Environment Minister wants answers about Tiwai site
Tuesday, 23 February 2021
Environment Minister David Parker wants to find out what the state of the groundwater or soil is under the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter site, saying the Government is funding Environment Southland to employ people to do site investigations.
“So they have right of compulsory entry onto the site and I've asked them to go on,” he said.
“I think one of the most obvious things to do is to drill a hole in the ground underneath the areas that the smelters have been running on for decades and see what the state of the ground contamination is.”
The smelter is due to close in four years time and Parker wants to know what the state of the smelter site is.
**READ MORE:
* Smelter queried over hazardous waste stockpiled near beach
* Tiwai aluminium smelter to stay open until end of 2024
* Smelter rehabilitation costs may not be known for at least a year
**
His understanding of the situation was poor because the quality of information the Government had received to date had been poor, he said.
The Government’s relationship with Rio Tinto was unsatisfactory, he said.
The company was promising the Government results of its closure study but he was not prepared to wait “because we haven't had any undertakings from them other than the most general'.
New Zealand Aluminium Smelters [NZAS] has set aside $298m as a provision in its accounts for the closure and rehabilitation of its Tiwai plant – but the real cost is unknown as this is an accounting estimate only.
An NZAS spokeswoman said it was committed to working with the Government, its officials and local regulators in a collaborative way.
“While we are conducting extensive testing at site as part of our closure study, we welcome regulators on site to conduct any additional testing they deem necessary.
“We are very happy to discuss this with the Minister for the Environment and would welcome another visit from him and his officials to our operation.”
Radio New Zealand has reported the smelter company will not reveal its plans for more than 100,000 tonnes of hazardous waste SCL [spent cell liner waste], despite international industry guidelines it has signed up to that say it should.
The cyanide-laced waste is stockpiled on a concrete pad the size of about two football fields, one kilometre east of the main Tiwai plant and 85 metres from the south facing beach next to Foveaux Strait, which is eroding, RNZ reports.
An NZAS spokeswoman said coastal erosion at the site was subject of stringent monitoring by its environment team and it was confident the SCL was stored in a responsible manner and that its monitoring processes provided ample time to act should the material need to be moved.
“We have offered to discuss this process with Minister Parker.”
NZAS [New Zealand Aluminium Smelter] was in the early stages of conducting a detailed closure study of the site at Tiwai.
The aim of the work, which included the expertise of independent closure and rehabilitation experts, was to understand any environmental impacts from its activities, and ensure the site was left in a condition which was compatible with subsequent land uses when its operations closed.
“Our team at Tiwai operate the site responsibly and with great regard to our local environment,” the spokeswoman said.
Parker said he wanted to find out what the state of the Tiwai smelter site was before deciding what to do next.
'I think that Rio Tinto directors around the world will pay attention to whether they're meeting their promises on the website on environmental responsibility.
'It's hard for me to properly drill into that when we haven't drilled into the site.'
Deputy prime minister Grant Robertson has previously said the Government doesn’t want a “toxic waste site” when Rio Tinto closes its aluminium smelter at Tiwai Point.