Big Kudos to TVNZ camera man Jared McCulloch TVNZ.
(see photos in comments).

I asked him if he could do two thing only one would be to make sure he highlighted why creating ammonia was a bad thing (it creates nitrates and add to algae which the now very widely documented Dane report has linked to cancer) and that the dross at Mataura did not contain just ouvea. I had no idea that meant he filmed me listing these very facts and my sources. Sadly the dubbing editor had the anchor person talking over that part so you don’t actually get to hear what I say.

Something which however then confirmed at the meeting not just by locals but by a waste expert (who just happened to have worked for Taha (they forgot to mention that part), the folk who dumped this shit in the first place) who confirmed YES class 6 “and class 4” was dropped as well. Not just the Class 6 that get banged as the only toxin to be dumped.

This of course was not reported by the Southland Times Rachel Kelly who instead spent the meeting glaring at me after throwing a very public hissy at me in front of 600 people (very professional of you Rachel).

Rachel instead posted the next day the crowd was unruly and “a police presence was required” as “people walked up to the front of the meeting”. I walked up to the front as like the other journalist present I moved around for different camera angles. Other folk walked up as they were there to speak. Whoopy to do.

Yeah okay their was a police presence two officers who stood outside for the entire meeting. One was 60 and the other was shorter than Frodo Baggins — hardly the flying squad Rachel.

In fact the cops did a great job and while people did cry out bullshit and a certain scaremongering (I think that what you called me Rachel) decided to just stand up speak after the mike was not passed to me. No one got out order and at the end the entire room stood up in unison and all agreed by raising their hand they wanted it gone and they wanted it tested. Oddly that footage never made the cut.

Quite an indictment really Matura 1600 people and yet on Friday night more than half the adult population cared enough to all turn up and let their feeling be known. The old, the young, the poor the educated, Pakeha Maori. Hell even the Mongrel Mob turned up at the end the young man astutely pointed out where were the “powerhouse” Alliance, Fonterra, Niagara, the trucking firms in all this. Was it not to much for them to step up and help a town who they had “done very well out. To turn around and put something back in”

That idea fell on deaf ideas as the public officials banged on about moving it out of Matura but refused to say were else they planned to move it. Leading one local deer farmer Bruno Ross to say “were better than that”, than just let it be moved to some other part of Southland were it was out of sight and no one had to be held accountable “is that not our home too” said Bruno.

But back to the bullshit party line that the only issue is 9500 tonnes of class six “ouvea”, which produces ammonia that makes your eyes sore and its only at Mataura and if we make it go away the problem solved.

A bullshit weasel line that omits that other chemicals were present other than class six ouvea. A lie that fails to report why ammonia in the water is a really bad thing and does more than make your eyes sore ( It produces nitrates that feed algae now known to feed the precursors for cancer) . The documentation from the Gore District Council, which Kelly and no one at else at the Southland Times appears to have read, shows that simply not true.

For asides from the documentation from environment south-land (a primary document) which confirmed that in the Edendale the 32,000 tonnes of ouvea contained high quantities of heavy metals and other toxins (which I read out got filmed on national TV only to be audio edited out) the point of their being more than one class of toxin was also highlighted at the meeting by one person Elsiha Leitch whose husband Alan had made an original submission against Taha being in Matura for the Wyndham Angling Club where he noted that class 6 and class 4 were present. A fact then also confirmed by the panel of official’s expert on waste removal who it turns out also use to work for Taha (they failed to mention that when introducing him).

