LEVIN LAKE MEETING HAS HUGE TURNOUT

TO RESTORE HOROWHENUA LAKE

Its been a thorn in the spine for everyone in Levin to enjoy Lake Horowhenua. The Lake has been over many years a sewerage dumping ground for the Horowhenua District & Regional Councils; a haven for dairy farmers effluent and free water; a fight for dominance by a local Maori family over other whanau --- and there seems no end as the Iwi have wanted something done yet the lobbying over the years has been fractional or in fact non existent due to their inability to get together and lobby. The Horowhenua District Council, Horizons Regional Council & the government now sit on the fence as the cleaning budget is in overdrive x 4. The District Council do not have funds or budget so the Lake who wants to know about. There's been zero help from even DOC & Horizons Regional Council until now when they wanted to check the Lake but know full well its totally polluted so why check? back in 1997 lobbies were dismissed when something could have been inacted. There was nothing done but now its time to lobby the Minister of Conservation Kate Wilkinson to do something about the stench and a Lake thats lost in an ocean of pollutants. In the last few years one local Maori family was intent on not allowing local rowing club etc to use the facilities. Its voice was not that of other original owners - - - their claims were there own. On Monday 26th July 2010 fed up locals together with Maori reps called a town meeting at the Levin Senior Citizens Hall to see what can be done about it all to get the Lake back to the paradise of its former self. The Maori who have used blocking tactics on the locals at long last also felt its time to join forces rather than fight the fight alone!!!.

Concerned Levin citizens and local MPs including Nathan Guy & Darren Highes attended to hear what needs to be done to clear the Horowhenua Lake and indictaed the enormity of the cleaning up. As many know who is to blame, it seems the meeting was conveniently held when the main District Council Mayor Duffy and his CEO were attending another Local Body meeting elsewhere in Auckland ---the timing not that good to get their views but then the meeting Chairman Brian Ten (Ratepayers Assoc member) stiplified that the blame game was not to be talked about & finger pointing. Some speakers however couldn't hold their thoughts back & voiced their opinion but were warned and the warnings heeded to bring about an interesting dialogue on the Horowhenua Lake disaster.

It was a time to get something or someone to get the ball rolling on how to get this Lake back to normal. The Horowhenua Lake has algae & smells bad. Its so polluted it makes some rivers in China look far better. Something must be done and soon as its not helping Levin at all--- a town thats lost many of its former draw cards.

But here we have many concerned citizens wanting something started. With 81 original Maori Owners also concerned with the Lake over many years there has been a lot of controvery with Maori whanau not getting together nor lobbying enough to have those responsible fix the problem. There is also a view if the lake was cleaned out would the owners allow public recreation access?. It goes back as I remember some 45 years ago with intense rivalry between and with whanau; where families lobbied to vote on whanau members with no organisational skills only a name. It still continues today. This now saw tactics of one Maori whanau realizing the MLC let them down so time to rally for help from the wider community many of whom were delighted to hear and not before time. Under the labour Government they had 9 years to lobby but nothing was done and this issue has been around for over 30 years now?? The good opportunity vanished overnight but the efforts have now been rekindled.

The Maori Land Court (MLC) is not doing anything about the ownership and access questions so things are just not moving as they drag their feet on these issues. But at the same time the Maori owners are not using their togetherness to lobby the Government to fulfill their obligations and with the young Muaupoko Tribal Authority too busy with whatever they are doing we can see at least its a start with this meeting.

Don Quirk made the first blew when he spoke about Te Raparaha instead of Keepa Te Ranihirinui (Major kemp) in his presentation about the Lake. Councillor Nathan Murray voiced his concerns in the local paper as a battlefront with Councillor & Mayor hopeful Anne Hunt. He said she organised the meeting and maybe its a way to get votes for herself against the present Mayor who many feel should be doing a little for the Lake?? but who cares the Mayor knew but he was attending a meeting in Auckland yet does express concerns. Anne Hunt did make comment and really Nathan should not use the news media to voice against one of his own Councillors. Even the Green Party had their say but of course they were their to listen and express who they were more than anything & their Hawkes bay base? There key man Russel Norman had to cancel & the meeting was already made public so continued. And then there was an Otaki /Kapiti speaker who laid down some good points about the history of the rivers, tributaries etc Fred MacDonald & why the pollution continues witht the District Council accepting rubbish from outside the community to fill an even bigger septic hole! Local winery man Malcom Hadlam presented a powerpoint presentation with pics of the Lake but were hard to see due to poor quality and being a Lakeside owner of course Malcom would be concerned for his Celtic Winery bus tours & like many of those close to the Lake the inevitable property values?? Lucky for Malcom his guest can't walk to the waters edge as the wine might go back up again!!

