Decommissioning a problematic Porirua landfill could consume most of the city’s waste budget over the next decade, including $1 million a year on maintenance.
By Justin Wong of Local Democracy Reporting
Indicative figures presented to Porirua City Council at a workshop last week show officials plan to allocate $30m to the waste budget in the next 10-year long-term plan – more than what was set aside for roading and local parks.
Almost all of that funding was earmarked for closing Spicer Landfill on Broken Hill Rd.
The landfill's resource consent expires in June 2030, the council concluding efforts to extend it would likely fail because of odour issues affecting nearby Tawa residents.
In May, councillors decided to replace the landfill with a refuse transfer station to collect rubbish from public vehicles and transport it elsewhere.
Council corporate services general manager Jim Tocher said $19.5m of the coming decade's waste budget related to building the transfer station, and $10m to managing the land once the landfill closed.
"These numbers are indicative and based on the current preferred model which is to be consulted on in 2027," Tocher said.
Even after closing, landfill owners must continue managing and monitoring the land for a minimum of 30 years, according to guidelines from the former Ministry for the Environment.
A closed landfill posed physical hazards including landfill gases, contaminated soils and leachate – a concentrated pollutant liquid produced by rain or surface water running through degrading waste.
Closed landfills also carried landslide risks, and the uneven, sinking ground made it difficult to build new structures on the site.
Currently, the number 4 and 5 fields of Porirua Park were built on top of the former Sievers Gr landfill that closed in 1976.
Councillors were also weighing potential big-ticket projects that could go out for consultation, but none would proceed without a business case.
"No decisions have been made yet as to which, if any, projects will be included in that consultation and long-term plan process," Tocher said.
On the list was a new spectator stand at Porirua Park, alongside the Jerry Collins Stadium.
A region-wide sports plan last year said there might be a need to consider a mid-sized stadium, and minor upgrades to Porirua Park would be more affordable than building one from scratch.
Other budget bids included topping up funding for minor safety works and a pedestrian bridge between Papakowhai and Paremata.
Building a 1.4-km shared walking and cycling lane along Tītahi Bay Rd between Wi Neera Dr and Onepoto had also been pitched, as well as strengthening the eroding coastline along Tītahi Bay Rd – a project that already passed the planning stage but subsequently stalled after the Government wouldn't contribute any money.
A spokesperson from the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi said in September 2024 that the project could be considered for government funding again in 2027 if it was included in the council’s long-term plan.
– Local Democracy Reporting (LDR) is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
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