Bonny Glen can use Marton plant

Midwest Disposals who operate Bonny Glen landfill near Marton will build a full leachate treatment facility on site. Photo/ Bevan Conley

The operators of Bonny Glen landfill can continue to use the Marton wastewater treatment plant to process its leachate.

Rangitikei District councillors voted on Thursday to continue to accept pre-treated leachate while the landfill's operators, Midwest Disposals Ltd, work to design and build its own on-site facility capable of full treatment.

That could be completed by the end of 2017 meaning Midwest would no longer require the council facility.

Last year the Rangitikei District Council gave Midwest Disposals until next June to ensure the levels of the leachate were up to an acceptable standard.

Leachate is runoff from the landfill and toxins the water has collected has been partly responsible for the treatment plant's compliance failure in recent years.

This year Midwest began pre-treating the leachate, achieving enough reduction in suspended solids, chemical oxygen demand and ammonia to

Rangitikei mayor Andy Watson said both parties, including Horizons Regional Council, had been working together on the

"I'm really happy with where this is heading."

The council and Midwest will sign an agreement which maps out the companies intentions and councils support of that.

Meanwhile, the consent council holds for it's wastewater treatment plant expires in March 2019 and it needs to lodge new consent application by September 2018.

Upgrades will also be made to the treatment plant, including storage tanks, to help reduce shock loading.