Mataura's hazardous substance won't be moved during lockdown

Monday, 30 March 2020

Environment Minister David Parker expects to continue talks with Rio Tinto about the removal of a hazardous substance from Mataura.

Trucks will not be rolling into Mataura to remove ouvea premix from the town's paper mill during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Environment Minister David Parker said the Government and councils were focused on responding to Covid-19 and ensuring essential services were provided.

About 9500 tonnes of ouvea premix is being stored at the Mataura Papermill buildings. Flooding in February was close to the Premix which releases toxic gases when wet.

'The clean up of the Mataura paper mill site is important, but it simply cannot be advanced at the moment.'

Sort Out The Dross spokesperson Laurel Turnbull said it was understandable given the situation and she hoped the removal was stepped up once things were back to normal again.

Parker said progress on talks to speed up the removal of the premix, which is a class 6 hazardous substance, would be worked through in coming weeks.

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'We are willing to continue with those talks.'

Rio Tinto have been approached for comment.

About 9500 tonnes of ouvea premix, which releases ammonia gas if wet, is in the old paper mill building directly beside the Mataura River, which flooded in February.

After the flood, a deal was struck to fast-track the removal of the premix from Mataura, but Rio Tinto pulled out of the deal.

Under a deal signed in 2018, one truck and trailer load of ouvea premix a week has been removed from the mill and taken to Tiwai Point for processing by Inalco.

It was left in warehouses in Southland after Taha Asia Pacific, which was storing the substance without resource consent at Mataura and Awarua, went into liquidation in 2016.