Green bins saved: Council U-turn on recycling

Wellington City Council has backed down on its plan to scrap plastic recycling bins after a public backlash over plans to introduce a user-pays system.

The council said two weeks ago it would recommend that recycling bags, bought at supermarkets for about $1 each, should replace the 45-litre green bins.

Introducing user-pays bags was to bridge a $1.1 annual funding shortfall in the council's recycling services.

Outraged ratepayers sent about 1000 emails to the council demanding that the bins be retained.

A "save the bins" petition, set up by Jonathan Smith, has been signed by more than 7200 people. "All I can say is the signatures speak for themselves," he said. "Wellingtonians have spoken."

Now the council has reverted to the status quo and is recommending keeping the bins in use.

But even though it proposes no change to kerbside services, it still plans to consult the public.

Councillor Jo Coughlan told the strategy and policy committee that the decision was "looking pretty dodgy". "How can it look good to go out and consult on the status quo?

"We don't think we should change anything but we will go out and spend all this money asking people anyway."

The consultation will also seek feedback on replacing bins with recycling bags, recycling stations, wheelie bins, pre-paid stickers on recycling containers, and even dumping the service altogether.

The council now recommends that the service should remain funded through a recycling levy charged on waste disposed of at the tip.

Mayor Kerry Prendergast said retaining the bins was financially unsustainable, but public feedback showed people wanted recycling funded entirely through rates.

"They see recycling, like the rubbish [collection], as a core service by the council. They don't want their rates to go up but they do want it considered as part of their rates ... they say find it [funding] somewhere else."

The council is in the process of deciding which projects and services should be axed or deferred so it can save $50 million over 10 years and keep rates increases to the rate of inflation.

Ditching the user-pays proposal without increasing rates means the council will have to cut another $1.1 million from its budget.

There has been no significant change to recycling since the kerbside collection was introduced more than 10 years ago.

Recycling is collected and delivered to Transpacific AllBrite in Seaview where it is sorted and shipped to mainly Chinese markets. This will continue if the bins are retained.

- © Fairfax NZ News