A New Zealand mayor has been forced to clarify that residents do not need to “stop pooing”, as a local council near Wellington struggles with worsening odour from a sewage plant that has left locals gagging and unable to open windows.
On Tuesday, Wellington Water, which manages the Seaview wastewater treatment plant, said it was continuing to address the odour management issue that has plagued Lower Hutt – a city in the Wellington region – in recent months.
“We acknowledge the odour levels have been unpleasant, inconvenient, and distressful for the community,” Wellington Water said in a statement.
During a meeting of the local Hutt city council last month, mayor Campbell Barry questioned if something could be done to reduce the smell ahead of a music festival, Juicy Fest, in early January. Thousands of attenders are expected to descend on a local park where artists, including Ashanti and T-Pain, are set to perform.
A council official told Barry residents could “stop pooing”.
However on Tuesday, Barry said the official’s comments were “made in jest”, with no such advice issued.
Barry said a potential increase in sewage contributions linked with the upcoming Juicy Fest “would not make a difference to the odour issue”.
Wellington Water and the company it contracted to manage the plant, Veolia New Zealand, have each been slapped with NZ$22,750 (A$21,000) in fines for discharging offensive and objectionable odour beyond the boundary of the plant, Stuff.co.nz reported. Local councils have also been fined thousands.
Works are now under way to replace the plant’s biofilters, with deodorising chemical dispersing machines in operation to improve the air in the interim.
Wellington Water said initial works are on track to be completed towards the end of January, while $13m NZD will be invested in longer term improvements over the next three years.
In the meantime, residents have reportedly been told to expect the stench to worsen.
In response to the stench, irate residents have formed a group, “Stop the Stench” urging local leaders to act.
Members of Stop the Stench’s Facebook group spoke of relocating their Christmas celebrations to homes outside Lower Hutt.
“Decided today that can’t take the risk of it stinking like this, it’s bad enough that we have to put up with it, don’t want guests gagging on their food on Xmas day,” one member wrote.
Other locals have complained the odour has caused children to have trouble concentrating at school, while one local business owner reportedly said staff aren’t eating lunch as a result.
“Sometimes I’ve felt close to vomiting. You can’t escape when it’s in your home. It gets hot, but you can’t open a window,” Kylie Hood, of Stop the Stench, told Stuff. Hood is sceptical of promises to permanently fix the odour issue.
“We are literally holding our breath,” she said.