But everyone got the gist of a community getting together to battle the Lake issues. Everyone knows that the Lake is tepid, smells, one cannot even walk in the water let alone swim in it. Its an icon thats lost in never land; and that those who are to blame will continue to side track the issues. One West lakeside farming identity who resides near the Golf Course was there; one of the many farmers who used the waterways for their stock. Farmers on the Northern shore of the Lake kept away from the meeting but they too are guilty of using the Lake to pollute & take water for their stock for free. They need to show some input instead of being the greedy folk they have become!! Now the main issues is that the Maori whanau thats been hampering Horizons from testing the water, and spraying the algae which is purple loosestrife, stopping the rowing, yachts etc can now allow access for the public-- so lets hope its a start as some Maori families--- some of the 81 owners say little due to the dismay over past years & the fact many of the kaumatua have passed on. But the reality is Maori who use blocking tactics can only hamper things and its now backfired on them. Time for everyone to get involved if things are to happen to Lake Horowhenua--- the largest Lake south of Taupo but its a monumental task and the costs---- well thats another matter.

NOW THE PROBLEM:

Th Horowhenua District Council are responsible and should be taken to task. The reasons are easy to explain. The Lake itself when any flooding occurs allows the overflow from the treatment plant to spill into the Lake. The weir was broken down dropping the levels of the Lake to the stream in a hope the flow and lower level will increase the flow out. Yet it did not stop heavy downpours from overloading the Treatment plant which is still the norm in 2010. In the meantime the leachate from the treatment overflow stays in the Lake as its now heavier than water so sinks. The ground is very porous and effluent can leech thru the soil into the Lake with ease. This was established years ago 25 years plus but the Council had the opportunity to move the treatment plant but did not act on any advice given. The Council just kept the treatment plan and then allowed Lakeview now called Alliance meat works to pump gallons of waste water into the plant as well as allowing other districts to now pump even more sewerage into levin. Alliance has increased its useage and grown over the years to eject even more waste water.

The Council have plans to lay another pipe system to accept further overflow to the POT thats just a temporary additive. The Pot which is the holding lake near Hokio Beach again allows leeching to continue unabated. Water percolating through landfills produces leachate, which contains contaminants as well as toxic chemicals some of which are not bio degradable --the POT is no exception. Once in a water table or aquifier then we have drinking problems and contaminants cannot break down. The water table is shallow around 30m which is permeable and better drinking water is much deeper.

Together the Horowhenua District Council with Horizens who are supposed to control the environment they have allowed even market gardeners to now drain into Lake Horowhenua's only fed spring which will have particles of herbicides and insectides in the system and again allow leeching into the stream and Lake. The Hokio landfill cannot then be complient in place as all landfills produce some leachate, contamining the aquifer or the sub soil water bearing strata underneath and must be protected from ground water for drinking etc. This must then breach even Government guidelines yet nothing is being done about it. This water bearing strata then allows drinking water as unsuitable to those living close by and sometimes forever eg. On Moutere Rd up to and past the golf course there is a 30m level of a water strata and there is a rock bed some 80m down that if contaminated will leech into the really good water at 100m.

The Horowhenua District Council have not lived up to their responsibilities and should start to remedy the situation. Tem and their Mayor Duffy need to be ejected.

CHECK THE MAYOR OF LEVIN????

But what about the Levin Mayor" Duffy---well hard to say what this guy has done apart from indebting the place more with 60% higher rates; etc but then its not just him. The Council building is on "overbudget" and passing new rules for everyone to pay more---oh when will it ever end but then Levin is not the only council who needs more money.

Levin is not a happening place---just drive thru on a Saturday/Sunday and its dead hole --well nearly as they now have a new Kentucky Fried but no shops are open apart from the inevitable takeaways and food shops, Warehouse etc???

[ LEVIN COUNCIL WHAT THEY HAVE DONE 2010 ]

WHAT NZ NEVER LEARNT WHEN IT OPENED ITS DOORS:

If the Crafer farms all 16 of them are sold to CHINA then this will be the start to the end. Why does our government allow this to happen--make them lease the land and let it stay in Kiwi hands-- try buying this amount of land 5000 hectares in China or Thailand or Asian countries??? [ Crafer Farm deal ]

BORROWING FORMULA:[ HERES AN EASY WAY ] [ Crafer Dairy Farm Story ]

NZ companies are moving from NZ as it is too costly now to setup here!!!!!

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WHY ARE MANUFACTURERS & BUSINESSES LEAVING NZ: [ Read the story ] The issues are economics nothing else and many a time the owner is blamed for moving when in fact he has no say in the matter otherwise he will go bust. However read the reasons why NZ has lost the plot ---[ Compare to Thailand ] & why more factories are heading abroad now. It makes sense.[ Check WHY THAILAND ] is better for Manufacturers & any Kiwi Company. Why NZ is lost [ NZ Deficit increases ] Yes we owe money????? [ Government $250m a week borrowing ] [ Kiwisaver ] [ Kiwisaver good or bad Providers ] [ Transmission Gully Impact costs ] [ NZders lose out ] [ Electric Power Increase ] [ Benefit cuts good or meaningless ] [ Family budget ] [ Quit smoking-heres how ] [ Truck panel & Paint ] [ World population exploding ] [ Retirees new visa over 65 ]

"Horowhenua District Council needs a reshuffle"

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