The man from Taha refused to take questions and walked straight out after speaking. I now have on top of that the Gore District Council Submission papers, the primary documents which confirms that not all ouvea is created equal

This official document states the Ouvea Premix, is made up of:

 Cast-House Ouvea Premix: 7,556 tonnes (contain heavy metals)
 Landfill Ouvea Premix: 1,614 tonnes
 Bag-house Ouvea Premix: 774 tonnes
 MRP Bag-House Ouvea Premix 8 tonnes
 Sulphate of Ammonia 8 tonnes
 Citric Acid: 350 kg
 Diesel: 100 litres

Page six of that primary document notes significantly for the first time in this farce of words what the fuck ouvea actually is

“The Ouvea Premix that results from the processing of dross directly from the smelter is known as Caste House Ouvea Premix (of which a 180,000 tonnes is currently still stored at Tiwa Editors note). Taha also excavates dross from landfill at Tiwai. This material after processing is known as Landfill Ouvea Premix”.

Ouvea Premix consists of “aluminium oxide, aluminium nitride and magnesium aluminate, sodium and calcium salts and other trace metals”.

In other words it the very same stuff tested at Edendale by Environment South and shown in their official documents as containing high levels of toxic materials.

It interesting to note

1. Consent were done retrospectively with out consent. meaning as the land filled material originated from Tiwai the plant itself (not Taha) is in breach of of both transport, healthy and safety and resource legislation and it should only be a matter of will power from the government to prosecute accordingly.

2. Chemicals listed changed from initial consent paper work to later paper work and were not checked by the Gore District Council and while the latest draft only refers to class six the man from Taha stated it also included class four. A statement no only made in front of 450 witnesses but recorded on camera. Clearly paper work has not being checked by the GDC whose attitude, in the word of one GDC official overheard to say in 2014 word to the affect the GDC ‘were going to make sure they Taha was welcomed with open arms not blanked in legislation and rules.

If that can be proven to be the case then GDC and individual in council who failed to over see and inspect the ‘red tape’ they were required too are also in breach of update 2015 legislation which holds them personally guilty of dereliction of duty regarding public health and safety. For as Invercargil CE Clare Hadley noted when explaining why the Southland Museum must be closed in 2018 “immediately” for safety stated because if she did not she would be personally accountable and subject to prosecution for breaching public safety needs.

3. In light that the Environmental South report on Edendale showed Taha are not exactly the most trust worthy people there no way this can be moved safely with out further testing.
That would be an insult to the intelligence of the people of Matuara who deserve better than that.

Regardless of that logic (and there is not a logic in officialdom these days lets face that fact) to do so would be to breech the The Hazardous Materials Transportation Act of 1975 (HMTA) (amended 1993) which empowered the Secretary of Transportation to designate as hazardous material any “particular quantity or form” of a material that “may pose an unreasonable risk to health and safety or property.” And the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996.

“Testing of substances is required where packaging for a hazardous substance that is a dangerous good is manufactured in New Zealand, it must be certified as meeting the requirements set out in subclause (1)(a) by an accredited testing laboratory”. That is to say to ship this stuff the man from Taha acknowledged in front of four hundred fifty witness will mean having to repackage. This will be done via sealing it in drums and as its to be packaged the transport legislation is clear the material must first be tested by accredited laboratory. And if its not the person in charge is personally open to prosecution.

https://www.transport.govt.nz/…/Transporting20Dangerous20Go…

https://www.epa.govt.nz/…/Hazardous-Substances-Packaging-No…

4.The safe brief sheets further states breathing apparatus and hazmat suit are required to move this material and getting any one to do so with out such protective material the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017. These are as matter of interest also include provision for Private prosecutions. The Health and Safety at Work Act (2015) (the Act) specifically provides that in certain circumstances private prosecutions may be initiated (S 144) when the regulator cannot or chooses not to prosecute a work health and safety event. Under new amendment to the act 2015

Low culpability is up to $500,000

Medium culpability is between $500,000 and $1,000,000

High culpability is between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000

Prosecution can occur without a provable injury but is reviewed upon the basis of potential for an injury through unsafe work practices.

Photo and more reporting to come along with video feeds and GDC submission documents few more question to ask and will have a full 30 minute reports ready for you all come the weekend. We have not even got stated on the story were only warming up.

https://postmanproductions.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/lu-2015-95-taha-fertiliser-decision.pdf