Commissioners reject oyster farmers call for sewerage review
Bay of Islands oyster farmers closed by pollution are calling for an independent review of sewerage systems in the Far North.
The farmers believe a faulty sewerage plant was the source of a virus that has contaminated their oysters and they blame the Far North District Council.
Bill Guest from Northland Federated Farmers says there have already been two sewage spills in the Bay of Islands this year.
He says the oyster farmers will ask the Northland Regional Council today to back their call for the Ministers for the Environment and Local Government to appoint Commissioners to review every sewerage system controlled by the Far North District Council.
The farmers say repeated spills over the last 16 years, have destroyed 30% of New Zealand's oyster industry.
An estimated 3,000 litres of raw sewage flowed over farmland near the Waitangi River, when a council pipeline failed on Saturday morning, April 8. The Far North District Council said a breakdown in the monitoring of telemetry warning system meant it went undetected for two days. It was the second such failure this year.
Court decision reserved
Previously on March 31; a Judge at the High Court in Auckland reserved her decision on a $12 million compensation case. Twelve Bay of Islands oyster farmers are suing the district council: they claim the council contributed to pollution, which forced the closure of their farms in 2001.
Source: Radio NZ
Council rejects sewerage review call
Far North District Council says it sees no point in an independent review of sewerage systems in the district.
Oyster farmers closed down by pollution in the Bay of Islands are asking Northland Regional Council to back a review by Environmental Commissioners.
But Far North District Council chief executive Clive Manley says the district council already has plans in place to replace aging or inadequate sewerage plants throughout the Far North; and these are already scrutinised by government agencies.
He says the council is receiving good subsidies from the government and has boosted sewerage rates and development contributions to help fund the work.
Mr Manley says the council is moving next week to bring forward an existing plan to replace the Waitangi sewer that has burst twice this year closing beaches, shellfish beds and oyster farms.
Source: Newswire | 
