Horowhenua District Council is hell bent on keeping the Levin Landfill open despite the huge environmental and financial costs. HDC has admitted they cannot contain the landfill leachate that seeps into the Hokio Stream. Their approach is to change resource consent conditions so they can legally pollute the wider environment including the stream.
It begs the question why?
As a member of a community group who have been keeping an eye on the landfill operation for over 17 years I have come to the conclusion it’s all about politics, as nothing else makes sense.
About ten years ago Mayor Duffy campaigned that he was going to make half a million dollars per annum by importing Kapiti’s rubbish into the Levin Dump. They made a secret contract (they say this is commercially sensitive) with Midwest Disposals. Although they have been telling the public that all is well the truth is the landfill has been losing vast amounts of ratepayers money and is now over $4.5 million in debt.
The reason they are in debt is because the landfill is located in the worst spot imaginable, in permeable sand-country, near a stream and beach, upstream of a township, on shallow ground water and on sensitive ex Maori occupied land. Any of these points should have been a reason not obtain a resource consent but it was pushed through by Horizons Regional Council and HDC in 2002 without proper process which was later investigated by the Parliamentary Commission for the Environment who gave both councils a damming report. Unfortunately the culture hasn’t changed.
Because of the landfills location on sand country, millions of extra dollars has to be spent on trying to contain the toxic leachate which has proven to be impossible.
A five yearly review is now underway with Horizons imposing a new set of conditions. These conditions are being contested by HDC.
So we have the two councils fighting each other, wasting hundreds of thousands of our dollars, when it could have all be resolved if Horowhenua District Council would come clean and discuss the option of the alternative landfill at Bonni-Glen which is far more cost effective and environmentally efficient.
With enough people power we can get rid of this disgraceful polluting dump from our backyard and start to restore our once pristine environment so please sign the petition.