Following on from the public rally on Friday Wanaka community leaders stood up at the QLDC Council meeting today in Queenstown to express their frustrations with the Councils handling of the Wanaka kerbside recycling contract.
Sharon Beattie, Sue Coutts and Devon Hotop spoke on behalf of the Wanaka Wastebusters management and committee while Sally Battson spoke powerfully on behalf of the Wanaka Residents Association.
Local GP and founding board member Dennis Pezaro expressed his strong disapproval of the process and questioned if the winning tender could be construed as predatory pricing while fellow founding board member Sally Middleton asked why the Councils public consultation failed.
Rachael Brown (and daughter Winifred) along with Liz Breslin, both involved in recent Council “Shaping our Future Forums”, made emotional statements that their confidence in the council run Forums was destroyed. They also told stories of how much impact the Wastebusters Reuse Shop has had on their lives in Wanaka, especially with small children.
Tim Ryan told the Council how hard jobs were to get in Wanaka and of his experience working at Wastebusters. He spoke of the very real effect the loss of jobs would have and the reality that people would be forced onto the unemployment benefit or out of the region.
Got questions about Wanaka losing the recycling contracts? Check out these documents or call Ivy on 443 8606 x8 or Gina on 443 8606 x9.
Wanaka Wastebusters Q and A (19th Oct)