Recycling in Love NZ public place recycling bins is up 60%

Recycling in Love NZ public place recycling bins is up 60%

Over 200 tonnes of packaging and organic waste was recycled in Love NZ public place recycling bins in December 2012 which is over 60% up on the previous year.

28 regions are participating in the Love NZ public place recycling initiative funded by the Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund in conjunction with industry and local authorities. The initiative has brought the number of Love NZ permanent recycling bins nationwide to 1150 and added 2000 mobile event recycling bins which are being used in sports stadia, concert venues and other public arenas.

In the first full reporting year (September 2011 to August 2012) over 2223 tonnes of packaging and organic waste was diverted from landfill equivalent to around 85 million containers. Nearly a quarter of this was actually recycled as part of the massive effort made by New Zealanders and visitors during the Rugby World Cup. Love NZ is now into its second year of reporting and achieving a recycling rate of around 200 tonnes a month.

Nicky Wagner, Chair of the Love NZ Board said this is an enormous achievement by the councils and businesses involved:

“200 tonnes is the equivalent of recycling 7.7 million bottles, cans, plastic bottles and cartons. To put it in perspective that would fill around 83 forty seat buses collected around the country every month. The Rugby World Cup was the catalyst to put the infrastructure in place but it was vital to build on this momentum.”

The increase in recycling comes from the emphasis on increasing infrastructure and consumer awareness. Recycling bins can now be found at major transport hubs, service stations, tourist attractions and even on our Ski fields.

In November Love NZ ran a consumer awareness campaign called “It’s a Karma Thing” in conjunction with Coca Cola which encouraged people to recycle in the Love NZ bins earning Karma Kredits which could be used in an online auction. Over a two month period the campaign resulted in Kiwis scanning over 40,000 drink and food containers into Love NZ recycling bins.

The Love NZ brand is also being used on products and packaging to help people easily identify what can be recycled when they are away from home. Lion has led the way trialling this brand association on their Speight’s product range.

Love NZ is also monitoring the percentage of waste to recycling at venues or events to allow organisations to assess their performance. On average forty percent of what is collected from venues such as airports and stadia is being recycled which provides a real opportunity for improvement.

Love NZ public place recycling initiatives have been funded by a $2.35 million grant from the Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund, $500,000 from the Glass Packaging Forum and direct commercial sponsorship to date of over $545,000.

Note September and October 2011 = period of Rugby World Cup
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