Accusations mire Waiheke rubbish deal

A new rubbish and recycling contract for Waiheke Island has become mired by claims of inappropriate behaviour.

Independent auditor John Walton says the existing local contractor, Clean Stream Waiheke, has been "canvassing" City Vision councillors - forbidden under the tender rules.

Mr Walton has recommended the company be disqualified.

And a city councillor has sought legal advice after she says her emails were accessed without her permission.

Mr Walton said Clean Stream's executive director, John Stansfield, had sent emails to City Vision's councillors and one of those councillors, Cathy Casey, had responded and appeared to be advising Waiheke groups favouring the local company.

Mr Walton has recommended Dr Casey be forbidden to take any further part in the tender process. He believes other City Vision councillors should also be excluded to remove any perceived conflict of interest.

On Thursday, the council's city development committee is expected to replace more than 25 years of locally owned and operated rubbish and recycling with a 10-year contract to an outside company.

Last night, Dr Casey said she had hired a lawyer after she discovered her emails had been searched by a council officer without her permission in an attempt to discredit Clean Stream.

"I am not on the committee making the decision on the tender process and do not have voting rights, therefore my vote cannot be canvassed," she said.

Mr Stansfield said he "absolutely rejected" the allegation of canvassing.

He said the correspondence showed a longstanding interest by Clean Stream in sustainable recycling and mounting frustration at statements by council officers about the Visy recycling facility in Onehunga.

Under the new contract, some Waiheke waste will go to the Visy plant instead of being recycled locally.

City development committee chairman and Citizens & Ratepayers councillor Aaron Bhatnagar said Mr Walton had found a flagrant breach of tender rules.

Mr Bhatnagar said Dr Casey had tried to unethically influence the tender outcome in Clean Stream's favour and sought to organise media stunts, such as getting islanders to block part of Queen St with wheelie bins.

Another email from City Vision councillor Glenda Fryer agreeing to raise a matter from Mr Stansfield at a City Vision caucus was "outrageous", Mr Bhatnagar said.

The committee is expected to award the new contract to Transpacific Industries, which has some $2.5 billion in long-term debt and whose shares have been suspended from trading in Australia since February. The contract is worth $21.4 million for 10 years.

Mr Bhatnagar said that based on advice he had received he was satisfied that Transpacific Industries were up to the job for 10 years.

Once the contract is awarded, it will need to be approved by the Auckland Transition Agency setting up the Super City structure for Auckland.