Westland not Wasteland, residents say

A group of Hokitika residents are fighting a proposed waste-toenergy plant near their town.

Renew Energy wants to build a waste-to-energy plant in Hokitika by 2022, which would burn

1000 tonnes of rubbish every day to create 28 megawatts of power and 410,000MW of thermal energy. It would also create up to

60 direct jobs and 150 for construction.

Westland not Wasteland spokesman Mark MellsopMelssen said the group’s aim was to stop the transport of waste to Westland for incineration.

He was so ‘‘fired up’’ after a July 25 public meeting, held by Renew Energy and opened by Westland mayor Bruce Smith, that he wanted to do all he could to fight the proposal.

‘‘We were quite shocked with the lack of accurate information that was available. It was basically a marketing exercise.’’

Mellsop-Melssen said Westland should not commit to importing waste for 30 years, leaving 300,000 tonnes of toxic fly ash to be dealt with.

Renew Energy seemed to be promising low emissions, employment and energy production, without any commercial agreements or consents in place, he said.

‘‘I’ve been in business and it makes no sense economically, logistically or environmentally.

‘‘You don’t need to be a genius to see through this one.’’

The group had a core committee of about 15 and had formed an incorporated society. It had concerns about the logistics of carting waste from all over New Zealand to Hokitika; the economic viability of a plant on the West Coast; and the environmental impact.

Mellsop-Melssen said the group had been doing research and planned to present its findings on the downsides of waste-to-energy plants to the public at a meeting at Hokitika’s Regent Theatre on Monday.

‘‘We want to show our current mayor and this company that there is a huge body of opposition to what they are proposing in the community.’’ The group would gather signatures for a petition and seek paid memberships to raise money to fight the proposal.

Renew Energy director Kevin Stratful told the July 25 meeting the plant would burn about 1000 tonnes of rubbish every day and would cost $260 million to build with the help of an international partner. He declined to reveal who the partner was because talks were still in progress.

Stratful expected the company to apply for resource consent in mid-2020 and commission the plant in 2022.