The company behind Greymouth’s controversial Taylorville landfill has responded publicly for the first time to community concerns about its safety.
The private dump takes demolition and building waste from around the South Island and has been under the spotlight repeatedly since 2020, problems ranging from noise and smell, to workplace injury and fears it will contaminate the town’s water supply.
Most recently, the company was ordered by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to empty an unlined settlement pond which was leaching contaminated water and build a new one with a lining.
In a supplied statement a spokesperson for Taylorville Resource Park said that the company had faced "challenges" but had now addressed them.
"We want to assure the community and our community partners that we are absolutely committed to the safe and responsible operation of the facility."
Greymouth Mayor Tania Gibson has called the landfill — built above the town water supply intake — "a disaster waiting to happen" in a landslip or earthquake.
The council had taken the precautionary step of paying for additional water testing to protect the community, she said.
But Taylorville Resource Park Ltd said it wanted to reassure the public its operations were not affecting Greymouth’s public water supply.
"The site is located downstream of the council’s intake ... We have in recent months been investing heavily in the site and working with geotechnical and environmental experts to conduct further and comprehensive analysis from which we intend to share the key findings in due course," it said.
The landfill was originally set up to dispose of demolition waste from the old Grey Hospital and was owned and operated by families with strong West Coast connections, the spokesperson said.
"Its existence continues to provide not only a vital service but also supports the local economy, utilising local suppliers and service providers."
The company intended to make the landfill the best it could be with as little impact on the environment, its neighbours and the community as possible, and would be engaging more with "stakeholders" in future, it said.
The Greymouth mayor said the company’s statement was clearly a belated public relations effort but was a hopeful sign.
"It’s a welcome change from the brick walls and lawyers’ letters we’ve had in the past. We’ve also been contacted by one of their directors, who wants to meet us."
But the dump should never have been granted consent by the West Coast Regional Council without consulting the Grey District Council, mana whenua and neighbours as affected parties, and the Minister for the Environment had been asked to investigate, she said.
"We’re now having to factor in the cost of additional water testing in our long-term plan and that’s a cost our ratepayers should not have to bear."
Grey District Council operations manager Aaron Haymes said council’s priority was to secure the safety of its public water supply through engineering and scientific investigation and data.
"To date we have only seen assumptions that have been made about the potential effects of the landfill on the district water supply. The investigations that should have occurred for that landfill activity prior to its establishment did not occur."
The assumption the risk was low because the intakes were located upstream could be wrong because the landfill site was higher than the intakes and other factors also influenced groundwater flows, Mr Haymes said.
"Keeping in mind that our water supply has an indefinite life and needs to serve future generations, our concerns also relate to the long-term effects of the landfill including how it will be managed once it’s full and returned to farmland."
He was working closely with senior managers at the West Coast Regional Council, and once the report from engineering consultants was available, they would meet to discuss the risks and how to manage them.
"At this stage I’m not sure if it will provide us the assurance we are seeking, but it is a good start."
• Local Democracy Reporting is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
By Lois Williams
