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The Buller District councillors voted on Thursday to show they had “no confidence” in Mayor Garry Howard after it was earlier revealed he signed an apparent agreement to give a proposed waste-to-energy plant in Westport the go-ahead without telling the public or councillors. Cr Dave Hawes said the deal would have bankrupted the council if approved. It included a price for water that would have meant the waste-to-energy company would have been paying only 8 per cent of what Westport residents paid for water. Read More

Howard’s trip would cost the ratepayers $4000. He would be joined by Buller district council’s economic development officer, John Hill, and two representatives from Waste to Energy West Coast Ltd, Gerard Gallagher and Mark McIntyre. The West Coast Economic Development fund would cover Hill’s trip. Mayor Howard said the plant building could employ up to 100 people and up to 1000 during the $250 million construction. READ MORE