Waikato District Council and Xtreme Zero Waste have today signed a new waste services contract, enabling the great mahi and partnership developed over the past 25 plus years to continue.

Xtreme Zero Waste is a community enterprise that delivers weekly recycling and food scraps collection services under contract with council in Whaaingaroa Raglan.

The new contract allows Xtreme Zero Waste securityoftheiroperations for another 10 years. It also enables important health and safety improvements to be made to the design of the collection vehicles and trailers to make them safer for staff.

Xtreme Zero Waste will provide comprehensive waste services for the community, in addition to kerbside services, the contract covers rural recycling collection, servicing litter bins, loose litter pick up in town, roadsides and open spaces, collecting illegal dumping; operating the Resource Recovery Centre; and disposal of residual waste to a responsible landfill.

Whaaingaroa Raglan waste services are funded through a mix of targeted rates, general rates and the weekly pre-paid bag rubbish collection service is fully user-pays.

Mayor Aksel Bech says today’s contract signing reflects council’s commitment to continue supporting the waste services solution that works for Raglan.

“As a council, our role is to enable and support initiatives that communities have built and believe in.Raglan has shown that local solutions shaped by the community often deliver the best outcomes.

“While waste minimisationremainsa challenge for every district in New Zealand, partnerships like this help us move towards a more circular economy where resources are reused and valued rather than discarded.

Xtreme’s Waste Operations Manager, Nenya Chapman, is thrilled with the new contract for kerbside services and resource recovery centre management.

“The partnership with Waikato District Council and the Raglan community through Xtreme has produced wonderful results for waste minimisation, diversion and community resilience.”

Mayor Aksel says Xtreme Zero Waste has consistently divertedaround more thanthree quarters of Raglan’s waste away from landfill, which is a remarkable achievement and one many communities look to as anexample.

“The Raglan community has embedded a zero-waste mindset into everyday life. That kind of behaviour change comes from community leadership and shared values.”

In the past year, Xtreme Zero Waste diverted 14,285 cubic meters of waste from land fill –that'sthe equivalent of 476 truckloads.

For more information about Xtreme Zero Waste go to: https://xtremezerowaste.org.nz

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