Used oil on dusty gravel roads may be a thing of the past with local councils now offering ratepayers who live near a gravel road, a better solution to their dusty road problem.

The Southland District Council (SDC), partnering with Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is offering to apply a semi-permanent 150-metre Otta seal treatment to successful applicants gravel roads, for a subsidised cost of $8000 plus GST. They will also guarantee to maintain the seal for five years.

The Otta treatment is a quick and less expensive sealing usually used on roads that require less strength and have lower traffic counts.

Meanwhile the Gore District Council is offering it's affected ratepayers a 50:50 deal to apply and maintain a 100-metre seal on it's dusty roads.

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Residents who still wish to apply used oil to their dusty roads will now require both a resource consent and council permit. Other dust suppressants may also require a permit.

Both councils are seeking registrations of interest from ratepayers, with SDC's applications closing at 5pm on 5th December.

To find out more about SDC’s subsidised treatment, click here

To find out more about GDC's subsidised treatment click here.