No reprieve for high-pollution towns

Residents in Otago's high-pollution towns such as Alexandra, Arrowtown and Milton will not get a deferment from tight deadlines to improve their towns' air quality despite a Government announcement loosening the timeframes.

Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith announced a new clean-air plan on Saturday which gives regional councils more time to ensure their communities meet air-quality standards, in an effort to pace the changes to minimise their economic impact and maximise the health benefits.

Since 2004, regional councils have been working towards ensuring their towns meet the national standard of not more than one exceedance a year from 2013.

"Fifteen airsheds including Auckland, Christchurch and many provincial centres covering 40% of our population are unlikely to comply by the 2013 deadline," Dr Smith said.

Now, towns with moderate air pollution, less than 10 exceedances, have until 2016, and towns with high air pollution, more than 10 exceedances, have until 2020 to meet the standard but need to get below three by 2016.

In Otago, Balclutha, Dunedin and Mosgiel are in the first category, and Alexandra, Arrowtown, Cromwell, Clyde and Milton in the latter.

Otago regional councillor Gretchen Robertson, the chairwoman of the natural resources committee, said the changes were not unexpected and at this stage the council would not be extending the deadlines already set in its air plan.

"We have a plan in place with targets of 2013 and we are making good progress towards that."The council had also invested heavily in the Clean Air, Clean Heat programme to get homes in worst-affected areas insulated and installing clean-heat appliances, she said.

Otago Regional Council chief executive Graeme Martin said the council took the previous government, which set the national standard, at "face value" and set up an air plan change for the region to meet those standards.

"It would cost quite a bit of money to change that. We've got the momentum for change; if we stop now it'll be very hard to re-start that momentum."

The council had discussed the issue when the changes were first proposed and decided it was probably "not worth the money to alter the existing plan", Mr Martin said.

However, the council would need to look at the implications of the changes on compliance and how it would effect people breaching the standards.

"The Government has loosened things up without it changing our air plan."

The new air plan was also amended so exceptional events such as volcanic eruption, bush fires and Australian dust storms were removed from the count of exceedance events.

Last year, Mosgiel and Dunedin's air quality was affected by the Mt Allan fire.

NZPA reported Labour's environment spokesman Charles Chauvel said putting off the deadline for air quality standards would be fatal for hundreds of New Zealanders who could have been saved from respiratory failure by the proper implementation of the new standards.

It would also strain the health system and cost the economy more than one million sick days.

rebecca.fox@odt.co.nz

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