TE AWAMUTU Benson Te Road, Te Awamutu 329 Benson329Road, Awamutu P: 07 870 1091 E: teawamutu@flooringxtra.co.nz
P: 63 07Maniapoto 870 1091 Street, Otorohanga E: teawamutu@flooringxtra.co.nz
OTOROHANGA
FREE
It’s a real local newspaper
NOVEMBER 28, 2024
Incinerator site ‘wrong’ By Chris Gardner
Waipā District Council is drafting a submission against the building of the Paewira waste to energy plant in Racecourse Road in Te Awamutu. Councillors who debated the plan last week said they believed the wrong site was being looked at. A board of inquiry is to decide Global Contracting Solutions’ resource consent application to build the plant near homes, a childcare centre, college, Fonterra dairy factory and Mangapiko Stream. Te Awamutu-Kihikihi General Ward councillor Andrew Brown summed up the council’s position towards the end of a submission workshop for elected members last Wednesday. “Even if I was completely reassured as quality of emissions, which I am not, this is surely in the wrong place.” The proposal would see the facility burn around 480 tonnes of car bodies, plastic, tyres, commercial and industrial waste every day. Steam from the waste would be used to generate electricity.
Cambridge Ward councillor Roger Gordon agreed with Brown. “My main concern really is that it is new technology, and while there are many statements being made about the quality of emissions it’s unproven, and we don’t know what the future impact is going to be,” he said. Council strategy group manager Kirsty Downey told elected members the council submission should be focussed on location, placemaking, community interest and community wellbeing. “The point we should be communicating to the board is that there is not enough evidence that the proposed waste to energy plant will actually uphold our community wellbeing,” she said. “A social impact assessment was requested from the applicant back in December of 2023 and that hasn’t yet been provided. So, as part of that submission, we would also be recommending that we request a social impact assessment be provided by the applicant.” Pirongia-Kakepuku councillor Clare St Pierre suggested there
A 3D digital model of the proposed waste to energy plant development published in a landscape and visual assessment report.
may be more appropriate sites. “I am quite concerned about its proximity to Fonterra because it’s a food processing plant.” Downey said council staff recommended the submission discussed the possibility the location of the proposed plant may adversely affect the amenity and character of the adjacent residential area, as well as Te Awamutu and Waipā being a desirable district to live, work, invest in, recreate in. Fonterra submitted against the construction of the plant, before the application was called in by
the board. Waipā district mayor and dairy farmer Susan O’Regan looked at a worst-case scenario, and the long-term impacts on an agricultural sector scale. “The stakes are extremely high, and I want to make sure that the inquiry around those negative impacts isn’t just limited to the neighbouring streets.” Around 800 submissions have already been received regarding the application, the majority in opposition. Submissions close on December 18 and the board will have nine months to decide.
Cones kept in cupboard By Mary Anne Gill
Two trials where Waipā District Council uses fewer road cones and signs at worksites have resulted in reduced worksite congestion and less disruption to road users and residents. Fire main replacement in Te Awamutu – at Palmer, Fraser, Bradey, Jackson, Redoubt and Vaile streets – and the Grey St pathway in Cambridge are the guinea pig projects, Human Resources Operations manager Clark Collins told the Finance and Corporate committee this Waipā has been a cone week. “This innovative zone. approach ensures that traffic management decisions are based on an assessment of actual risks encountered at each worksite, rather than following a purely compliance focused method as outlined in the Code of Practice for Temporary Traffic Management,” he said. The two trials are continuing but an earlier trial, implemented during watermain replacement work in Cambridge and Te Awamutu, used another risk-based approach. Workers reduce controls in localised areas in contrast to the code’s approach which typically requires the full traffic management setup until the whole job is completed. The code approach is well established in New Zealand and it will take time for the “risk-based method” to gain broader acceptance, he said. Waipā District Council would continue to collaborate with contractors for other projects the approach could be used, Collins told the committee.
murray hunt furnishers
Learn more, scan the code!
Home Décor, Bedding, Furniture, Gi�ware and lots more.
Family friendly Dentist Complete Dental Care
www.murrayhun�urnishers.co.nz 63 Maniapoto St Otorohanga Ph 07 873 8640
220 Alexandra St Te Awamutu Ph 07 214 2161
45 Arawata St Te Awamutu Ph 07 214 2244
Dental check ups Hygiene visits
Scale & Polish Teeth Whitening
SuperGold Discount
Cosmetic Dentistry
Call 07 823 1210 or 07 827 5079 to book in Find us: 9A Anzac Street, Cambridge, 3434
HELPING YOU GET IT DONE When it comes to getting the job done, hiring from Hire Centre Te Awamutu makes good sense. We have the right gear for your project! Landscape Lane behind
Phone:
07 871 5077