By CATHY ARONSON
NGARUAWAHIA - Protesters stormed the Waikato District Council chambers yesterday demanding that the council withdraw consent for the Hampton Downs landfill.
More than 100 protesters crowded the chambers in Ngaruawahia for nearly two hours to air their grievances to Waikato Mayor Angus Macdonald, chief executive Warwick Bennett and hearing committee councillors Michael Hope and George Dow.
Earlier in the day, between 20 and 40 protesters braved the rain for a 34km hikoi (march) from Te Kauwhata, waving banners and chanting "Save the Waikato - the mega dump has got to go."
Last year, the councillors gave approval, in a joint hearing with Environment Waikato, to EnviroWaste Services and Northern Disposal Systems to dump 30 million cu m of solid waste in the 87ha landfill over the next 25 years.
Seven people will appeal against the decision in the Environment Court on September 4 but the protesters wanted the council to withdraw the consent before the court date.
The protesters said the landfill would pollute the Waikato River 500m to 800m away.
Mr Macdonald said he could not withdraw the consent. "I can sympathise with the protesters. The problem is that we all produce rubbish and it has to go somewhere.
"The application [the] council received met the environmental criteria set down in the Resource Management Act."
He said only three members of the public had attended the hearings and the council had granted the consent based on the evidence and technical reports.
Hampton Downs farmer David Saxton told Mr Macdonald that more than 300 objections were submitted to the council, and locals did not attend the hearing because they thought the council would represent their best interests.
Auckland's Water Pressure Group joined the hikoi with their trademark fire truck.
Spokesman Jim Gladwin said the group was against the landfill because Auckland's future water supply would be drawn only 2km from the dump through the proposed Waikato pipeline.
"It's our rubbish you're getting and you don't want it, and it's your river we are getting and we don't want it. Why is no one getting the message? It's time to go back to the drawing board," said Mr Gladwin.
Mr Macdonald told the crowd that he could not answer specific questions on leachate and discharges, as that was Environment Waikato's responsibility.
Environment Waikato special projects manager Dennis Crequer was not at the meeting but said the regional council spent close to $170,000 of the applicants' money investigating the landfill.
"If the landfill proceeds and operates within the conditions of its consent, then it will not impact on the river."
Hikoi organiser Ann Epiha said she was pleased the mayor had turned up and she hoped he would act on their concerns.
Mayor target of landfill anger
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