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Toxins which lie in the burnt-out remains of the Patea freezing works are likely to be sealed by a dust suppressant glue.
Residents of the south Taranaki town were evacuated from their homes amid concerns there were asbestos fibres in the smoke and dust from a huge fire at the derelict meat works nine days ago.
Contractors are due to meet council, health and environment ministry officials and local iwi at the site today to consider a plan to seal the ashes with a special glue.
Patea Mayor Ross Dunlop said it would cost about $2 a square metre to spray the sealant on the site, but the final cost would depend on the size of the area to be covered.
The Wanganui Chronicle reported that it could cost up to $5 million for the site to be detoxified and cleared for redevelopment.
South Taranaki District councillor Debbie Packer said a delegation of Maori and non-Maori would be formed and would take a collaborative approach to cleaning up the town as a whole.
"At present we are getting about 15 calls a day from contractors wanting to do the clean-up, but the community still has to plan - consult internally on what is needed before tenders are called. And we have other sites that have to be looked at as well."
Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia told Parliament on Wednesday that the Government should be concerned for Patea people.
"While I do not want to alarm people unnecessarily, past experience shows that, after environmental accidents anywhere in the world, authorities have tended to play down the seriousness of the consequences," she said.
"The Government owes it to the people to clean up the sites."
Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said he fully expected the Government would provide funding assistance in the clean-up and said it was "open to sharing the costs of the glue or rubber sealant" likely to be used at the site.
- NZPA
