The discovery of live ammunition on the sorting-line conveyor belt at the Te Awamutu recycling plant on Friday has prompted further calls for people to get their recycling sorted.
The rusty 12-gauge shotgun cartridge was mixed in with recycling and is the latest in a long list of hazardous materials staff have been discovering.
Group manager service delivery Dawn Inglis said the shotgun cartridge could have had a devastating impact on staff and equipment at the recycling plant.
![Live shotgun cartridge located discarded amongst recycling.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/BMH64KMENVGI5NLZG673WKAIAI.jpg?auth=bfcd259aa1de44cdd3d7cbe4817ee4e426dcf72c14572312aec5b1962338659b&width=16&height=9&quality=70&smart=true)
“For the cartridge to have made it through the truck compactors and the plant loader unscathed was sheer luck, it could have gone off at any stage.”