MEDIA RELEASE

19 December 2003

Rakino gets new waste management strategy

Auckland City Council last night adopted the Rakino Waste Management Strategy for inclusion in The Rakino Way, An Island Community’s Strategy. In 2002, some 34.48 tonnes of rubbish, including 5.28 tonnes of glass and 1.6 tonnes of paper/cardboard were transported off Rakino Island.

Submissions to the draft waste management strategy could be made from 2 May to 14 July 2003, and some 33 submissions were received. At it’s meeting of 21 May 2003, council’s Works Committee appointed a working party comprising councillors Bill Christian, Glenda Fryer and Noelene Raffills to hear comments on the draft strategy. This hearing was held in November, and the report and recommendations submitted to council through the Works Committee.

“The main aim of the strategy is to establish a community approved framework for managing waste on the island, that reduces the waste going to landfill on the mainland, and reduces impacts on the Island's outstanding natural environment,” says Councillor Bill Christian, Works Committee chairperson.

Refuse and recycling services on Rakino are designed to both accommodate the unique nature of the island and encourage waste minimisation through application of the ‘waste hierarchy’, which is based on the principle that discarded materials are resources and not waste.

According to the adopted strategy, the island’s household kerbside refuse collections will cease and be replaced by mini-transfer-stations at various sites around the island. These sites will encourage separation of rubbish for maximum recycling. The material collected will be barged to the mainland for final disposal. Visitors to Rakino will also be encouraged to take their rubbish away with them.

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