What is Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)?
Video / WHO
With limited options for disposing of waste during nearly five weeks of lockdown, Whanganui people made both illegal and responsible choices.
One Papaiti Rd resident is furious at dumpings of fence remains and soil into the Whanganui River.
The woman, who did not want to be named, said several dumpingshad happened during the lockdown, by someone who had driven across a Whanganui District Council planting and the new Mountains to Sea cycleway to do them.
"This dumping has got to stop. I just think that's no way to treat our river," she said.
The dumpings included large amounts of soil and the remains of an unwanted fence. If that lodged on the riverbed it would be dangerous to swimmers, and it could catch debris in a flood, she said.
A Whanganui District Council spokesperson said it was illegal, and had been followed up by a contractor.
"The dumped rubbish was in a place that is difficult to access without specialist equipment. The rubbish will be removed when the necessary staff and equipment are able to go on site when the alert level 3 restrictions are lifted."
Some people have waited more than an hour to offload their recyclables. Photo / Bevan Conley
Another person has dumped a small truckload of bricks and concrete in sand dunes near Morgan St, Castlecliff resident Lynne Douglas said.
And the Gonville hospice shop in Tawa St has had at least two big drops of material, most of it unsaleable, dumped outside it.
"Of course we couldn't get to it during level 4, but it would appear that very kindly the council has dealt to it," Hospice Whanganui chief executive Karen Anderson said.
People may have used the lockdown to sort through unwanted possessions, and she is hoping that will eventually lead to some good donations to the hospice shops.
Others have disposed of waste in responsible ways. The Whanganui Resource Recovery Centre opened its front collection area on Tuesday when level 3 began.
Only six cars can use it at any time, and manager Dale Cobb said some people have waited nearly two hours for their turn. He recommends bringing a book to read while you wait, and sorting your recyclables at home to save time.
The mornings, limited to people over 65 from 9-10am, are especially busy. By 9am there is usually a line of vehicles out to Wilson St. Only six can use the centre at once, and he prefers one person to a car.
Most people get out of their cars once to open the boot, then leave centre staff in protective gear to put their recyclables in the correct bins.
People who have green waste to dispose of can drive around the back without queuing, and are asked to pay by eftpos.
Cobb is glad to have people back at the centre, and said the recycling public have restored his faith in humanity by their "A-plus" attitudes.
Waste Management's Midtown Transfer Station also opened when the alert level changed to 3. During the lockdown it had only accepted waste from essential services or waste that needed to be collected for safety reasons.
Since then the volume of waste coming is smaller than that before lockdown, a spokeswoman said. Despite limited entry and enforced physical distancing, there have not been large queues.
