Moanataiari
Contaminated Sites Remediation Fund
The Ministry for the Environment has approved an application from Waikato Regional Council to provide $237,500 towards further soil testing in the Thames suburb of Moanataiari.
This funding was announced by the Minister for the Environment on 30 November 2011. For more information, to read the Minister’s media release.
Background
Waikato Regional Council, following the identification of contamination within the sediments around the Moanataiari subdivision, undertook a preliminary site investigation (PSI) on the subdivision to determine the potential sources of the contamination. The PSI identified the since the late 1800s mine tailings from the local mines had been dumped on the foreshore. A seawall was formed around these tailings was constructed as part of the Thames Wharf. The land within the seawall continued to be reclaimed until its completion in the 1960s. The reclaimed land was then subdivided and the construction of houses began in the 1970s.
In October and November 2011, the Waikato Regional Council conducted soil tests at the Moanataiari subdivision in Thames to find out if the soil was contaminated.
The testing occurred because of the subdivisions known history as reclaimed land using burden and tailings from local mines in the early to mid-twentieth Century.
Preliminary results back from the tests indicate that there are elevated levels of naturally occurring arsenic in the soil and subsoils. The arsenic is not an introduced chemical in the mining process, but a naturally occurring trace element often found alongside other minerals and elements like gold.
Further information
The Thames-Coromandel District Council has up to date information on their website.
Waikato Regional Council also has information on their website.
Last updated: 21 December 2011
