Te Kura Taumata o Panguru was last week named as one of nine schools around the country to have won a specially designed set of bins for their innovative video pledges to 'Put litter in its place,' which they shared with their whānau and friends on social media, in a BINfrastructure competition.
The response to the competition delighted but probably didn't surprise Be a Tidy Kiwi programme manager Richard Leckinger.
"Thousands of Kiwis have made the Be A Tidy Kiwi pledge in 2019, and we've seen increasing commitments from young people, as they are no longer prepared to sit by and watch us trash our country," he said.
"The reason we ask for a public pledge to 'put litt
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The competition was part of a partnership between The Packaging Forum, which promoted the government's Love NZ brand, and Be A Tidy Kiwi, which together hade been trialling innovative smart BINfrastructure across the country over the last three years, backed by a nationwide campaign delivered on TV, radio and social media (bandtogether.co.nz).
"Our BINfrastructure trials in towns around New Zealand have proven to also reduce contamination, so we are delighted to get these designs into schools that otherwise couldn't afford them," Mr Leckinger added.
"We know it's important to have strategically positioned colour-coded bins, which allow people to dispose of their rubbish.
"Three years of campaigning, three years of litter counts and three years of trialling smart BINfrastructure have paid off, and we're seeing a measurable decrease in litter and a measurable increase in recycling performance. It's a win."
Packaging Forum litter project manager Lyn Mayes said the bins' colours and clear signage were effective.
"In the past, bins have been chosen to blend in with the streetscape, when what we have needed are eye-catching bins that use nationally agreed recycling and waste colours. Eighteen councils have now adopted the new-style bins in a move towards national consistency.
We've introduced the moveable 'bin frame' as a more cost-effective and practical solution for schools — the frame locks the wheelie bins in place, and each school can choose the type of materials that they want to collect, and we have also developed best practice guidelines for design and installation to help organisations tackle litter and reduce costs using smart technology and national consistency."
The three-year $2.4 million Litter Less Recycle More project had received $1.72 million in funding from the government's Waste Minimisation Fund, to support investment in infrastructure and a national awareness campaign.
