Mangere Bridge people say the treatment plant is making them ill but officials say it's safe. Joseph Barratt reports
For decades Auckland City and Manukau's sewage has been flushed to the suburb of Mangere Bridge.
It is then processed at the wastewater treatment plant and turned into bio-solids.
Now locals are wondering if having hundreds of tonnes of the stuff near their homes is making them sick.
Itty Nikolao moved near the treatment plant four years ago and says she has never been so unwell as since she moved to the area.
``I kept getting sore throats, stomach cramps, indigestion, and wind. I couldn't figure out why, but then I talked to others and found they were experiencing similar symptoms. The treatment plant was the only connection I could make.'
She believes the wind picks up dust from the bio-solid beds while they are stacked to dry and that there needs to be a monitor system to catch airborne particles.
Mrs Nikolao is worried about Watercare's resource consent application to expand operations on to Puketutu Island, where an old quarry will be filled with bio-solids.
She has made a submission against the appli cation and will be presenting it on May 11.
``They will be dumping for 35 years and then have set aside another 30 years for observation,' she says. ``The fact that they have to have a 30-year observation period shows they just don't know what the long-term effects could be.
``They are gifting the area as a park to the Auckland Regional Council and are supposed to be making a track around the quarry. Who wants to walk around something full of that stuff?'
Manukau City Councillor Sylvia Taylor says she has felt similar symptoms in recent months and has also been vomiting some mornings.
She believes her problems are also linked to the nearby wastewater treatment plant. ``It seems to depend on what way the wind blows.'
Mrs Taylor believes independent testing of airborne particles is needed to ensure locals are safe. ``There are a lot of Pacific Islanders and other immigrants in the area who live in the low socio-economic spectrum. They are less likely than others to go to a doctor or complain about problems.
``Most of them are just happy to be in New Zealand and are working long hours just to get by.'
The Aucklander spoke to several Mangere Bridge doctors. They are not aware of any increase in sickness in the area.
Dr Paresh Patel says it is difficult to determine where the source of a sickness comes from.
``There are so many variables in our lives that narrowing it down to just one without proper testing can be very difficult.'
Watercare denies any illness can be linked to its operations, and says that $450 million was spent in 2003 to upgrade the plant.
Chief engineer Jim Hodges says: ``Compared to other wastewater treatment plants in New Zealand and across the developed world, the Mangere wastewater treatment plant is one of the most modern and treats the wastewater to one of the highest standards, especially with respect to public health.'
The Auckland Regional Public Health Service regularly monitors the plant for any sign of for illnesses caused by environmental pathogens.
``We have not been advised by [the service] of any record of community illness arising from the Mangere wastewater treatment plant,' says Watercare spokesman Clive Nelson.
The Public Health quarterly report from July last year shows an increase of 84 per cent in gastroenteritis in 2007-08 over the previous year. The report says this reflects ``a generalised increase in sporadic community cases'.
Mr Nelson says it is likely the claims from Mangere Bridge residents are ``representative of this wider picture of illness in Auckland, largely due to changes in frequencies of circulating viruses. While it is obviously impossible to determine the cause of any illness without pro fessional advice and guidance, we have not been advised by the medical authorities of any concerns relating to the plant.' joseph.barratt@theaucklander.co.nz
07 05 2009
Sewage blamed for bad bugs
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