'Thank goodness': Landfill clean-up welcomed by residents

Residents' associations are relieved a contaminated landfill site in Christchurch is finally being cleaned up.

“Thank goodness” was the response from New Brighton Residents Association chairwoman Celeste Donovan when she heard Christchurch City Council had come up with a plan to prevent the old Bexley dump from continuing to spill waste into the Avon-Heathcote Estuary.

The council will spend $1.5 million to try and contain the rubbish that Donovan said residents have been complaining about for years.

“They are worried about the items floating in the estuary and water leaching out from the old dump.

“Most of the rubbish has remained on the shore on the other side of the estuary where the public are excluded, but they would be shocked at some of the stuff embedded in the shoreline mud there.”

• Plans to restore old landfill sites

Donovan said 30 years of rubbish dumped in Bexley was always going to come back and haunt the community one day as the tidal changes created by the quakes have had a part to play in exposing debris still years away from breaking down, and “there is some pretty environmentally-nasty stuff buried there.”

“Coastal residents, particularly along Southshore and South New Brighton, will be pleased gravel and rocks will be used to bulk up the edge and the creation of a natural beach will help.

“But we believe that is only a temporary fix and a more permanent solution needs to be found as climate change will no doubt have a future impact,” Donovan said.

City council resource recovery manager Ross Trotter said work has started and a contractor has been appointed to do initial work at the closed Bexley landfill.

“It involves clearing undergrowth to prevent birds from land-nesting prior to the start of the nesting season and felling trees to give machinery access to the foreshore.”

South Brighton Residents’ Association chairman Hugo Kristinsson said it has been a significant relief to see the work starting.

“It’s been a problem for years and now they are finally fixing the mistakes of the past, we are fully supportive of the council and it’s good to see them start,” he said.

The city council remediation plan also includes the Burwood Resource Recovery Park.

The park was established to take construction and demolition waste following the earthquakes but is now being progressively closed with a view to returning it to a recreational area.

Just one area is still accepting contaminated soils.

“Council has made an application for resource consent allowing for low-level contaminated soils at Burwood Site C until June 30, 2024,” Trotter said.

Final landscaping work on another three sites within the park is continuing.

The city council will spend another $1 million removing the former Le Bons Bay landfill on Banks Peninsula and work is planned to fix former landfills at Onuku and Barrys Bay later this year.