Growing tyre mountain near Lake Taupo has mayor livid

FILE

A mountain of tyres - about 6000 so far with more expected - is being stored on farmland a short distance from the edge of Lake Taupo.

The tyre dump on land in Puketapu Rd, Western Bay, is only 2km from the lake's pristine Kawakawa Bay and Boat Harbour, and Taupo mayor David Trewavas says if the tyres catch fire, it'll be an environmental catastrophe.

The tyres have come from a 150,000 tyre pile in Frankton, Hamilton, that the Hamilton City Council is paying to have removed - with the unwanted waste being shunted to Taupo and Waihi.

According to news reports, the Frankton tyre mountain was supposed to be trucked to Kawerau to be recycled by a company called EcoVersion. The Hamilton City Council has a $260,000 contract with EcoVersion to dispose of the tyres and they were all expected to be cleared by May 31.

However, the Kawerau District Council was so concerned about the build-up of tyres that it has tried to block further trucks bringing in tyres to add to the pile, already estimated to total 200,000.

In a statement, EcoVersion said it would build a "state-of-the-art" tyre processing facility near Kawerau and would recycle the tyres with zero waste. However, its facility is not expected to be operating until towards the end of this year.

If tyres burn, they not only produce copious amounts of toxic smoke, but also toxic residue that can contaminate ground and waterways. Tyre fires are extremely difficult to extinguish and can burn for months.

Mr Trewavas said he was "gravely concerned" about the impact of bringing the tyres into the Taupo district, especially given the location. "They're being parked within 2km of the lakefront boundary which is really, really scary ... we've been spending the last 10 years or so making sure we protect this lake, then they dump these bloody tyres here."

Mr Trewavas had put in calls to Hamilton mayor Julie Hardaker, who had so far not responded, and Waikato Regional Council chairwoman Paula Southgate. Waikato Regional Council has the responsibility for any potential environmental issues.

Mr Trewavas says he can't believe a council can simply dump its unwanted waste in another district, particularly so close to a national icon.

"How can a city council pay a contractor to come and drop it in our back yard? I just couldn't believe it when I found out where it was."

The Waikato Regional Council says it is "maintaining a close interest" in where the tyres were going and would be seeking further information from EcoVersion.