Mahurangi Matters, 14 March 2020 – Readers Letters

Getting Rodney’s share

I am responding to a letter in the last paper (MM Feb 28) concerned about my criticism of the Mayor’s proposed climate change tax. The new tax would raise another $574 million from ratepayer’s pockets.

My criticism is that the only confirmed local benefit will be diesel buses leaving from Warkworth for Silverdale 10 minutes earlier. The money raised is intended to be spent on electrifying ferries and city buses, building more cycleways in the CBD, and planting trees in South Auckland.

Locally we have the need to combat sea level rise, build and maintain sea walls, better protect our river banks from erosion, upgrade the stormwater pipes to deal with increasingly severe weather events and flooding, stop gravel from the unsealed roads washing into our harbours, sourcing reliable fresh water supplies for households reliant upon tank water during droughts, building intended public trail networks as alternatives to driving, and fixing our local roading congestion issues which are causing increased carbon emissions from idling cars.

The public has until March 28 to make a Council submission about whether or not they support the new tax and, equally importantly, where they feel the focus of the spending should be directed.

Greg Sayers, Rodney ward Councillor