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Rubbish and recycling<< Back to rubbish and recycling
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New
recycling service - Auckland isthmus |
Recycling collection date calendar.
The following information is available for downloading in PDF format: General information about the new service in the following languages:
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The new service
On Monday 30 June 2008, Auckland City Council's new and enhanced recycling service starts.
The new service will make recycling safer, cleaner and more efficient by diverting more recyclable material away from landfill. This is in line with our waste management plan and political goal of reducing waste to landfill by 2015.
New 240-litre recycling wheelie bins, designed to hold all recyclable household waste (including paper and cardboard), will replace the existing blue recycling crates. The bins will be collected fortnightly on the same day as your rubbish collection (unless you have a night time collection) and the recyclable material taken to the recycling facility for sorting. If you are unsure you can check your collection time here.
You can also read more about the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) and the education centre
The new recycling bin has a dark green body (same as your red-lidded rubbish bin) with a blue lid. The Auckland City Council logo will be stamped on the bin body and lid. The bin also displays a serial number and your individual house number.
Cities in New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Europe are using this recycling collection system with excellent results.
Partnership with Manukau City Council
With both councils' collection contracts up for renewal in 2008, this provided an opportunity to consider a variety of options for the collection and processing of recyclable materials. We have developed a shared services partnership to work cooperatively to make economies of scale. This follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding to work on a review of waste collection and processing services in both cities.
Delivery of the bins
General information
Every property that currently has a red-lidded wheelie bin for household rubbish disposal will have received a blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin. The bin was delivered with:
- tape over the lid advising what date to start using the bin
- information packs containing a letter to the resident, a fridge magnet calendar showing collection dates for the next 12 months and a guide to kerbside recycling will be delivered to your letterbox
I haven't received a new bin
If you haven't received a bin and believe you are entitled to one, please call us on 379 2028 to check your eligibility.
Every 'eligible' property means every property that pays a targeted waste charge. If you are unsure whether you pay a targeted waste charge, call us on 379 2028.
Please note: the blue-lidded recycling wheelie bins are owned by Auckland City Council. If you move house please don't take the bin with you. Call us on 379 2028 to arrange a bin for you new home if you need one.
Additional bins
Auckland City Council has agreed to provide additional recycling bins to eligible businesses and residential ratepayers at a modest cost. See What does eligible' mean? for more information.
The additional recycling bins will only be provided if they can be stored on site between collection days and not cause problems when placed out for collection. They will be supplied at a cost of $60 including GST to eligible ratepayers. This is an annual change.
If you would like an additional bin, please contact us and we will check whether you are eligible.
How to use your new blue-lidded
recycling wheelie bin
The new service started on Monday 30 June 2008 so you must use your new 240-litre blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin from now on. Other bins, crates and bags containing recycling will no longer be collected.
The new bin is for household recyclable materials only and will be emptied every second week on the same day as your usual rubbish collection. Different suburbs have different recycling weeks so it is important to check the recycling collection calendar that came with your bin.
Place the bin facing the street, as close to the kerb as possible with the handle facing your property. Following collection, your bin will be returned to approximately the same position. Please:
- put your bin out the night before your collection or before 7am on the day of your collection
- allow approximately half a metre between your bins so the grab arm of the truck has enough room
- ensure bins are not causing a hazard to traffic or pedestrians
- ensure bins are well clear of parked cars (where possible), poles and trees
- ensure bins are returned to your property promptly after collection (the same day if possible)
- don't overfill bins - the lids must close.
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| Place your bins at least half a metre apart, and where possible 1 metre away from obstructions such as vehicles and trees. |
Cardboard and paper
All cardboard and paper must be put (loosely) in your new recycling wheelie bin (not tied together or in a plastic bag). See Recycling - Auckland isthmus for full information
Please note: businesses and residents leaving loose material at the kerbside will be contacted by council officers. Persistent offenders will face a fine of $400 for illegal dumping.
Additional recyclables
Only one recycling wheelie bin is issued per rateable/eligible property. If for any reason you do have excess recycling, store it in your old blue recycling crate and empty into your recycling wheelie bin for your next collection day (do not place extra items next to or on top of the bin). Please do not put your old blue recycling crate out, as these will not be collected.
If you regularly have excess recycling you may be eligible for an additional bin.
What can
and can't go in my recycling wheelie bin
What can and can't be recycled is essentially the same as your current service. The only changes are you can now:
- recycle Tetra Pak cartons eg juice and milk cartons. Please ensure these are thoroughly rinsed
- put your paper/cardboard recycling in your recycling wheelie bin rather than placed in a separate pile on the kerbside.
See Recycling - Auckland isthmus for full information
Bin is not emptied/damaged/stolen
See Recycling - Auckland isthmus for full information.
The old blue recycling crates
We've had some issues with the old crate recycling system with:
- recyclable materials blowing out of the crate, creating litter in the street and in stormwater drains
- the crates being difficult for some residents to carry - especially when full.
The new recycling wheelie bins provide a convenient dry storage place for recyclable material because they have a lid. Adding lids to the old blue crates wouldn't be ideal as they could be easily damaged, lost or blown down the street.
