More Options May be Looked At for District Cemetery

New Plymouth District Council is considering keeping its options open for the location of the district’s new cemetery.

Tonight (Tuesday) the Policy Committee recommended that the council re-evaluates up to five sites for the new cemetery, including land already identified next to Lake Mangamahoe Forest.

The council will consider the committee’s recommendation at its meeting on 10 March.

The recommendation comes after council staff met with representatives of Tegal Foods Ltd and the B N Baker Trust, regarding the potential of reverse sensitivity due to odour from the trust’s poultry farm on the opposite side of State Highway 3 from the proposed Lake Mangamahoe Forest cemetery site.

“A variety of issues were discussed with the representatives, so we have proposed a way for us to consider the issues and find a good solution for the district,” says Manager Parks Mark Bruhn.

“The recommendation is that we look anew at the Lake Mangamahoe Forest land, plus a site behind the Taranaki Crematorium which was previously considered, and up to three new potential sites in the district.

“We would use a new list of criteria, developed in consultation with key stakeholders, to evaluate the sites, then report back to the council with a recommendation.”

The Policy Committee recommended that the criteria include proximity to New Plymouth and Inglewood (being main population areas with cemeteries nearing capacity), accessibility to a state highway, sufficient area to operate for at least 50 years, and the ability to have both cremation and burial services.

Other criteria relate to terrain, soil conditions, ground water, waahi tapu and other issues.

The committee also recommended that no changes be made to the District Plan to address reverse sensitivity issues until the results of the rural review are known. Submissions on the rural review close this Friday (27 February).