East Aucklanders are being encouraged to do their part to help minimise the amount of rubbish set to landfill in the city each year.
The average super-city resident sends about one tonne of rubbish to landfill every year, according to Auckland Council.
But it says improved recycling services and new facilities that prioritise sustainable living are progressing Auckland’s journey to being a zero-waste city by 2040.
The council says recycling is one of the main things people can do to prevent rubbish going to landfill.
A new $16.6 million upgrade to the Visy Onehunga Materials Recovery Facility funded by the Government will see more material processed faster.
A more accurate sorting system has enabled the facility to increase its capacity by 28 per cent from 140,000 tonnes to 180,000 tonnes of recycling each year.
And individuals can play their part also by acting responsibly when it comes to disposing of items they no longer need but aren’t recyclable, such as an old computer monitor, worn-out clothes, a broken fridge or timber off-cuts.
Such items can be taken to one of the city’s 10 community recycling centres, the closest of which is at 37 Victoria Street, Onehunga.
It’s run by facility director Ron Muavae, who says people can drive in with a load of unwanted items and its staff will sort through and salvage what can be recycled or re-homed.
Unlike with landfill, where people pay for dumping their entire load of rubbish, there they only pay for things that can’t be reused.
Many of the salvaged items are cleaned up and repaired if necessary then sold cheaply in the centre’s re-use shop.
There’s also an onsite cafe and an education centre.
“We get a lot of comments from people when they’re coming through that this isn’t a commercial place. It’s a real community place,” says Muavae.
The centre accepts everything asbestos and other dangerous goods.
