Cows graze on the cap of the former landfill site. Photo / NZME
Cows graze on the cap of the former landfill site. Photo / NZME
A $440,000 investigation into remediating Whanganui’s former Balgownie landfill site is in the works, but the district council needs Government funding to get it underway.
The landfill, next to the Kokohuia Wetland in Castlecliff, opened in 1956 and was capped in 2001.
Council chief executive David Langford told a councilmeeting on May 28 the investigation would “diagnose if we have a problem”.
“This is about making sure we are acting in a responsible way as the owner of a historic landfill,” he said.
“These investigations may well turn up that there are no problems, or they’re relatively minor.
“As soon as we’ve got information back from them, we’ll be reporting back to council.”
In a statement to the Chronicle, Whanganui District Council chief infrastructure officer Lance Kennedy said the council commissioned a report, received earlier this year, to compile historic information on the landfill as well as ongoing monitoring data.
That had “identified gaps in knowledge”, he said.
“Like thousands of historic landfills across New Zealand, the Balgownie landfill was not developed according to the modern standards we expect today.
“As the landfill was developed over many decades, some of the landfill reaches beyond the boundaries of the reserve, under private industrial land and road reserve.”
Kennedy said the site currently met consent requirements, but it was due to be reconsented in 2029.
“Standards since the consent was issued have advanced, so the council is commencing work to understand as much about the landfill as possible and what compliance will look like in future ahead of that process.”
A council report said it aimed to cover the cost of the investigation through 50% funding from the Ministry for the Environment’s (MfE’s) Contaminated Sites and Vulnerable Landfills fund.
Lance Kennedy says if Government funding is granted, the investigation is likely to begin in late 2025. Photo / NZME
“Early indications from MfE are that this project aligns with the funding criteria,” it said.
The other half would be funded from waste levies, meaning no impact on rates.
Kennedy said the impact of discharges from the landfill on the local environment, including surrounding waterways and wetlands, was central to the investigation.
“Based on regular monitoring, there are no issues that appear to need immediate remediation and water sampling to date has shown levels of contamination are within acceptable levels.
“We will be working with neighbours, local businesses and the wider community on what they want to see happen and what that costs.”
Langford said if the funding application was not successful, officers would “come back to council for a discussion about what we do next”.
A council report at the time said the site had been fenced off from the community for decades, with some perimeter areas leased for commercial and farming use, and others used to store materials, including concrete, green waste, steel, and car bodies.
The landfill and current land uses had an impact on how the land was perceived by the community and on the environment, with open leachate drains and rubbish becoming exposed on the landfill edges during rain events, it said.
Kennedy said if Government funding was granted, the investigation was likely to begin in late 2025.
Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.
