‘Noxious’ acts fouled water
A landowner has been ordered to clean up his act after contaminating neighbours’ water supplies and burying tyres and vineyard posts at a Marlborough property.
Marlborough District Council applied to the Environment Court for orders to be made against Mike Howard Gifford who owns CRB Transport and Greenfuel Logistics.
Council said Gifford broke rules when he ‘‘placed, stored and buried’’ materials on his property at Seventeen Valley, south of Blenheim.
The actions were ‘‘noxious, dangerous’’ and ‘‘offensive’’ causing adverse effects on the environment including his own property, adjoining properties and downstream connected waterways.
He contravened management plans by discharging leachate to land, constructing tracks without permission, undertaking activities in the bed of a stream, and failing to comply with consents.
The Environment Court decision, released on January 16, said Gifford and council reached an agreement, and the orders were issued by consent. The orders apply to property in Redwood Valley, Riverlands and Redwood Pass.
The court decision follows an investigation by council officers, who found unauthorised waste dumping at the 85-hectare site owned by Gifford at Seventeen Valley. The site is traversed by the Puka Puka Stream.
One of the orders made, was to provide a family on a neighbouring property with a temporary source of drinking water.
He was required to install a tank, connect it to the house and deliver water to the tank, to ensure the family had ‘‘security of water’’.
Within three months of the order, Gifford needed to organise and pay for a connection to a community or council water scheme to provide them with drinking water.
If that was not available, he was required to hire an expert in water supply and contamination to come up with a plan to provide the family with water.
The court ordered Gifford to create a riparian planting plan for the edge of Puka Puka Stream. He has until July 1 to advise council’s compliance manager that the plan has been implemented. This will be followed with an inspection.
In relation to buried organic waste, he was ordered to hire a waste management expert to undertake a soil testing programme, as well as a surface and ground water testing programme.
Following this, Gifford must undertake a detailed investigation into the extent of buried waste and follow it up with a remediation plan.
Regarding tyres, treated timber and other quarry waste, Gifford has to make a plan setting out proposed erosion and sediment control measures to contain runoff, and once the plan has been approved, enact the measures.
By July 1, Gifford has to ensure ‘‘areas containing asbestos stockpiles’’ are excavated and removed.
He has also been ordered to fix compost operations by removing all composting material and advise council whether further remediation works are required.