Napier floods: Free dumping of damaged items being rorted by residents

Redclyffe Transfer station with piles of flood-affected waste. Photo / Supplied

Napier City Council says free-dumping phonies have been purposefully wetting general waste to take advantage of free dumping for flood victims.

Redclyffe and Black Bridge transfer stations opened their gates free of charge for Napier residents who had been affected by the flood.

Napier City Council spokeswoman Tania McCauley said there have been several incidents at the two transfer stations.

"Some of them have turned up with waste that is clearly not wet – they are not flood damaged carpets, furniture or household goods," she said.

When the workers at the transfer stations asked if those people were disposing of damaged belongings, McCauley said their reply would be along the lines of: "No, would you like me to take it home again and wet it.

"Subsequently they have been told they will be charged and some have not been happy about it and become aggressive with staff," she said.

McCauley said the council and staff are tirelessly trying to help those who are in need.

"We would really appreciate it if people did not behave in this way and respected the guidelines we set in place, when we are already under pressure and trying to help those who genuinely need it," she said.

On Thursday the Redclyffe Transfer Station received about 120 flood-affected loads of waste.

Council is urging people to be sensible with what they're bringing to the stations.

"If you are bringing a flood-damaged fridge, please empty the contents first. Dealing with this on site is slowing down traffic," a spokeswoman said.

Charges still apply to those who weren't affected by the deluge on Monday.

There's likely to be extensive waiting periods and traffic management in place at both locations.

Vehicles will need to be weighed in and weighed out as normal.

Garden waste that was hit by the floods can be taken to the transfer station.

General garden waste should be disposed of at BioRich, Awatoto.

Licensed commercial waste collection operators - those who use skip bins - will be asked to divert directly to Omarunui Landfill.

Normal charges for general refuse start at $13 for less than 50kg and $26 for up to 100kg at Redclyffe.

Green waste is $10 for under 50kg and $14 for up to 100kg.

There is no charge for general recycling (paper, glass, cans, plastics type 1 and 2 and scrap metal).

Alternatively, Te Taiwhenua o Te Whanganui ā Orotū are collecting flood damaged goods kerbside on Saturday, November 14. The damaged items need to be put out on the kerb by 10am.