Council taken to tribunal for rotten stench

CHRISTCHURCH: A Bromley woman is taking Christchurch City Council to the Disputes Tribunal after it refused to pay for air purifiers she bought to cope with the stench from the burntout wastewater treatment plant.

Vickie Walker said her claim for $695 would be heard on August 26, following months of exposure to sulphurous gases that caused headaches and nausea on top of dealing with a Covid19 infection.

‘‘That smell and being unwell at the same time, it was a really tough, low time for me.

‘‘It was stinking in my house, I was in isolation, I couldn’t go out — it was absolutely disgusting,’’ she said.

Ms Walker owns two air purifiers bought since the rotten stench emerged earlier this year, which also helped her manage the smell while isolating in a different part of the house to her husband.

A council staff member turned down her request for reimbursement because they were worried about the precedent it might set, Ms

Walker said, which left her feeling belittled.

‘‘This is our health, our life and we deserve to have fresh air, not other people’s poo in our property,’’ she said.

The council said it had not been notified of any other claims.

More than 2600 households within a set zone have received oneoff council payments of $200 to help them deal with the stench, but the offer came to an end on Friday because demand has tapered off.

Outofzone applicants can still make a claim until August 31.

Earlier this month, the council approved a further $180,000 to provide more support for schools and child care centres, and targeted help for people struggling the most.

People suffering from nausea, headaches and disrupted sleep have been concerned about longterm exposure to gases coming from the plant.

While there was evidence people were suffering physically and mentally from the foul smell, Canterbury’s medical officer of health Cheryl Brunton previously said longterm problems were extraordinarily unlikely at the hydrogen sulphide concentrations recorded in air quality monitoring.

An independent examination of dark stains on people’s homes found the discolouration was likely the result of a reaction between hydrogen sulphide and leadbased house paint.

The council has told homeowners the stains are likely to be temporary and should gradually fade as daylight hours lengthen and the health of the oxidation ponds improves.

Staff have been asked to report back on options to provide a free house cleaning service for affected properties and assess internal property damage from the odour.

Contractors finished emptying the plant’s two firedamaged trickling filters a month ahead of schedule on Tuesday.

While the smell from the oxidation ponds has improved, people are still troubled by the foul odour at times.