New nationwide recycling rules: little change for Horowhenua for now

Horowhenua is not ready to collect foodwaste. Photo / Supplied

New recycling rules come into effect on February 1, though implementation could take years. Apart from glass, Horowhenua chucks everything in one bin: paper, cardboard, plastic, etc. The council’s waste minimisation plan is under review and residents will be able to have their say on it later in the year on how they would like this issue to be tackled.

While the Government’s plan may be a radical change for many, according to a council press release, issued last week, the only thing that changes for Horowhenua for now is the fact that clean - recyling must always be clean anyway - pizzaboxes and meat trays can now be recycled, as long as they do not contain food scraps or grease.

If you look at the list the Ministry of Environment has issued - and if your head isn’t spinning by the time you are halfway through it - there is more than cannot be recycled and that can.

The biggest motivation for the standardised rules - the same rules will apply everywhere in the country from February 1, 2024 - is the fact that a lot of material going to landfill is food or garden waste, which can be turned into compost. Forty per cent of the waste going to land fill is food waste which makes methane, the list of standard materials says.

Horowhenua took recycling up a notch with new and much bigger bins.

The Horowhenua statement on the new rules was silent on that composting, though the rules say we must all do this by 2030. There is no recycling facility anywhere near us, so one will need to be set up and that will take time.

A lot cannot be recycled anyway, such as soft plastics - think cling wrap or the plastic your newspaper comes in as they stuff up the machinery in the recycling plant - plant pots as they are too dark and often filthy - no aerosols or aluminium foil. Nothing small, like lids or caps, or large (over 4-litre).

It is also not clear whether glass bottles and jar (squeaky clean, not broken), paper and cardboard (not shredded or lined with plastic like boarding passes) or plastic-lined like drink containers, plastic bottles and trays marked 1,2, and 5, and aluminium and steel cans and tins will need to be presented separately, either now or sometime in the future.

The list of what not to recycle in the compost is even larger... no ash, no tea bags, no sawdust from treated timber....

There is also little mention of the manufacturers’ role in this other than the statement the new rules will help them align their packaging to the kerbside standard materials.... why not tell them if it ain’t recyclable, do not make it.

E-waste can be recycled via the Foxton transfer station. Photo / Bevan Conley

Horowhenua District Council’s solid waste manager, David McMillan said, “We’d like to take this opportunity to remind residents of the importance of only including clean and recyclable items in their kerbside collections. Any contaminated or non-recyclables compromises all of the recycling and risks it going to landfill.”

McMillan encouraged the community to keep up to date with what items can and cannot be recycled by visiting What Goes Where on Council’s website.

“The Waste Management and Minimisation Plan (WMMP) is currently being reviewed and will be going out for consultation this year, alongside the Long-Term Plan.

This is an opportunity to have your say on composting and other waste minimisation initiatives for our district.

For more on what to recycle: https://www.horowhenua.govt.nz/Services/Home-Property/Rubbish-Recycling/What-Goes-Where/Rubbish-and-recycling-A-Z