Call for cameras on Waihao River
sites like that and potentially put hazardous substances down the river.’’
Small said the financial burden of protecting the environment from old dump sites like the one on the Waihao River should not fall on the local river rating district.
‘‘ECan or the local district council must have an environmental fund that they can mitigate those old sites that at the time seemed like the right place to put them but, of course, in hind sight it was a totally wrong place to be placing a dump site,’’ he said.
Environment Canterbury Southern Zone manager Chris Eccleston said that dumping waste into rivers was not only irresponsible but illegal.
He said ECan would consider cameras if they thought it would be a practical option.
‘‘We’re talking with Waimate District Council to understand what is happening in the area. We can’t propose solutions until we have the full details of the complaints.’’
Eccleston said ECan could not comment on the effects of the dump site until they had spoken to the Waimate District Council.
‘‘We’ve asked Waimate District Council to find out more information about this and come back to us, so we can discuss this further,’’ he said. He said there was no ‘environmental budget’ available to ECan to help deal with cases such as the old dump site next to the Waihao River.