Anger over earthworks on dioxin site [NZ]

Friday 17 Jul 2026

 
Advocacy group Sawmill Workers Against Poisons (Swap) is surprised and disappointed it wasn’t notified about earthworks taking place on a dioxin-contaminated site in Whakatāne.  Swap chairman Kereama Akuhata said the society and some nearby residents had serious community health concerns about the work on the historic sawmill site.

Earthworks required to build a new fuel station at 2 Phoenix Drive, between Bunnings Warehouse and State Highway 30, have been consented by Bay of Plenty Regional Council and Whakatāne District Council, with contaminated soil management plans in place.

It is a site Swap considers to be one of the most contaminated in the district because it is where, in the 1970s, treated timber was left to dry after being soaked in Pentachlorophenol (PCP) that contained dioxins known to be cancer-causing.

Akuhata said people working in and living near the sawmill and their families had high levels of cancer. Swap has been advocating for the past 40 years for better health care for these families and recognition that 36 sites in Whakatāne were contaminated from these activities.

He runs a special support service for former sawmill workers and their families who have been exposed to hazardous substances – at Ngāti Awa Social and Health Services.

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Source: SunLive / Diane McCarthy
Image credit: Diane McCarthy


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