Traces of diesel found in part of Addington Park

Testing has revealed that some residual diesel from a punctured fuel line feeding Horncastle Arena has been captured in a stormwater retention basin on the northern edge of Addington Park.

It is believed the diesel was carried through the stormwater system when it rained heavily during the winter.

The retention basin is designed to capture any contaminants in the stormwater and that is why the diesel has pooled there.

“Residual diesel in the ground poses no risk to people or animals using Addington Park, but the ground will need to be remediated,’’ says Vbase Acting General Manager, Operations, Chris Mintern.

“Christchurch City Council contractors plan to go in and excavate the soil, dispose of it and replant. The area affected covers about 100 square metres and work on remediating it will begin as soon as possible. The work is expected to take about two weeks to complete.’’

The affected area of the park will be fenced off while the work is done.

Vbase first became aware there was an issue with the diesel pipeline in July, when a diesel smell was noticed in a stormwater retention basin near the arena. Investigations subsequently revealed a stake was piercing the pipeline.

Since then Vbase has been working with its contractors and Environment Canterbury to determine exactly how far the diesel has travelled and to remediate affected areas.

To date, no traces of diesel have been detected in the local drinking water supply.