Pongakawa recycling drop-off resumes next month

Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s Performance and Monitoring Committee this week agreed to reinstate the fortnightly mobile recycling drop-off at BP Pongakawa, to run from Saturday 10 October 2020 until Saturday 19 June 2021, 9am to 1pm.

Council ran a trial from November 2019 until the end of July this year. Feedback from the trial showed 94 percent of submitters preferred the option of an alternative drop-off site for recyclables.

The trial aimed to test whether a rural recycle drop-off would be feasible in the future when Council moves to its newly announced kerbside rubbish and recycling services on 1 July 2021. Council has awarded EnviroWaste the contract for the new kerbside collection services.

Under the new contract, rural areas (where there is an existing kerbside rubbish collection) will receive a fortnightly recycling and glass collection paid through rates, while the weekly rubbish collection will be a pay-per-pick-up service. This will consist of a 240L recycling bin, 140L general waste bin and 45L glass bin.

Council’s Utilities Manager Kelvin Hill says the Pongakawa trial was extremely worthwhile and proved that an alternative drop-off would be supported by people in those areas that would not be included in a rates funded kerbside recycling, glass and rubbish collection.

“I am sure the local community will welcome a return of this service in Pongakawa for the time being. Feedback suggests it is convenient and saves time and money as opposed to travelling to the Te Puke Recycling Centre and will continue to divert recyclables from ending up in landfill.

“While most of the users during the trial were from Pukehina - which will be included in the full kerbside rubbish collection service – the trial did prove there is a demand for a drop-off in the more remote parts of the Eastern end of the District.”

The site will be managed for Council by Waste Watchers Limited and will continue to be externally funded through the Waste Minimisation Levy and District-wide Environmental Protection Rate at a total cost of $40,000.

Items that will be accepted at the recycling drop-off:

• clean glass – bottles and jars
• clear plastic drink bottles number 1 & 2 only
  (meat trays, coloured PET such as Sprite or ginger beer bottles, or janitorial plastics - shampoo, bleach etc will not be accepted)
• Anchor lightproof and Meadow Fresh milk and cream bottles
• clear milk and cream bottles
• clean tin cans
• aluminium cans
• paper
• flattened, clean cardboard

No hazardous waste, whiteware, metal or greenwaste will be accepted.

Dates (fortnightly on Saturdays, 9am to 1pm):