The smog that envelops Tokoroa in South Waikato during winter is caused by residents' home fires and not discharges from the Kinleith mill, says a report.
Air pollution in the town reached alert levels on 30 days last year and exceeded national guidelines on 40 per cent of winter days,
monitoring by Environment Waikato shows.
Health problems from the pollution include eye and throat irritation, bronchitis, asthma symptoms and other respiratory illness.
The new data belied the popular misconception that the Kinleith mill was responsible for the poor air quality.
South Waikato Mayor Gordon Blake said the report had surprised him.
"It's certainly come as a surprise to a lot of people, because the mill always gets blamed for it [the smog]," he said.
Education rather than regulation should be used to get the message across to Tokoroa residents if further monitoring confirmed the data, he said.
"My council will work with Environment Waikato on this. It's just basic things that everyone with an open fire needs to know.
"You have to burn dry wood and make sure your chimney is clean from excessive soot - things like that."
Environment Waikato staff said more work was needed to confirm the extent and causes of the pollution.
- NZPA
nzherald.co.nz/environment
