Dumping ground: Question mark over Havelock North recycling station

Havelock North's recycling centre can get overwhelmed by the amount people bring to it. Pictured here after Christmas. Photo / Warren Buckland

The future of the Havelock North's recycling station is up for debate, with the council saying it is currently being used as a dumping ground.

Hastings District Council Asset Manager Craig Thew said it was considering better ways to manage the Martin Pl centre.

He said because the site is not manned it does tend to cause some problems, for example, non-recyclables being disposed of at the site.

"No decisions have been made, other than to look at options for better managing drop-off recycling in Havelock North."

Future of the Martin Place recycling station in question due to rubbish dumping. Photo / Paul Taylor

He said it was likely it would have to move at some point as council was leasing the land the site is on.

The Martin Pl site was set up primarily for people who do not have access to kerbside recycling, but is used by many people in Havelock North who do have access to the service.

Since it's establishment, nine more recycling locations have been set up in Hawke's Bay, meaning if Martin Pl were to close, people could still drop off their recycling.

Hastings-Havelock North ward councillor Malcolm Dixon said there had been no decision made around the future of the recycling centre.

He said he would like to see a new site found, which would be able to hold the capacity of recycling going through the centre.

"It's not big enough to cope with the demand.

"It's great that people are continually recycling, that's fabulous, but the site, the amount that is going in there is phenomenal."

He said the current site was useful for many people in Havelock North, as it was on a lot of people's routes to and from work.

"It's quite central, and it serves a purpose for the community."

He said people also use the site to dump rubbish, which is disappointing.

"It was set up for purely recycling.

"I've seen old mattresses there, and that's not what the purpose was."

He said supervision of the site might help solve the problem.

RECYCLING CHANGES

What can and can't be recycled in Hastings, and how it is collected is changing.

People are no longer able to put their recycling in non-translucent bags, with all bags being phased out over a four-week period.

This is because it is harder for collectors to visually assess whether there are any items which cannot be collected, such as broken glass, when left in a bag rather than a container.

Currently council is able to collect plastic grades 1-7. This may change at the end of the month, with a council spokesperson saying the most likely scenario is that on plastic grades 1-2 will be collected. However, these changes are not definite and need to be approved by council.

Recycling needs to be cleaned before being put out for collection.