One-Stop Shop event collects tonnes of farm waste

Councillor Susan O'Regan is an advocate for the sustainable disposal of farm waste. Photo / Supplied

A rural waste One-Stop Shop event in Cambridge last week successfully disposed of 986kg of fertiliser bags, one tonne of chemicals and 910kg of chemical containers in a sustainable way.

The free event was aimed at farmers and growers in Waipā to allow them to dump their waste safely.

Agrichemical containers and drums, unwanted agrichemicals, used motor oil, scrap metal, seed, fertiliser and feed bags were popular items dropped off on the day.

Waipā councillor and Te Awamutu dairy farmer Susan O'Regan said most members of the rural community are committed to finding safe and sustainable ways to dispose of on-farm waste.

"The One-Stop shop event in Cambridge gave us the chance to work with farmers and growers to help them dispose of their farm waste in one go."

Containers will be recycled into underground cable covers and fertiliser bags will be turned into woven polypropylene bags.

Dairy farmers Craig and Julie Wards were two of the 46 people who went to the event to drop off empty 20 litre containers, waste oil and expired drench, and said it was great to have the option to do the right thing and recycle.

"The event was fantastic. It made it very easy to dispose of chemicals and other farm waste that would otherwise be tricky to get rid of in a sustainable and responsible way. We really appreciated the opportunity to do this."

The One-Stop Shop was run by non-profit rural waste stewardship organisation Agrecovery with support from Waipā District Council.

The event is part of an extension of the Rural Waste Minimisation Project, designed to tackle some of the barriers to recycling New Zealand's rural communities face and raise awareness of recycling options for farmers and growers.

The programme is partly financed by the Ministry for Environment's Waste Minimisation Fund.