Changes coming for yellow rubbish bag users

Changes are being made to rubbish and recycling service offerings provided in Kāpiti. Envirowaste, one of four providers operating on the Coast, has chosen to no longer sell the combination yellow rubbish bag and recycling bin service.

Group Manager Infrastructure Services Sean Mallon says this means plastic rubbish bag users will need to look into an alternative rubbish and recycling service.

“Kāpiti’s kerbside rubbish and recycling services are provided solely by external providers and the Council has limited control over their offerings. The service isn’t included in rates and this is different to the way a lot of other Councils across the country operate. Council licenses providers to deliver these services, but each provider decides what services they deliver,” says Mr Mallon.

“Moving away from bagged rubbish collection is a growing trend in New Zealand and overseas as it’s more environmentally friendly, and safer for rubbish collectors. Sales of bags on the Coast and around the country have been declining over the past few years, and many Councils around the country are phasing out bags.”

“If you use yellow rubbish bags, you should get a letter from your provider this week outlining the changes, what it means for you and the key dates you need to know. If you don’t get this letter, or have any questions, please direct them to your provider. You’ll need to look into the alternative options available and decide which suits you best. If you’d like to keep your current recycling service that you get with bags, you’ll need to sign up for a new service.”

"Our website outlines the range of providers people can contact to look into rubbish bin and recycling services. Alternatively, people can dispose of their rubbish and recycling at the Ōtaki or Otaihanga transfer stations, or talk to you neighbours or family about sharing bins. Here in Kāpiti we currently have one of the highest percentage of recycling rates across the region. This is great and we’re keen to see this trend continue. So if you’re unsure about how to manage your waste or recycling, talk to your friends and family about what option’s best for you.”

Background

In 2012-13 after community consultation, Council made the decision to stop providing kerbside collection services. The reason for this change was that alternative providers could provide more cost effective services, at a much lower rate than the Council could match.  The difference in price was because the Council had to cover the costs of providing kerbside recycling to those ratepayers who use the recycling service weekly, but only use the rubbish bag collection service infrequently. There wasn’t enough revenue from the rubbish bag sales to cover the cost of recycling. This introduced a full user pays system for rubbish and recycling on the Kāpiti Coast.

Licenced rubbish collectors in the District could continue to provide a rubbish bag service if they wanted to, and one provider has been selling and collecting bags since then. Council has limited control over what services these providers choose to deliver, provided they are meeting the conditions of the Solid Waste bylaw.