Thames-Coromandel rubbish audit results move council to reduce waste mission

Thames-Coromandel District Council completed a rubbish audit in March. Photo / Supplied

After their kerbside rubbish and recycling collection audit in March, Thames-Coromandel District Council is on a waste-minimisation mission - with the help of worms.

Following the findings of the audit, the council is working on reducing the district's waste, as it found that the Coromandel produces more than 75 tonnes of waste each week - 79 per cent of material in the district's kerbside bags can be diverted from landfill.

As part of the campaign "Lets Bin the Bad Habits", the council is running a competition to give away a worm farm kit to compost kitchen scraps. Council has also shared some recipes, also from local cafe owners, to use up leftovers that would otherwise sit in the fridge until being thrown out.

Mayor Sandra Goudie says: "This audit shows just how much waste our communities are contributing to landfill that we don't need to be. If we all did out bit to compost and recycle correctly, think about how much we could achieve."

During the three-day audit in March, auditors collected about 1.7 tonnes of refuse from a variety of streets across each of the three Coromandel towns.

The majority of the material found in the kerbside bags, was kitchen waste making out 52.4 per cent of the contents in the council's official blue rubbish bags. Recyclable materials such as glass, paper and plastic made up 18.5 per cent, however, this material could be either composted or recycled instead of going to landfill.

Ways to minimise waste include better composting, recycling and dropping reusable goods at second-hand shops instead of tossing them out.

The council is running a competition to give away a worm farm kit to compost kitchen scraps. Photo / Supplied

"It's important that we think about what we are doing with our waste and where we're taking it.

"Our council website has all the information about what can be recycled and what can't. If you're not sure if something is a hazardous item that should be handled separately from general rubbish, ring your local Refuse Transfer Station to make sure you're disposing of it correctly. They've got facilities for hazardous items like batteries and light bulbs."

To enter the competition to win a worm farm, share your favourite waste minimisation tips and photos of using up your leftovers with council.

Find out more about Coromandel's mission here.