Encouraging response to new recycling service

From City Scene, published on 6 July, 2008

New recycling information packs: Your guide to recycling and reducing waste.

Residents are responding positively to the start of the council's new, fortnightly, recycling service for eligible households and businesses on the isthmus.

"Initial feedback is that the new service has started smoothly. Of course there have been a few hiccups, but overall the public has put the right material in the bins and properly understood the changes," says Councillor Peseta Sam Lotu-liga, chairperson of the City Development Committee.

"The new system is safer and easier for residents to use, and helps the council to reduce the amount of recyclables going to landfill," says Mr Lotu-liga.

The new blue-lidded bins replace the blue crates previously used for recyclables, allowing people to put a wider range of recyclable material in the same bin, including paper and cardboard, plastic containers numbered 1 to 7, glass jars and bottles, and cans.

The blue-lidded bins will be emptied every second week on the same day as your weekly rubbish bin is collected. Bins should be placed out the night before collection day or before 7am on the day of collection.

The council will monitor the new system and work with businesses and residents to iron out any hitches.

This includes advising businesses that generate large volumes of recyclables such as cardboard to arrange private recycling firms to collect these recyclables.

The council is also offering extra recycling bins to eligible isthmus businesses and residential ratepayers for an annual cost of $60, including GST, per bin. These must be stored on the business premises and safely placed on the kerbside for collection.

The council asks residents not to place plastic shopping bags in the blue-lidded bins. They can wrap around the sorting machine at the materials recovery facility. Contaminants such as liquid and food scraps can also cause problems that may mean an entire truckload's contents have to be sent to landfill rather than being recycled.

"It's important that people familiarise themselves with what can and can't be recycled," Mr Lotu-liga says. The council is employing recycling bin "detectives" to work ahead of the collection trucks, checking the contents of bins placed for collection. Where rubbish or bagged recyclables are placed in the new blue-lidded recycling wheelie bins, residents will receive a reminder that bins will only be emptied if their contents are exclusively loose recyclable materials.

Remember

All your recyclables should go in your new blue-lidded bin. Put them in loosely. Do not use a plastic bag or tie newspapers or cardboard.
Do not use your blue crate. It will not be collected. Transfer any contents into your new recycling bin.
Put your bin in a place accessible to the arms of the collection truck.

Find out more:

For more details about the new recycling collections, read the information pack delivered with your new bin - including the fridge magnet, which highlights your recycling collection week or phone 379 2028.