‘We want it gone’

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says something must be done to help Mataura residents as they battle with the dangerous substance ouvea premix in their town.

Evacuated Mataura residents have had the longest wait to get back home because of the concern of floodwaters around the building that contains the premix. And, they are angry at local government for not sorting out the tonnes of premix stored in a paper mill.

In a statement, Jacinda Ardern says she is seeking advice on what can be done with the premix.

‘‘... clearly there needs to be a long-term solution found for the residents of Mataura.’’

Some angry Mataura residents are demanding 10,000 tonnes of dangerous ouvea premix be removed from a building in their town as flooding in the district brings the issue to a head.

The ouvea premix, which releases ammonia gas if wet, is in the old paper mill building directly beside the flooded Mataura River.

The Gore District Council released a statement yesterday afternoon saying ‘‘assessments this morning of the ouvea premix stored in the former Mataura paper mill found it has not been affected by floodwaters.’’

An inspection by council staff and Fire and Emergency NZ was carried out. As well as finding no floodwaters had entered the building, it was determined the mill was structurally sound.

However, after Southland District Mayor Gary Tong said he categorically denied there had been any ammonia leaks inside the paper mill on Wednesday, the Gore District

‘‘We are all just so frustrated, everyone's just really angry.'' Laurel Turnbull

Council confirmed there in fact had.

Gore District Council mayor Tracy Hicks said ammonia levels were recorded at six parts per million inside the former mill building on Wednesday morning.

‘‘The ammonia leaks inside were quite low. The resource consent says that no more than five parts per million minimum on the outside of the property are to be exceeded, but readings on the outside of the property were about one and a half per million.’’

Council chief executive Steve Parry said a monitor inside the building that measures the level of ammonia in the air had turned off when the power was turned off at 8am.

On Wednesday, a volunteer who had been sandbagging inside the Mataura paper mill contacted Stuff and said he had been driven out by ammonia gas in the building about 1pm.

Yesterday, another source contacted Stuff to verify those events, and said a bag of premix had been split open inside the building.

When asked about that, Hicks said he did not know.

Gore District Council civil defence controller Ian Davidson-Watts said: ‘‘We’re assured by the scientific readings associated with the ammonia and the water levels that were inspected this morning, again [the water level inside the building] mainly comes from the rain and not so much the flooding, that those flood defences they initiated yesterday obviously had some positive effect.’’

Yesterday, when Tong was asked if he still categorically denied there had been no ammonia leaks he said: ‘‘My understanding is that when they went in and did tests yesterday morning, the readings were of such a low level that you could get it off a sparrow’s faeces.’’

When told that two people had come forward to say they had been driven from the building by ammonia he suggested: ‘‘if those people have been affected by such negligible levels they need to go and see their doctor.’’

‘‘Clearly there needs to be a long term solution found for the residents of Mataura.'' Jacinda Ardern

He also suggested they make a complaint to WorkSafe.

‘‘This has caused a lot of angst in the community. I stand by my statements.’’

The Gore District Council says it is now entering ‘‘high-level talks’’ to get the premix removed and chief executive Steve Parry is leaving the district for a few hours on Friday to discuss the issues but he declined to say who with.

Sort Out the Dross action group spokeswoman Laurel Turnbull said Mataura residents had had ‘‘more than a gutsful’ of the premix being in their town directly beside the river.

It was the second time in two years a high-flowing Mataura River was deemed a threat to the ouvea premix in the building, she said.

Though authorities had put a plan in place to remove the premix from the building over time it was not fast enough, she said.

‘‘We want it gone now ... we are all just so frustrated, everyone’s just really angry.’’

She called on the Government to take immediate action.

On Wednesday, Government minister Damien O’Connor said he had talked with Environment Minister David Parker and Southland District Mayor Gary Tong about the ouvea premix in the building.

‘‘Clearly we have to address this issue.’’

Turnbull said that she had lived in Mataura all her life and knew the dangers the ouvea premix posed by being so close to the river.

‘‘That old building, [paper mill] there are cracks everywhere, and once it gets in, it’s curtains really.’’