Waipā wins backing for major changes to rubbish collection services

Waipā District Council waste minimisation adviser Sally Fraser out in the community during consultation on the draft plan. Photo / Waipa District Council

Waipā District Council is looking to start a kerbside food scraps collection service as well as switch to a ratepayer-funded, pay-as-you-throw rubbish collection service after asking residents how they wanted the district’s waste to be handled in future.

Currently, organic waste makes up nearly half of all Waipā household rubbish and ends up in landfill, producing methane.

Now, the council does not rate for rubbish collection; instead, household rubbish is picked up by private companies after the rubbish collection was privatised more than 20 years ago.

Waipā Mayor Susan O’Regan said rubbish collection and food scraps collection options will now need to be factored into long-term plans, noting “neither will be cheap and neither will happen overnight”.

Both of these collection issues were discussed at the council’s June service delivery committee following the results of consultation on Waipā's six-yearly draft waste minimisation and management plan. Feedback on the plan was sought in March and April, drawing hundreds of responses.

Waipa District Council contractors hand-sort rubbish before categorising and weighing it as part of a waste audit in 2021.

More than half wanted the council to prioritise investigating a kerbside food scraps collection.

Whatever happens, a kerbside food scraps service will be in place for Waipā's urban properties by 2027 at the latest. At the same time the council was consulting, central government confirmed councils like Waipā must collect food scraps by 2027 anyway.

“While we now have no choice but to implement a kerbside food scraps collection ... it does look to me like there is a lot of interest in food waste and also a level of support. That’s a great starting position to be in,” O’Regan said.

Two-thirds of respondents agreed the council should investigate a council-provided rubbish service, and those investigations will now begin.

“If there is to be a change to the way household rubbish in the district is collected, we’re going to need to talk to our community about that, so there’s a lot of water yet to go under that bridge, " O’Regan said.

She thanked everyone who took the time to share their view.

The full results, plus an analysis of the council’s ‘Waste Less, Do More’ consultation, are available at www.wastelesswaipa.co.nz.