New Zealand – local authority bylaw boost for ‘zero waste‘ goal

Many people are interested in the application of practical tools to attempt to make Zero Waste more than just aspirational.



NZ North Shore City Council has strengthened its waste bylaw and plans to license operators to help it achieve its ultimate goal of sending ‘‘zero waste to landfill‘‘. The council‘‘s infrastructure and environment committee has considered drafts of its new waste minimisation plan and waste bylaw, which provides for a future waste levy.



The updated plan renews the council‘‘s commitment to ‘‘zero waste‘‘ — and the revised bylaw will provide essential information and a source of funding to help make that vision a reality, says waste minimisation team leader, Danielle Kennedy. The council‘‘s 2001 waste minimisation plan set an annual target of reducing landfill waste by five per cent, a figure which is retained in the updated document.



Mrs Kennedy says the new bylaw will encourage an improved service by collectors by making them more accountable. It will also more fairly distribute costs to waste generators, creating incentives for people to further reduce waste.



The bylaw has also been broadened to encompass such things as waste management at events, unsolicited advertising, and waste management issues associated with multi-unit developments.



While additional costs to the waste operators would likely be passed on to the consumer, this would not amount to more than a few cents a bag, she says. Any additional funds from the new system would be spent on waste minimisation initiatives and administration of the licensing system only and not to subsidise the council‘‘s other waste collection activities. Future initiatives outlined in the draft waste minimisation plan include a kitchen waste collection, public place recycling bins, and hazardous waste reduction