The RSA, two palms and a bird poo battle

They’ve served their country overseas, but now members of a Taranaki RSA are locked in a battle at home with two trees and the dozens of pooing pigeons that live in them.

Members of the South Taranaki RSA in Ha¯wera want the canary date palms standing sentinel outside their club axed, because droppings from the birds roosting there are making members sick.

Two life members were hospitalised when they became ill after waterblasting bird poo from the concrete around the two trees, said RSA member Fiona Hicks, who is leading the push for the trees’ removal.

‘‘One had campylobacter and the other a breathing infection and both were linked back to them working out front here.’’

The towering palms are home to dozens of birds, whose droppings carpet the area in front of the clubrooms. There is also often bird mess on members’ cars and the club’s courtesy van, if they are parked there.

Hicks, who took a petition signed by 180 people to the South Taranaki District Council (STDC) on September 20, said the area has to be water blasted every week to keep it clean, even during winter.

In summer, the front entrance of the RSA was crawling with flies and the droppings stank, she said.

A previous request from the RSA to fell the two palms when other trees were removed recently was turned down, Hicks said.

This was because the palms are listed as notable trees in the STDC’s district plan, which means a resource consent is needed for their removal. However, Hicks said she had found a clause in the district plan that could enable the council to chop them down without the cost of a resource consent, which would involve a hearing to decide if this could happen.

‘‘It states that notable trees can be felled ‘if required to safeguard life, habitable buildings or network utilities from immediate danger.

‘‘The issue for the RSA is the health and wellbeing of our people,’’ Hicks said. ‘‘We have a lot of healthcompromised members and regular weekly attendees range from a 1-year-old who comes with her parents and grandparents, to a 98-year-old who comes each week.’’

The regular washing, combined with acid in the bird droppings, was also damaging the paint on the war memorial arch and the RSA building. Not only that, the copious bird poo was acting as a fertiliser and making the lawn areas grow faster.

So fast, in fact, that RSA president Sean Trott has resorted to cutting them between the scheduled mowings by the council contractor.

‘‘One day we had a funeral here and it was so embarrassing, people were standing ankle-deep in grass and bird poo,’’ Hicks said.

There was no record of why or when the trees, planted in the 1960s, were given notable status.

At the time canary palms were commonly planted around the country in recognition of Anzac Day, she said.

The trees were donated by a Ha¯ wera nurseryman, Mr Barry.

‘‘They’re not beautiful, and they’re not native,’’ she said.

District Mayor Phil Nixon said Hicks had brought some new information for the council to consider.

‘‘I’m happy to continue the discussion with them. We will have to go back to our planner about a resource consent and see where that sits.’’

Council staff were following up on the issue, environmental services group manager Liam Dagg said. ‘‘Council’s preliminary review would suggest a resource consent is still the most appropriate process, and that human health could be considered as a reason for removal as part of this process.’’

‘‘Because it is difficult to argue the environmental effects are less than minor when it comes to scheduled sites of significance, some form of notification process would take place and comment invited from the community before a decision is made.’’

Because it would be the council applying to itself for the removal of the trees, an independent commissioner would be engaged to decide the matter.

The likely cost for this process would be about $10,000, he said.