Kerbside recycling service coming to Whanganui in July

Each household in the service area will receive three recycling crates.

Kerbside recycling collection service will begin in July in Whanganui. Whanganui District Council has confirmed Low Cost Bins as the contractor.

The confirmation comes after a rigorous tender process in which the council reviewed 11 options from businesses throughout New Zealand. Based on a range of criteria, Low Cost Bins was selected as the contractor best placed to deliver the services.

Whanganui District Mayor Andrew Tripe says the introduction of this service is a major step forward for Whanganui in terms of reducing our environmental impact and promoting a more circular local economy.

“After many years in the works, it’s great that we can now firmly say that our kerbside recycling collection service will begin in July this year, benefiting households in urban areas of Whanganui as well as some of our larger rural settlements including Mowhanau, Fordell, and Marybank.

“The service will be funded by a targeted rate applied to households in the service area, supplemented by ongoing subsidies from the Ministry of the Environment’s Waste Levy. These subsidies aim to reduce the financial burden on our ratepayers while supporting efficient management of waste.”

Before the launch of the service, households within the service area will receive a set of three crates, each of which can be used to recycle paper and cardboard, plastics and cans, or glass bottles and jars. These crates will enable residents to conveniently sort their recyclables and reduce waste sent to landfills.

Council community property and places general manager Sarah O’Hagan says the decision to use a crate-based system rather than wheelie bins is based on evidence that crates are less prone to contamination — which has been a major issue for bin-based recycling services nationwide.

“The big advantage of crates is that our contractors will clearly see the contents of them when they collect the recyclables — meaning they can quickly identify contamination. Recycling is hugely important, but only impactful when done properly. So, we’ll be putting a huge emphasis on educating the community on sorting material well, so we can avoid issues other regions have faced.”

Low Cost Bins Ltd chief operating officer Andrew Sclater is enthusiastic about the launch of the new service and believes his company’s local knowledge will be crucial.

“As one of the few Kiwi-owned waste and recycling companies, and with our founder Colin Cashmore having lived in Whanganui and built long-standing business contributions to the region, Low Cost is in a unique position to deliver this service. We’ve provided waste services to Whanganui for several years now and we’re confident that our extensive local knowledge will help ensure the successful rollout of kerbside recycling here.”

Sclater says another important element of the new service is its potential to stimulate local employment, thanks in part to the adoption of a crate-based recycling system.

“As well as reducing contamination and improving the quality of recyclables, the crate-based system will provide local job opportunities, with materials being collected and sorted by hand in Whanganui [rather than heading to a mechanical sort line in another region].”

Councillor Rob Vinsen, who has long championed waste issues in Whanganui, says he’s pleased the council is finally bringing the service to reality.

“Whanganui has been an outlier in not having this service — we’re one of just a handful of councils in New Zealand yet to introduce kerbside recycling. Thankfully, we’ve had the Resource Recovery Centre, and plenty of our local community members have been recycling diligently there. But the lack of a convenient kerbside service has undoubtedly been an obstacle for many would-be recyclers, so it’s great we’ve finally got this across the line.”

Whanganui District Council will provide detailed information about the new services, including guidelines on correct recycling practices using the crate system, in the coming months.

Low Cost Bins will also partner with the council to deliver a kerbside food scraps collection service to urban households in Whanganui, starting from July 2025.

For more information and updates on the kerbside recycling and food scraps collection services, go to whanganui.govt.nz/recycling