Tauranga rubbish collection to change

Photo: Supplied.

Tauranga City Council is to take over residential kerbside rubbish collections and recycling services from 2021.

The decision is supported in the Long Term Plan submissions process and aligns with council's strategic goal of minimising the rubbish trucked from Tauranga to the Waikato landfill, says the report by resource recovery and waste manager Rebecca Maiden.

The new collection will separate rubbish, recyclables and compostables, but the number of bins required is not yet decided.

The funding allows for $3.5m in the 2020/21 financial year, $16.3m in the 2021/22 financial year and $14m in the 2022/23 financial year onwards.

Because details are unlikely to be addressed before the LTP is adopted, a project plan will be presented to the council's Environment Committee in September 2018.

'Staff and consultants have developed a detailed model of the implications of such a service for

Tauranga,” says Rebecca.

'That model shows, at a city-wide level, increased diversion of waste from landfill and reduced costs to households as a result of introducing a full rates-funded service.”

The council-funded collection is estimated to cost $250 per household per annum, compared with the current average of $330 per household per annum, according to council figures.

Surveys undertaken in 2017 show that about 70 per cent of what is currently going to landfill could be recycled or composted.

The law, the Waste Minimisation Act 2008 requires a territorial authority to promote effective and efficient waste management and minimisation within its district.

The rubbish survey in 2017, which involved physical inspection of rubbish bag and bin contents from different parts of the city over different seasons, found most of the divertible waste going to landfill is food waste.

Households using the 240 litre bins throw out more recyclables than the bag and small bin users, the survey found.

The government-funded survey establishes an accurate base line for the community's waste habits, which will be used to measure the effectiveness of any changes.

'It's a sobering report,” said Environment Committee chair Steve Morris at the time.

'It's my view that our current waste system is untenable and we will need to make a change. We are letting the environment down and we're slipping behind the rest of the country too.”

Ratepayers' attention was focussed on the recycling issue when private contractor Waste Management ceased glass collection from March 1, asking customers to do their own glass recycling.

It spurred the council to investigate and undertake a ratepayer-funded glass recycling service, which was approved in last week's LTP deliberations. It is expected to begin in October.

The glass issue highlighted that a TCC-managed kerbside collection service will make it easier for all households to recycle. It will also enable the council to have greater influence over the range of materials that can be recycled, which is not possible with privately managed services.

You may also like....

7 comments

Council gets their own way again

Posted on 08-06-2018 14:36 | By The Sage

I sincerely hope they manage this better than everything else they are making a disaster of at present. I have honestly never had so little faith in our council as I do now. Guaranteed this will cost us more than our current service. It has become a Police state.


Possibly

Posted on 08-06-2018 15:32 | By simple.really

the only good idea TCC has come up woth this year. Wait with baited breath to see if it eventuates. Really hope so.


$$

Posted on 08-06-2018 20:15 | By About that

I smell another rates increase coming up


Has Waste Management orchestrated this?

Posted on 08-06-2018 20:52 | By Calm down

Just a thought, but it was just last year the council was thinking about doing this. The smaller rubbish collection companies were lobbying to keep it private (personally I was happy with this as I like how my company puts a liner in my bins). Then waste management cut out glass recycling forcing the council to adopt council funded collection for which they will probably hire one contractor to look after the whole city. The contractor best set up to manage such a large contract? Waste Management.


Good thought

Posted on 09-06-2018 08:02 | By The Sage

Calm down may be correct and Waste Management May have manipulated this whole thing with a view to getting a monopoly on rubbish collection. I too completed the survey, some time ago and stated I was more than happy with the current system. I like have a clean bin liner in my rubbish bin and having the various options a private contractor provides. Watch this space people. If Waste Management take ove I will be dropping my rubbish off outside the Council Buildings.


No thanks

Posted on 09-06-2018 08:38 | By overit

You beaurocrats stay the hell away from my decisions. I am forced to pay you rates everything else is my business and decision. Keep your money grabbing hands off. I recycle, compost and use a plastic bag (forced by you from a paper bag) every 5 weeks. Not bad from a household of 2. I know exactly what will happen - more costs to me. Target the offenders.


Forced

Posted on 09-06-2018 18:23 | By Told you

We are been forced to have this rubbish collection on us at $250.00 . We recycle all our rubbish now with a trip to Maleme St approxmaty every 2 months with all paper, glass,cardboard etc and the rest is picked up by private contractor no where like $250.00 I sincerely hope the Council does not go ahead with this perposal.


Leave a Comment


You must be logged in to make a comment.