It's a trash palace

Keen recyclers in Franklin fear their conscientious efforts are taken for granted. Rowena Orejana talks to one resident about what the rural locals really want.
Every Monday morning Aliah Jan takes out her black plastic rubbish bags and puts a $2 Franklin rubbish collection sticker on each one. Without the stickers, her rubbish would not be collected.
Recyclable materials are another matter. The Awhitu Peninsula resident must drive out to the Matakawa recycling depot. "The environment is very important to us,'' she says.
At present, rural areas of Franklin have little or no viable means of disposing of recyclable waste. Franklin Local Board has asked the Auckland Council to include rural areas when
unifying rubbish and recycling policies.
"Recyclable waste is more often than not included in general waste destined for landfills or, even worse, buried or burned in pits and rural properties,'' says Andy Baker, board
chair. Only those householders dedicated to recycling make the trip to the recycling depot.
That, he says, negates any positives of being an eco-city. "To coin an old phrase, it has to be 'all for one and one for all' when it comes to these sorts of regional Auckland
statements. Nowhere have the recycling needs of Franklin been mentioned.''
Auckland Council says the status quo will remain until the new Auckland Council waste management and minimisation plan (WMMP) is in place. Solid Waste Business Unit spokesman Jon Roscoe says the plan will set out the new solid waste services for the whole region and the budget required.
"The draft WWMP plan will be released for public consultation later this year, providing an opportunity for ratepayers to make submissions on what is proposed,'' he says.
"Councillors and local board members will also have opportunities to provide input.''
Mr Baker says the board will submit its position at the appropriate time. "I've spoken to council staff of the environment and sustainability forum and our councillor, Des Morrison. We just want to ensure that Franklin will not be forgotten.''
Mayor Len Brown's first 100 projects include providing wheelie bins for Papakura and Rodney districts. Papakura will be issued with these bins as its  recycling contract expires in September this year.
However, none has been set for rural Franklin areas. Mr Baker says  the council should perhaps look into the feasibility of providing larger wheelie bins with a two or three-weekly collection cycle.
"If we are serious about being environmentally responsible across Auckland, all of Auckland must be included,'' says Mr Baker.
Mrs Jan says she voted for Mr Brown because she believed "he works for everybody. But it is important that this Auckland Council realise that the people who were objecting are still waiting to be included in the new Auckland Council policies.''
"This inclusion is very, very important, in even little things like that. Everybody is waiting to see whether we are still on our own or nobody cares about us.''
Our loads of rubbish
Rubbish, recycling and waste minimisation programmes in the region are, by law, solid waste contracts. Until they are unified under the new council, local rules are:
Auckland City
Every rated property that has red-lidded wheelie bins is also entitled to a blue-lidded recycling wheelie bin. CBD and Gulf Islands properties have alternative arrangements. Collection of both is weekly.
Franklin District
Weekly rubbish collections in the district are stickered bag collections. Each rubbish bag must have an official $2 FDC green and white sticker attached. Rubbish bags are standard 60-litre bags. Maximum weight of rubbish is 18kg. Green wheelie bins are provided for those who live in towns. Others can take recyclables to a refuse transfer station or rural recycling depot.
Manukau City
Each bag or bin should be no larger than 60-litres and no heavier than 18kg. No official
council bag or sticker required. All recycling goes in one recycling wheelie bin, including paper and cardboard. Recycling is collected fortnightly and rubbish is collected weekly.
North Shore
Only household rubbish in official prepaid rubbish bags - orange 40-litre and 60-litre bags - is collected. The price of the bag covers the cost of collection and disposal of rubbish. All households are provided with a recycling wheelie bin for plastics, glass, aluminium and steel cans, and aerosol containers. Recycling is collected fortnightly,
rubbish weekly.
Papakura
Household rubbish is collected only in official red rubbish bags sold in dairies, supermarkets, petrol stations and other outlets at a recommended retail price of $1.50.
This covers the cost of the bags, their collection and disposal. Green recycling bins are free to all households and businesses. Rubbish and recycling collections are weekly.
Rodney District
Households and businesses are responsible for the collection of their own waste either by buying a bin or rubbish bags supplied by one of the companies operating in their area. The kerbside recycling service is available to all households, businesses and schools in Rodney. It is included in the annual rates at a cost of $43 a property. Urban households have 55-litre bins which are collected weekly. Rural households have 70-litre bins,
collected fortnightly.
Waitakere
Household rubbish is collected weekly in the official grey bags which cost $2.05 at
supermarkets, service stations and dairies. Recycling is collected fortnightly in a 140-litre or 240-litre blue wheelie bin with a yellow lid provided to each household. Plastic, glass and cans may be placed in the recycling bin.