Aucklanders to have their say on city-wide waste plan

From 17 November Aucklanders will be able to give feedback on Auckland Council’s draft waste plan, outlining ways to manage and minimise waste.

Becoming the world’s most liveable city, reducing harm to the environment, meeting government regulations and managing costs and are key drivers of the council’s draft plan.

The draft Waste plan was signed off at Regional Development Operations Committee on 20 October, with councillors’ support the streamlining of waste management across Auckland and reducing the amount that is sent to landfill each year. The Waste Minimisation Act 2008 requires Auckland Council to review its Waste Management and Minimisation Plan by 1 July 2012.

John Dragicevich, Manager of Infrastructure and Environment Services says that the creation of Auckland Council presented an opportunity to rationalise services for all of Auckland. “Until now, we’ve had seven different systems for collecting and dealing with waste across Auckland. With the alignment of the legacy councils, we have the opportunity to review and streamline how we deliver waste services to all households.”

Aucklanders will be able to have their say on proposals for households in Auckland to have wheelie-bins for rubbish and recycling, with a choice of bin size to reflect the household. A new organic waste collection could capture households’ food/garden waste, for composting and other re-use. Households in the Gulf Islands will receive slightly different services, reflecting their unique geographic location.

The plan also includes consistent funding of waste and recycling services, for all Aucklanders. All households will pay directly for the kerbside refuse they put out (45% of Auckland households already pay directly.) Rates or other funding sources will pay for kerbside recycling, organic waste and inorganic waste collections.

John Dragicevich continued, “We reviewed the different services that were provided in Auckland, but we also looked at best practices in New Zealand and around the world. We have looked for waste solutions that will not only help to reduce the amount we send to landfill, but will treat more of our waste as a resource.”

John Dragicevich emphasised that any potential change will be done carefully and in stages over the next four years after the plan in adopted in mid 2012. “This will allow time for further collaborative discussions with the waste industry and communities, and enable an extensive education programme. We want to hear what Auckland thinks and we’re looking for innovative and creative ideas from both industry and the community.”

The plan was informed by a Waste Assessment initiated under the auspices of the Auckland Transition Agency, that reviewed current and forecast demand for waste services in Auckland. In March 2011, councillors supported a strategic direction of continuing with the current services and streamlining where possible, establishing new systems to collect and recycle food and/or garden waste (which makes up 40-50% of the household waste stream) and exploring a mix of measures to gain more operational influence over the entire waste stream.

The public and businesses can make a submission on the draft WMMP during the Special Consultative Procedure (17 November 2011 to 31 January 2012). They may also attend a hearing to speak in support of their submission (February - March 2012).

The full draft plan and a summary with submission form will be available online, as well as at council service centres, libraries and local board offices from 17 November 2011. Consultation concludes on 31 January 2012.