Tēnā koutou, Welcome to the July edition of the Mount Industrial Community Newsletter. Please read on for updates on the following:
Ziwi resource consent updateZiwi Ltd recently applied to Bay of Plenty Regional Council for a new resource consent in relation to odour associated with pet food manufacturing processes at 18 Boeing Place, Mount Maunganui. Submissions closed on 18 June and Regional Council received123 submissions regarding this application. Twenty-three submitters indicated they would like to be heard at a hearing and council is now in the process of organising this Timaru Oil Services consent updateTimaru Oil Services have withdrawn their consent application for a new jet fuel storage facility on Totara Street in Mount Maunganui. Fresh flora for the Mount industrial areaA environmental enhancement project has been proposed for the Mount Maunganui industrial area. The idea to plant up road verges and unused or industrial site borders was raised by community group Clear the Air at the Mount Maunganui Air Quality Working Party hui held on Friday 28 May. The Working Party is made up of representatives from local business and industry, iwi and hapū of Whareroa, Clear the Air community group, Tauranga City and Bay of Plenty Regional councillors and commissioners, health agencies and special interest groups. The project feasibility is being investigated by councils and industry. Once suitable vacant land has been identified, Regional Council will look to source suitable plant species which could be used to not only beautify streets in the industrial area but also to help reduce dust dispersion and air pollution. Clear the Air representative, Emma Jones, explains its just at the planning stages now but we’ll be looking to involve business and community alike in this project. "Given that the Mount industrial area is a polluted airshed, we need to do more to protect the community from harmful dust and emissions", says Ms Jones. New air quality rulesThe Pollution Hotline provides Bay of Plenty Regional Council with an insight into air quality issues and how the community is being impacted. For the Mount industrial area the majority of calls to the Pollution Hotline are around odour. The network of air monitors spread throughout the Mount industrial area also provide a good insight into air quality. These monitors have confirmed that airborne dust is a significant issue for this area. Since their installation, the monitors have detected a number of exceedances of the maximum limits for the tiny airborne dust particles called particulate matter. This limit is set by the Ministry for the Environment and is included in the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality (NESAQ). This data led to the Mount Maunganui Airshed being established (and deemed polluted upon creation in late 2019). In response to the air quality data, Bay of Plenty Regional Council have decided to strengthen the rules for those activities which discharge particulate matter, specifically PM10 which are the very small particles found in dust and smoke (they have a diameter of 10 micrometres (0.01 mm) or smaller). The Regional Natural Resources Plan sets out the rules for what can be discharged to air within Bay of Plenty. The Plan is being strengthened to address PM10 and odour issues originating from the Mount Maunganui Airshed. To update a Plan, a plan change needs to be carried out. The update being carried out to the Regional Natural Resources Plan, which looks to address PM10 and odour issues in the Mount Maunganui Airshed, is called Plan Change 18 (PC18). Staff are currently working through what these draft changes might look like and will keep the community updated throughout this process. Regional Council will ensure all updates to the Regional Natural Resources Plan incorporate changes to the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality. Image above: Diagram of PM10 in relation to a human hair. Wider Mount industrial PFAS investigationPer- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of over 4,000 man-made chemicals that have been used in manufacturing since the 1950s. They have been and are used in a wide range of manufacturing processes and products due to their desirable chemical properties (water, heat and oil resistance). PFAS substances are persistent in the environment, resistant to environmental degradation and bioaccumulate in living organisms. Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s initial investigation into the presence of PFAS in the Whareroa area is now complete with the final test results showing no PFAS compounds could be detected in the soils at the marae, nearby recreation and residential areas, or in further sampling undertaken in the hangi pit. Regional Council became aware of the presence of PFAS close to Whareroa Marae following the review of a contaminated land assessment which accompanied a resource consent application. This led to a proactive investigation of the area surrounding the marae. Summary of exceedancesIn the last three months we’ve detected three exceedances of the National Environmental Standards for PM10. A summary of these are noted below: 5/05/2021 Rail Yard South 52µg/m³ 9/06/2021 Rata Street 58µg/m³ 10/06/2021 Rata Street 53µg/m³ The exceedances detected on 9/06 and 10/06 at the Rata Street monitoring location were recorded during a time of dense sea fog covering the northern areas of Mt Maunganui. This fog was laden with dissolved sea-salt as a result of very turbulent surf which occurred over several days. Early investigations indicate the naturally occurring dissolved salt was responsible for the elevated levels of particulate detected in our monitors. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Click subscribe to receive the next edition straight to your inbox. |