Russell resorts to civil disobedience

Relevant offers

Bay Chronicle

Batman carries tribute A day in the Hokianga Compromise rules at Waitangi Day Help Bob get his operation Air Force joins celebrations Getting ahead with grants Templemans join grieving parents' campaign Murphy sparks a callout One-way traffic Railway concert will happen rain or shine

So strong is opposition to council use of the Russell landfill that citizens turned out in protest at 7am on Monday morning at the local tip, at the gateway to the historic village.

Objecting to a move by the Far North District Council to truck in unsorted district waste to add to Russell’s domestic refuse, the Russell Protection Society warned recently that the community would not stand by and accept the dumping.

Protesters and their vehicles blocked the entry to the dump, 7km along Russell Rd, raising placards to meet two loaded truck and trailer units that arrived at about 7.30am.

Both vehicles ended up making their way out of town with their loads to hoots and cheers from those who had stood their ground.

"It’s not just another ‘not in my backyard’ issue. We think it’s common sense to object to this crazy plan. The extraordinary waste and its seepage will further pollute our Bay and our little dump, which we pay to use. It has a limited life even if we just use it for our own rubbish," says Russell Protection Society chairman Bob Drey.

"So once our tip is filled we’ll be forced to ship our rubbish elsewhere. How’s that for effective refuse management?", says resident Kiki Nicholson.

Mr Drey says they were assured that all deliveries of waste would be cancelled until a meeting with
the council on Friday.

"The people of Russell are resolved to make that cancellation permanent," he says.

District council spokeswoman Alison Lees says the council’s plans to dump southern area waste at the landfill on a temporary basis are in accordance with its long-term community plan and its resource consent for the site.

Only two articulated trucks of waste will be dumped at the landfill each day – excluding Sundays – and only between the hours of 7.30am and 3.30pm.

The council will stop sending waste to the landfill when it obtains a resource consent to reopen its Whangae landfill.

This could be in about three months if the Northland Regional Council decides not to publicly notify the application or nine months if it allows the public to make submissions.

Ms Lees says no toxic or hazardous waste will be sent to the Russell landfill and increasing the volume of waste dumped at the landfill for a few months will not pollute the environment.

"The regional council has confirmed that what is proposed is within the terms of the current resource consent."

Disposing of southern area waste at Russell on a temporary basis will save the district $300,000, money that can be spent on infrastructure or used to ease demand on rates revenue, she says.

- © Fairfax NZ News