MEDIA RELEASE

Action on Rotorua’s air

For immediate release: Wednesday 8 August 2007

This winter the air quality in Rotorua will be worse than it was last year. That’s the message from Environment Bay of Plenty as its air quality monitoring highlights a situation that’s not improving.

Rotorua’s air has already exceeded the government set standards for particulate matter 24 times this winter – the same number of exceedances that were recorded during the whole of last winter in the city.

Particulate matter are the fine dust particles suspended in the air and high levels of it can lead to serious health problems, especially in the young and elderly.

Councillor Bill Cleghorn says it’s an issue that the Rotorua community needs to get serious about and start taking action to make sure they’re not contributing to the problem.

“The regional council has worked with the community to create an action plan that addresses the issues and causes of our city’s poor air quality. If we’re going to make improvements, we need everyone to do their part – residents, industry and local government.”

Mr Cleghorn will be discussing the draft action plan at the Rotorua Air Quality Working Party meeting on Friday 10 August.

Environment Bay of Plenty has been charged by Government with improving the air quality in Rotorua’s urban area, after it was declared a Local Air Management Area in 2005, the only one in the Bay of Plenty. Rotorua was given this status after failing to meet national air quality standards for particulate matter. Environment Bay of Plenty is charged with ensuring an improvement by 2013.

However, he says it’s important that all of the Rotorua community is involved in the process.

“The monitoring we’re doing shows that 61% of Rotorua’s air quality problem is a result of domestic wood burners in winter. While we’re not advocating people stop using them – we recognise that people have to keep their homes warm and healthy – people need to take some responsibility for how they’re using them and what they’re burning because the discharges are damaging everyone’s health.”

He said it’s especially a problem towards the end of winter when people run out of their wood supplies and need to get more.

“Burning green wood, or wood that hasn’t had an opportunity to dry out, should stop. If you do need to purchase an extra load of wood to make it through the next couple of months, make sure it’s dry firewood. You should also adjust your wood burner to burn hot and not smoke.”

For more information about clean burning techniques, visit www.envbop.govt.nz and click on the Air icon at the top of the page.

ENDS

© Scoop Media