By Jim Birchall
Buckland’s beach local, 79-year-old Mary Wilton is fed up with Auckland Council’s inorganic collection policy.
The current system, allows for a ratepayer to have one annual pickup of inorganic items. After booking an appointment two months in advance, Mary was disappointed to see her refuse had been rejected by collectors and a card left by pick-up contractors detailing what items were not accepted.
Mary believes the list of prohibited items is too restrictive and expects more from council, particularly when coupled with “regular rate rises”.
Mayor Phil Goff recently announced of an average general rates increase of 2.5 per cent for the 2019/20 financial year. Defeated Auckland mayoral candidate John Tamihere vowed to bring back collections on a two week cycle if he had been elected.
Council stipulates a property with goods for collection must be accessible to the contractors and refuse must not be left on the road under any circumstances. Mary points out that this is impracticable as many homeowners have pets and children that need to be secured in by a locked gate.
As a result, many Bucklands Beach residents have taken to leaving their unwanted items out on berms and areas outside their properties creating an unsightly environment. The collection rules were changed in 2015 in response to council concerns over safety.
However Mary believes the old system wasn’t broke and says “at least it all got picked up” when a foraging free-for-all saw some people comb the suburbs for goods fit for repurpose. ‘
Auckland Council’s website has all the guidelines. Here’s a snapshot:
Book your inorganic collection
If you have inorganic items you would like us to remove, you need to let us know by booking a collection.
How inorganic collections work
Every area of Auckland is allocated a week each year for an inorganic collection.
There is no charge to book an inorganic collection. One collection of up to one cubic metre of inorganic material per year is included in your property rates.
For details on the accepted items see, what you can and cannot put out for inorganic collection.
How to find out when your collection week is
Flyers will be delivered to mail boxes in your area several weeks before your area’s assigned collection week.
From mid-January you can enter your address into the online booking tool to find out your collection week. However, if your allocated week has already passed for the year, this information will not show.
You can use our online booking tool to find out your collection week, without actually making a booking.
When you can book an inorganic collection
You can book your collection anytime from mid-January to eight days before your scheduled collection week.
If you do not book a collection during this time period, you will need to find alternative ways to disposing of your items.
What do you think? Email jim@times.co.nz
