Northland toxic chemical stockpile to be cleared at ratepayer, taxpayer expense
Friday, 21 August 2020
A Northland toxic chemical stockpile, at risk of catastrophic explosion or fire, will have a multi-million dollar clean-up at the expense of ratepayers and taxpayers.
The site in Ruakaka, south of Whangārei, has up to one million litres of solvents and hazardous waste haphazardly stored in deteriorating and ageing containers.
The chemicals are mostly solvents and paints and there is no indication that fertiliser or ammonium nitrate – the chemical that caused the deadly Beirut explosion – are stored there, the Whangārei District Council said.
However, the site has been deemed a significant environmental risk through groundwater contamination or catastrophic explosion or fire, according to the Environment Court.
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* The property stocked with 1 million litres of toxic chemicals
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Such an explosion could endanger lives and affect the Marsden Point oil refinery's main fuel pipeline to Auckland, which was damaged in 2017, causing a jet fuel shortage which cancelled more than 100 flights.
The site is owned by Sustainable Solvents Group and has been used to treat and recycle industrial solvents since 2009.
But non-compliance dates back to 2015, with Sustainable Solvents and Solvent Services NZ adding chemicals to the stockpile which is now 20 times greater than what was consented.
The court-ordered clean-up has been contracted to specialist waste management company InterGroup and work on the site will begin in the next four to six weeks.
The company will assess the hazardous chemicals, repackage them, and safely move them to a disposal or recycling facility, Whangārei District Council infrastructure group manager Simon Weston said.
Initial costs will be funded by the district council, Northland Regional Council, the Ministry for the Environment, Environmental Protection Authority and WorkSafe.
Efforts will be made to recover costs from the owners and operators, Weston said.
“While commercial sensitivity prevents us from publicly discussing costs, we can say that the clean-up will be a very expensive process.
“It will be a lengthy and complicated project requiring a very secure site and strict safety procedures.”
Weston estimated the costs to be $3 million in an affidavit to the Environment Court.
Weston said some of the operators had attempted a legal bid to prevent the council from stepping in and cleaning up the facility, but had been unsuccessful.
CLEAN-UP FOLLOWS STRICT SAFETY PROCEDURES
The solvents and hazardous chemicals will be recycled or disposed of at properly licensed facilities in New Zealand and Australia, Weston said.
Contaminated stormwater will be removed in bulk container trucks for treatment and disposal at InterGroup’s facility in Auckland, but no other solvents or waste will be transported there.
All substances, including each container, will be tracked to confirm they are properly managed, transported to the correct facility and finally disposed of.
The clean-up comes after the Environment Court ruled the site should be cleared by Sustainable Solvents Group, Sustainable Solvents and Solvent Services NZ, plus their directors Brian Smith, John Pretorius and Aaron Baldwin.
But because these parties did not meet the required milestones, Whangārei District Council was given the right to do the required work and recover the costs.
Weston said authorities tried to get the owners and operators to clean up the site and operate within the conditions of their resource consent for several years, before seeking the court order.
Stuff has contacted Brian Smith, Sustainable Solvents, Solvent Services NZ and John Pretorius for comment.