Collection of the crates was also an issue from an occupational health and safety point of view because we had runners on the street (around traffic), travelling on the back of the vehicles and having to lift heavy crates. The new bins will be collected mechanically, rather than manually, which is much safer.
You can keep your old blue recycling crate, but after the new service starts in your area, you will not be able to use it for kerbside collections on your collection day. We encourage you to use the blue crate as your indoor recycling bin. When it gets full, simply take the recyclable materials in the crate and tip them carefully into your recycling wheelie bin (to minimise glass breakage).
Please note: if you don't want to keep your old blue crate, Auckland City Council will be arranging for unwanted crates to be picked up. This service will be advertised closer to the time of the collection.
Benefits of using recycling wheelie bins
The benefits of using recycling wheelie bins are:
Waste minimisation:
- up to 22 per cent of the material currently thrown into the red-lidded rubbish bins is recyclable. The more we recycle, the less we send to landfill
- collections will be every second week thus reducing traffic congestion and pollution.
Safer and easier to use:
- you will no longer have to lift and carry your recycling to the kerb. The new bins can be wheeled around, making moving your recycling easier and safer for your back
- the bins will be collected mechanically rather than manually. This will reduce health and safety problems because the collection won't involve runners on the street, travelling on vehicles and having to lift heavy crates
- there will be less noise and a decrease in spillage and broken glass on the roadway as recyclables are no longer sorted on the back of the truck or at the kerbside. This will now be done at the recycling facility.
Clean and tidy streets:
- the wind can't blow recyclable materials out of your new bin the way it could with the old open-topped blue crates. This should reduce litter in your street and in your stormwater drains
- the lid also improves the appearance of the streetscape during recycling days as there will be no more overflowing crates.
No need to separate paper and cardboard:
- with the increased size of the new recycling wheelie bin, there is no need to sort paper and cardboard as this is now to be put in the new bin
- the recycling wheelie bin is a more convenient way to hold paper and cardboard. The lid will keep the paper and cardboard dry, which will produce a better quality recycled product.
Concerns about the new service
- Can't fit another bin on your property
- Can't physically manage a wheelie bin
- Other people filling your recycling wheelie bin
- Away from home on collection day
Can't fit another bin on your property
Wheelie bins are used throughout the world in many places where density of housing is greater than in Auckland and where the road verges are not as accommodating to the use of wheelie bins (eg London, Ireland and throughout continental Europe). Consequently the council is confident that households will find solutions for the storage of wheelie bins.
The council is aware of situations where a second wheelie bin could be problematic and are working on a range of solutions for the small pockets of Auckland who could be affected. We are confident from our experience with wheelie bins that the majority of Aucklanders will have no problems at all with the new recycling system.
Multi-unit dwellings will be able to use the new recycling service within particular guidelines. In cases where there is limited storage space or where there may be an excessive number of bins preventing footpath access, the council may negotiate with the property manager, body corporate or occupants to provide other solutions for communal use.
Can't physically manage a wheelie bin
Although the mobile recycling bins are larger than the blue crates, the wheelie bin weight is carried by an axle of the wheels rather than the residents' backs. The new system should prove to be much easier and safer to move from a health and safety point of view.
We are aware of instances where people cannot manage a 240-litre wheelie bin. These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis to establish, where possible, some alternative solutions.
Other people filling your recycling wheelie bin
To prevent people from dumping rubbish in your recycling wheelie bin, please put your bin out no earlier than the night before collection day, and bring it in again as soon as possible after it has been emptied. If dumping does occur, please remove all contaminates prior to the next collection.
Away from home on collection day
Ask your neighbour if they could put your bins out (and bring them back in) for you while you're away. You could return the favour when they're next out of town.
Recycling for schools, kindergartens and playcentres
As part of the new recycling service which starts on the 30 June 2008, all kindergartens, playcentres, primary, intermediate and secondary schools are eligible for a recycling collection at no cost to the school. Bins will be allocated as follows:
- Kindergartens/playcentres - one blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin
- Primary and intermediate schools - one blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin per 100 students
- Secondary schools - one blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin per 75 students
Schools will be notified of the delivery date and provided with additional information about the service at a later date.
Please note: this is a kerbside collection service and any exceptions to this need to be advised to council.
Schools which already receive the current recycling collection using the blue crates will be able to keep them after 30 June should they want to. Otherwise, these can be returned and you will be notified of a specific collection date.
Please contact us if your school would like to use this recycling service.
Recycling for businesses
Auckland City Council does not collect paper and cardboard waste generated by businesses. However, the council has agreed to provide additional blue-lidded recycling wheelie bins so that staff can continue to recycle everyday household recyclable items such as newspapers, milk containers and aluminium cans.
Businesses generating large amounts of paper and cardboard waste should make alternative arrangements with private contractors. Cardboard is a high value recyclable material and there are a number of collectors who provide this service. View the Yellow Pages website for details of private paper-recycling contractors.
Please note:
- private collections must be made from inside the property, not the kerbside
- businesses leaving loose material, in particular cardboard and paper, at the kerbside will be contacted by council officers. Persistent offenders will face a fine of $400 for illegal dumping.
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Updated June 2008
