By Torika Tokalau of Local Democracy Reporting
The proposal to move rubbish bin collections in Auckland to a fortnightly service could be decided next month.
Auckland Council has proposed to move the weekly bin collection to fortnightly, like recycling bins, as part of their Waste Management and Minimisation Plan to reduce waste and carbon emissions.
The Planning, Environment and Parks Committee will meet on October 10 to discuss the final draft of the proposal, and if passed, the new service would be implemented in 2026.
Auckland Council waste solutions general manager Justine Haves said a major driver for their support to move to fortnightly collections was their commitment to Zero Waste by 2040.
“Moving to fortnightly collections encourages households to use the food scraps and recycling services we provide, which helps to reduce waste being sent to landfill.
“This benefits all Aucklanders, as landfills are harmful to the earth and cause emissions, and they take up land that could be better used by Aucklanders to recreate and live on.”
She said Aucklanders have seen the effects of climate change with the extreme weather events last year, and the zero waste initiative helped reduce harmful gas emissions.
“And Zero Waste measures help protect Auckland’s natural environment; the parks, beaches, and unique landscape that Aucklanders love. We live in a beautiful region and together we can keep it this way, and ensure we are protecting it for future generations – our children and grandchildren.”
Manurewa-Papakura Ward councillor Daniel Newman has been against the proposal from the start.
He said it’s not what all Aucklanders want, and for his constituents, moving rubbish collection to a fortnightly service would be a disservice to hard-working south Aucklanders.
“I’m in favour of doing useful things to reduce our carbon footprint but I’m absolutely not in favour of inconveniencing working families in south Auckland who need a weekly rubbish service,” Newman said.
“I will preference the convenience of my constituents ahead of a theoretical argument about the services that they need.”
However, Haves said a fortnightly collection means one less bin to put out weekly for working families, and the research showed that on the whole, waste going into the red bins was going down.
Aucklanders were becoming better at sorting their waste, and with large recycling bins, a food scraps and inorganic collection, there has never been a better time to introduce fortnightly collection, she said.
“Aucklanders are showing they are ready through their actions to help us get towards our Zero Waste goal for Auckland.”
She said council was doing their bit to work towards zero waste and were asking Aucklanders to also do their bit.
“Where larger households are still struggling to keep their waste down, despite all of the options we have for sorting waste, we do offer larger bins for a slightly higher cost in that household’s rates bill that works out to be about $2.20 per week more.”
There was also support for households with different needs, with three rubbish bin sizes available for a small additional cost, and an additional weekly food scraps bin, if needed.
Council staff are currently finalising their recommendation on the proposed change based on feedback from elected members.
Elected members will then discuss these recommendations at the Planning, Environment and Parks Committee meeting, and may choose to propose amendments.
“Following this process, a decision will be made.”
It’s unlikely the change would take effect before 2026, if it’s voted through.
Council would need to go to market for pricing around a collection service being once a fortnight, as opposed to once a week.
