19 December 2024
Media: Local Democracy Reporter
Topic: Rubbish at Tikitapu
Enquiry
From Local Democracy Reporter:
Rotorua Blue Lake Top 10 Holiday Park operations manager Kelsi Hira said the council should take responsibility for the rubbish her team collect every morning and reinstate the bins that were removed in 2023.
Her managers pick up a rubbish bag every morning from the carpark opposite the park and she believes it will get worse over summer.
"We're taking it out of the water too."
While the council said it removed the bins for a wasp problem and to encourage people to take home their rubbish, Hira believed it was because it didn't want the expense of emptying the bins at the lake.
She questioned if it was really about waste minimisation and encouraging people to take their rubbish away other places, like Rotorua lakefront, wouldn't have bins either. She said the Blue Lake was arguably just as popular with visitors as the lakefront was but the council did not take the same pride with Tikitapu.
"It’s 100pc cost driven."
She says the cost is falling on the holiday park as their bins are filled instead.
"We let them…better to go in a bin than the alternative. Just annoying we pay for that."
It tended to be things like takeout rubbish, and used nappies were another common find. It was embarrassing having people come to the area and see that, she said.
"We are very aware of the privilege we have being in an area like this and what will happen to a lake like ours if it becomes polluted. We want to respect the place we have got."
She did not feel like the council was listening to her concerns.
Hira did not believe people would report seeing the rubbish, that the team had not yet collected, to the council and so it would not have complaints.
She wanted the bins to be reinstated, have more of them than before and be serviced the same amount as at the town's lakefront.
She did not think wasps would be an issue since the council had traps put up, as she had at the park.
As well as response to the above can I please ask:
- How often were the bins at the Blue Lake serviced and what did this cost?
- Since the Blue Lake bins were removed, have any others in public places been removed and where from, how many?
- How was the impact to local businesses considered when the bins were removed? How was the impact on visitor perception considered?
- How many complaints of litter has the council received at the Blue Lake since the bins were removed and how does this compare to before they were removed?
- Does the council consider it fair the holiday park is paying to keep the public space clean, why, why not?
- Any other relevant comment or information?
Response
From Rotorua Lakes Council, Manager: Waste and Climate Change, Infrastructure and Assets – Craig Goodwin:
We have not been contacted by the holiday park regarding their concerns but would be happy to discuss this with them if they wish.
Our expectation is that members of the public take responsibility for their rubbish and where there are no bins, that they take it home with them and dispose of it in their rubbish and recycling bins or transfer stations if they live somewhere that has these.
While it is not our expectation that people pick up others’ rubbish in public spaces, we are very appreciative of those in the community who do help to keep our spaces and our local environment clean and tidy on a voluntary basis. We work with people and groups that do this regularly and can provide the likes of bags and gloves.
Council staff/contractors are in our public reserve areas, including Tikitapu, every day to do jobs and part of this is cleaning up rubbish. These patrols increase during the summer months.
Misuse of public litter bins has increased over the years. At places like Tikitapu, rather than being used to dispose of litter, they were increasingly being used for illegal dumping of household and business waste.
The removal of bins in popular reserves is becoming more common around New Zealand. In Auckland all regional parks operate on a “take your rubbish with you” policy and it is our understanding this has worked well and is strongly supported by the public.
There are other areas around the Rotorua district that do not have rubbish bins and where rubbish is not an issue. One example is Te Pūtake o Tawa (the Mountain Bike Hub near Tikitapu), which is a destination hotspot with hundreds passing through each week.
We know that our community – and visitors to our district – place a high value on our lakes, forest and green spaces and in general care about the environment and keeping it looking great for generations to come.
During the past 12 months council has received 11 calls relating to rubbish at Tikitapu, five from the public and the rest from council staff and contractors who were in the area.
Subsequent from reporter
Just on not hearing from her, she said she has contacted via FB (see below) and hadn't recently called in but did at the time of the removal.
Post on holiday camp Facebook page
Response to subsequent question
From a Council Spokesperson:
Council has not been directly contacted by the holiday park to discuss this issue. As outlined in the council’s social media policy, rather than using social media, people who have a problem to report need to contact our customer service team by phone or email so a request for service can be logged and the matter can be resolved appropriately.
You can see our social media policy here: https://www.facebook.com/RotoruaLakesCouncil/about_details
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Media: Local Democracy Reporter
Topic: Theft from tourists
Enquiry
I am hoping to get a statement from Mayor Tapsell about a story we published yesterday regarding two German tourists having their gear stolen from their campervan in Rotorua on the weekend. Even though they tracked down the suspected thief, they have said police have done "nothing".
Rotorua: German tourists track suspect, criticise police after campervan break-in - NZ Herald
There has been quite a lot of public interest in this story and I am interested in a response from Mayor Tapsell to the below:
- What are your views on the police response as reported in this story? Do you think police should have handled things differently?
- How do you think it impacts on Rotorua's reputation as a tourism destination?
- What would your message to this couple be?
Response
From Rotorua Mayor, Tania Tapsell:
"Community safety is very important to our local police. They work incredibly hard and we have great respect and appreciation for their service.
“Ensuring we have enough police in Rotorua is an issue that I have raised directly with the Police Minister. But in the mean time we must work with what we’ve got and it’s appropriate that police prioritise jobs with the limited resources they may have at the time.
“It's very disappointing to hear these visitors have experienced this break-in while out enjoying our beautiful city. It’s definitely not the expected or usual experience visitors have in Rotorua. We’re a top destination for visitors who often share their great experience of our warm and caring local people. It's a real shame that a few people make us look bad when the reality is we're a great place to visit and a great place to live.
“While I can appreciate the tourists’ frustration that police couldn’t urgently attend their requests, I don’t believe it’s fair to criticise when police will have been working on this behind the scenes. Using the tools available and providing the detailed information online was no doubt helpful and we’re really glad to hear that police were able to arrest those responsible. Unfortunately solving crime takes time and I thank the police for all that they’re doing to keep Rotorua safe, including ensuring those who commit crime get caught.”
