Properties should not be listed as possibly contaminated on Land Information Memorandum (LIM) reports until the presence of contaminants and a risk to health and the environment is proved, Environment Minister Marian Hobbs says.
She has written to Auckland Mayor Dick Hubbard advising him about what information should be attached to
LIM reports of properties in Auckland possibly contaminated with chemicals.
It was recently revealed that almost 5000 Auckland homes could have been built on sections doused with herbicides, fungicides and insecticides when the land was in use as market gardens and orchards.
The Auckland City Council started adding information to LIM reports this week after informing 4872 landowners they must pay for tests to find out if their properties contained dangerous levels of DDT, arsenic, lead and copper.
The Government is prepared to contribute to the testing of thousands of Auckland properties but Ms Hobbs said yesterday there was no point in doing so until the council had provided better information on the likelihood of contamination.
"If we were to test every household we would not necessarily prove anything, because you can take soil from the front lawn and find it is all clear but that doesn't necessarily clear the back, left-hand patch," Ms Hobbs said.
"What you really need to know is the history of the subdivisions, and that is a council matter."
Ms Hobbs said yesterday she had asked for a report from the Environment Ministry about the requirements for councils to notify potentially-affected properties on LIM reports.
She said "I believe an early LIM notification is likely to distract from the real issue of following a good process to identify actual risks."
- NZPA
