Western Bay to consult on Council-led rubbish and recycling

Friday 14 December 2018

Changes to rubbish collection and recycling in Western Bay are to be proposed through Western Bay of Plenty District Council's 2019/20 annual plan.

Council has approved a proposed model for a Council-contracted kerbside rubbish and recycling collection service for urban and rural communities. The proposal will be part of the annual plan consultation in March/April next year.

Council has been signalling it wants to take a greater role in managing the District's waste to encourage people to manage household rubbish more efficiently and minimise waste to landfill.

Audits of what people throw away show that about 70 percent of what's in the average wheeled bin or bin bag could be diverted from landfill. This is mostly food waste that could be composted - or glass, paper and plastics that could be recycled.

The proposal adopted this week is a pay-per-pick-up scheme for rubbish and a fixed rateable charge for recycling of glass, cardboard/paper, cans and plastics 1 and 2.

A food waste collection is proposed in urban areas only. Food waste is one of the greatest contributors to landfills and this will enable it to be more effectively disposed of.

Council would not deliver these services itself, but would look to contract them out to industry. The actual model for any contract would be worked through once a final decision is made on services.

Council has chosen this model for consultation following an investigation of several service delivery methods, their benefits and the cost implications of each.

Modelling shows the costs for the preferred option are:

• District-wide: Pay $3.50 per pick-up for rubbish collection (this would be on average $160 per year, depending how often the bin is put out for collection)
• Urban households: Fixed cost of $105 per year for urban recycling collection (cardboard, paper, plastic, cans) and a glass collection, plus a food waste collection
• Rural households: Fixed cost of $53 for rural recycling collection (cardboard, paper, plastic, cans) and a glass collection, (no food waste collection).

The glass, recycling and food waste collection service would be funded through a targeted rate charged only to those people who can use the service. For rubbish collections, you would only pay when you put your bin out for collection.

Western Bay Mayor Garry Webber says the model is a proposal only and will be consulted on fully from March 2019.

"This is not the final decision. We want people to let us know what they think of this model. It will provide customer choice, flexibility of service and convenience. Most importantly it will reduce waste to landfill.

"This proposal would cost the average household less than the current average cost for collection by the private sector," says Garry.

"By taking the lead in rubbish collection we are encouraging our residents to take greater responsibility for the way they dispose of waste and, where possible, change everyday practices to improve our environment."

The service would extend to almost all rural and urban households in the District - in general those currently serviced by independent waste collection contractors. The proposal includes making the service available to local businesses in urban areas (which would be paid for by those businesses through targeted rates and user fees).

Council is proposing to provide recycling drop-off points for remote rural areas, helping make it easier for everyone to recycle. This would cover about 3500 households in areas not serviced by kerbside collection and would be funded by a targeted rate on these properties.

Council also wants to work with community groups to address construction and demolition waste recovery and encourage diversion and reuse.

Council's decision is consistent with feedback from community consultation in 2016 as to what the future of waste management could look like in the Western Bay and also from feedback received to the Long Term Plan consultation this year.

Council will invite public feedback on the proposal in March 2019 before making a final decision on any service changes.

For more information on the Waste Management proposal visit Council's website: www.westernbay.govt.nz/waste-management

ENDS