PLASTIC RECYCLING: Those wishing to recycle plastic can do so through kerbside collectors who pick up rubbish and take it to Green Sky Waste Solutions in Whakatu to be sorted and processed.
PLASTIC RECYCLING: Those wishing to recycle plastic can do so through kerbside collectors who pick up rubbish and take it to Green Sky Waste Solutions in Whakatu to be sorted and processed.
A recycling station run by the Napier City Council has come under scrutiny after locals used social media to express concerns that plastic rubbish intended for recycling was being dumped in the general waste area.
However it appears the council has not accepted plastic waste since May 2014, because toomany potentially recyclable items were contaminated and it was costing the council $4000 a month to send the contents of the plastic bins to recycling.
Council waste minimisation lead Rhett van Veldhuizen said only paper, glass and metal were now accepted in the rubbish and recycling section at Taradale's Redclyffe transfer station on Springfield Rd."Despite the bin being removed people continued to dump plastics at Redclyffe so we had to reinstall a cage for plastics to encourage those who did show up with them to dispose of them in this cage rather than contaminate the other bins to the point it made these bins unusable," he said.
Mr Veldhuizen said the amount dumped in the plastics cage, which is emptied into the landfill, was enough to fill it twice every day, and was often contaminated with non-recyclable plastics such as PVC, soft plastics, toys and planter pots.
Many people expressed their concerns about this on Facebook, and Mr Veldhuizen reported that the council was aware a recent Facebook complaint from someone unhappy about the way recycling was handed at Redclyffe.
"The contents of this cage is sent to the landfill at the moment, but we will be reviewing plastics collection as part of the regional waste management and minimisation plan and/or Waste Futures project with Hastings District Council."
Mr Veldhuizen said this might mean having a permanent staff member based in the recycling area to monitor the recycling bins.
Until the review Mr Veldhuizen encouraged Napier residents to clean and sort their recycling thoroughly.
"We encourage people to clean and separate recyclables before they are put out for recycling, whether for kerbside collection, or for disposing of at Waste Management's drop-off centre in Austin St, which they can do so at any time."
Kerbside plastics were processed by GreenSky in Whakatu and then baled and shipped for recycling, he said.
