Rudman's city: A smashing plot but still a trashy tale

By BRIAN RUDMAN

On Wednesday morning just after midnight, the hardworking ratepayers of Cleveland Rd, Parnell, were rudely awoken by the sound of their empties being sorted.

The brave new world of rubbish reform was upon them. And it would be fair to say they were rather annoyed. But not as grumpy as they were at 1.35 am, when they were reawakened by the rubbish collectors returning to transfer the sorted bottles into the cart.

This was not the stealthy progress of the old nightcart. This was a procession to wake the dead. Smash, smash, it went, as bottle after bottle was slowly pulverised.

The explanation was that the collectors were supposed to be done by 10.30 pm.

Works committee chairman Doug Astley would have you believe that such an incident was the teething troubles of a new system. Maybe it was. But from the endless calls of anguish this paper has received since the rubbish reforms started this week, there seem to be an awful lot of sore gums out there.

For Mr Astley to claim the roll-out of new bins had gone "very well" may be a tad optimistic. As he is not seeking re-election in October, I suppose he can afford to be optimistic.

The uproar over the new bins is a reminder to councillors that for most ratepayers, the big issues are the basic ones - rubbish, roads and water. On the whole we're very forgiving, but if councils mess up on these basics, people want to know why.

Some of the problems are, as Mr Astley says, of a temporary nature. A new contractor is involved and inevitably some settling-in time is needed.

For those of us confused about recycling coupons and new collection days, we have ourselves to blame. It was all explained in the literature provided, which for many, I suspect, went out with the junk mail.

But temporary problems aside, there is also a seemingly mindless inflexibility on issues.

A key example is the differentiation between those entitled to a free new wheelie bin and those who have to pay an annual fee of $185 for the privilege. The apartheid policy revolves around your method of paying rates. Those who pay it directly get a free bin. People who live in a block of flats which gets just one rate demand have to pay extra or miss out.

This discrimination is just not fair. Nor does it acknowledge the city's responsibility to provide adequate rubbish disposal services for all.

Unsurprisingly, landlords are baulking at buying additional bins. A friend in a block of 11 apartments reports that instead of their old 11 big wheelie bins, they now have two little ones. One was the free council one, the other is one they bullied their landlord into buying.

Where does the council think their excess rubbish will go? In street bins, neighbours' bins or dropped in plastic bags in someone else's street, I guess. Either that, or you can pay a private contractor to take it away. But how will that reduce the overall rubbish mountain?

The council has done itself no favours as far as schools are concerned, either. One small bin and that's their lot.

Surely it would have been smarter to provide compost and worm farming facilities for the kids' lunch waste. How better to teach recyling than by hands-on experimentation.

Mr Astley hopes extra call centre staff - 35,500 bin calls since June 1 - and roving "waste doctors" will soon have the city's rubbish recycling like clockwork. For his colleagues sake he'd better be right.

Otherwise come election day, Mayor Fletcher and her mates might as well haul their big bins to the top of Mt Eden and race themselves into oblivion before the voters do it for them.