DOC not cleaning toilets in lockdown

‘‘The issue is they’ve just left their facilities and walked away, putting the public at risk.’’

Celia Butler

Golden Bay ward councillor

The Department of Conservation has no plans to clean its toilet facilities during the coronavirus lockdown, but one Golden Bay councillor thinks that’s unwise.

Golden Bay ward councillor Celia Butler is calling out DOC for stepping away from its toilet cleaning duties.

Butler is concerned that DOC toilets at popular spots in Golden Bay, such as Paynes Ford, Te Waikoropupu¯ Springs and the Grove, have been left open and aren’t being maintained or cleaned.

People might visit these areas and need to use the toilet, she said.

Some members of the public were still out and about taking walks, and others were flouting lockdown rules. For example, a dozen rock climbers have been seen defying the rules over the past week at the popular Paynes Ford crag, where a DOC toilet is located.

‘‘DOC places constitute a huge area of our district and they’ve got a lot facilities in these places which are reasonably easy to access,’’ she said.

‘‘The issue is they’ve just left their facilities and walked away, putting the public at risk. The [Tasman District] council is going to great trouble to clean their toilets everyday very well. I think DOC should too.’’

She was also concerned that DOC was not checking their road end huts, in the event people were staying in them.

However, DOC Golden Bay operations manager Dave Winterburn said people should be taking personal responsibility when visiting DOC areas.

He confirmed that its facilities, including toilets, were not being maintained or cleaned by rangers during the lockdown.

People could still use DOC toilets where unavoidable – rather than going outdoors – but they needed to take responsibility for their own hygiene.

‘‘They might need to bring their own personal hygiene products such as paper and sanitiser,’’ he said.

‘‘We encourage anyone using tracks close to home to plan ahead and use their toilets at home before they head out.’’

All DOC staff in Golden Bay and around the country were now working from home and it was police’s responsibility to monitor and deal with any compliance issues.

It was not DOC’s role to enforce compliance around self-isolation rules, Winterburn said.

Winterburn also confirmed DOC were not checking road end huts, nor have they asked police to check them.

‘‘We received information that people might be staying in Awaroa Hut and a staff member who lives close-by checked and saw no sign of anyone staying or having stayed at this hut.’’

DOC facilities and offices were closed, and tracks and national parks are not to be visited unless they are right by people’s homes.