to have identified the risk, so it can be dealt with urgently,” she said.

“The next issue is who will set the standard for the cleanup, and who will pay for it. I would hope that central government will now demonstrate leadership in managing an effective response to the longstanding concerns of the community.

“The Minister for the Environment gave his commitment in February of this year, that once the results of this investigation were in, they would be able to proceed with assessing the amount available from the Contaminated Sites Remediation Fund.

“I look forward to being involved in discussions to follow up this report,” said Mrs Turia. 

For info contact: Andrew Robb 029- 482 8494

See attachment: Questions for Oral Answer, 13 February 2008
9. Asbestos—Government Assistance to Local Authorities
[Hansard Volume:645;Page:14173]

9. Hon TARIANA TURIA (Co-Leader—M
ori Party) to the Minister for the Environment: What financial commitment will the Government make to local and regional authorities to clean up sites contaminated by asbestos, including the site of the former freezing works and hospital in P
tea?

Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Minister for the Environment) : Although, as the member is aware, it is primarily the responsibility of the regional council, the Government has already committed about 60 percent of the funding required to investigate contaminants on the P
tea site—just over $64,000. I have also indicated that the Government is open to sharing the costs of the glue or rubber sealant that will almost certainly be the interim solution for the P
tea site. We will need the results of the investigation and accurate cost estimates for P
tea to ascertain where this site fits vis-à-vis other sites that are contaminated around New Zealand, before final decisions can be made about the level and timing of funding from the Contaminated Sites Remediation Fund.

Hon Tariana Turia: What progress, if any, has been made on establishing a register of all affected P
tea residents, in order to ensure that appropriate monitoring and health surveillance reports can be established for the future?

Hon TREVOR MALLARD: The first step is to establish what was spread around the town at the time. To date, the reports of testing show that both in the dust in the houses and in the air, asbestos has not been found. We have to be very careful about panicking people who live in the town by suggesting that they have been contaminated, when in fact it could well be that we have been exceptionally lucky and asbestos was not spread around.

Hon Tariana Turia: Why was the owner, Noel McColl, not made to clean up the freezing works site’s rubble and soil, which were affected by asbestos and pentachlorophenol contamination, when the site has long been recognised as being potentially hazardous to public health for the past 27 years; and will we wait for another fire at the hospital site before we see any action?

Hon TREVOR MALLARD: The first part of the question should be addressed to the responsible authority, which is the regional council. I thank both Jill Pettis and the much reduced member Chester Borrows for their support of the people of P
tea and for their communications with my office on the subject.
Hon Tariana Turia: What is the Minister’s response to local claims that district authorities have failed in their responsibility to restore a cleaner, safer environment, have minimised the seriousness of the situation, and could be accused of negligence in allowing the residents to return home before formal tests were carried out by hygienists?

Hon TREVOR MALLARD: There will always be debate around the timing of these issues, but when a series of tests from the dust on the houses not only in P
tea but in a community that is downwind does not show asbestos, then I think it would be stretching it a bit to criticise the authorities for letting people return to their homes.
Question time interrupted