THE Masterton District Council has officially apologised to the family of a Masterton man who discovered an open grave of dog carcasses near his boundary fence this week.
Colin Gowan found two open holes dug right on the Masterton landfill boundary to his Nursery Road property which were full of about 20 dog bodies.
Mr Gowan thought leaving the holes open was bad practice as the dead bodies attracted rats and flies and was also concerned about possible seepage into the ground water which he and neighbors took water from via bores.
Council chief executive Wes ten Hove said today the council has apologised to Mr Gowan and his family.
He said discarded animal carcasses are not uncommon at the landfill but it was unfortunate in this circumstance that the pit was left uncovered and was also dug in an inappropriate position.
"The carcasses were buried in a location contrary to normal practice. The council does have specific procedures in place to deal with disposal of dead animals but unfortunately there was a breach in normal practices in this instance," Mr ten Hove said.
"We have apologised to the family concerned and the pit is already being cleared."
Council staff regularly monitor groundwater surrounding the landfill and they were due to conduct the next test at the end of this month but Mr ten Hove said the test has been brought forward immediately.
Mr ten Hove said staff at the landfill are often required to deal with carcasses. Occasionally vets have to put animals down including unclaimed impounded dogs and members of the public may discard the remains of animals that have died rather than bury them in their back yard.
"We offer this service to members of the public and although it is not a pleasant task, someone has to do it. I would like to see it done properly."
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