Meth revelation came too late for this family
A young family who spent more than
$100,000 doing up their meth-condemned rental before selling it say they won’t be able to buy again for years.
To make matters worse, Jamie McCracken sold the Blenheim house for ‘‘well under market value’’ weeks before a bombshell report that downplayed the risk of meth-smoking residue to humans.
The house’s contamination was
10.8 micrograms per 100cm2, well above the assumed safe standard of 1.5 micrograms per 100cm2.
But the new report said a measure of 15 micrograms per 100cm2 – 10 times higher – would make more sense.
‘‘I would love compensation, but realistically . . . The Government has come out and said that there was no legal requirement to clean it,’’ McCracken said.
‘‘I would really like clarity. At the moment it’s one guy saying this and another saying that. It needs clarity.’’
The McCrackens, now renting in Canterbury, said they wouldn’t be able to buy a house for years.
‘‘We lost so much money on this one. We’ve just got to try and put it behind us and move on.’’
Methclean, a Wellington meth testing company, did the initial testing, McCracken said.
‘‘We had to get it done. It’s part of insurance for a rental,’’ he said. ‘‘They put the fear of God in us.
‘‘Are you sitting down?’ was the first thing they asked on the phone.
‘‘We thought it was really bad. They told us we needed to inform the council. We really should have kept it quiet, I think that’s what a lot of people do.’’
They decided to get a second company to test the house, Blenheim business ZeroStone Investigations.
Former police officer and owner of ZeroStone Investigations Mike Lawson found methamphetamine traces.
‘‘I treat most properties as having been smoked in, not having been manufactured in,’’ he said.
Lawson said his report was in line with New Zealand standards and also included links to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment report and the Gluckman report that allowed the higher levels.
‘‘We’re happy to test to whichever standard is set by the legislature, it would be nice to have something concrete,’’ Lawson said.
‘‘You’ve got to put your faith in the scientists that come up with the standards and abide by their results and what they say.’’
It was unlikely the McCracken house was used as a meth lab, and current testing practices did not test for any other toxic chemicals involved in the manufacturing process.
McCracken said the highest contamination level in a room was 4.5 micrograms per 100cm2. The 10.8 microgram per 100cm2 level was for all rooms combined.
The Marlborough District Council issued a repair notice to decontaminate the property in February 2016.
A closing order requiring the property to be immediately vacated was issued the following month, as the repair notice had not been complied with.
Reports of meth contamination stay on LIM reports despite the new, higher standard. The game may be up for fare dodgers across the country when newly warranted officers start issuing fines for the first time.
Legislation that comes into force next week will allow public transport authorities throughout the country to issue $150 fines to passengers who don’t carry tickets.
The Land Transport Amendment Act was passed into law in May and allows public transport authorities to fine fare dodgers through officers warranted by police.
The officers could currently ask to see a passenger’s ticket but could only ask them to leave at the next stop.
Auckland Transport (AT), for example, planned to install more electronic gates at stations so passengers had to buy a ticket or tag on before they got onto the platform.
Once completed, more than 90 per cent of passengers will have to go through an electronic gate, Ireland said. Fare evasion resulted in $2 to $3 million a year in lost ticket sales, said AT spokesman James Ireland.
AT compliance manager Logan Christian said the change would make things ‘‘fair for everyone who uses public transport’’.
‘‘There really is no excuse not to pay your fair share,’’ Christian said.
AT would concentrate on implementing this fine on trains initially before rolling it out to buses and ferries, he said.
‘‘It’s about compliance.’’
The role of transport officer was announced in 2017. It was created in response to increased rail patronage, to boost passenger safety and to better enforce fare payment. The legislation comes into force next Monday.