Higher landfill fees set to reduce waste
The cost of dumping construction and industrial waste could increase as the Government looks to shake up landfill levies.
Household waste bills could also rise if regional authorities pass on planned increases, with costs expected to go up by up to 33 cents per bag.
The proposal, which could earn the Government up to $250 million a year, comes as ministers look to rein in increasing volumes of rubbish being sent to landfill.
Announcing the proposal in Christchurch yesterday, Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage said nearly 30 million tonnes of rubbish had been sent to municipal landfills in the past decade – an increase of 50 per cent – which could often be recycled, composted or reused.
Sage said it was currently cheaper and easier to send rubbish to the dump than it was to recycle but if jobs could be created in reprocessing waste, valuable materials would be recovered and the economy would be more efficient. The extra money for councils from an increased levy would help give Kiwis more options for re-using waste and better kerbside recycling, Sage said.
The Government charges a levy of $10 per tonne for domestic rubbish dumped in municipal landfills – one of the lowest levies in the world – and does not charge for dumping at other types of landfill.
In Britain, landfill taxes – paid by the landfill operator and passed on to business and local councils – are $178.41 (£88.95) per tonne, while in Australia, where each state sets its own prices, fees cost from being free in Tasmania to up to $210.31 (A$199.20) in the Australian Capital Territory.
Under the new proposal, the domestic levy could increase to as much as $60 per tonne, while construction, industrial and other waste could face a levy of up to $20 per tonne. Cleanfill (uncontaminated dirt) would not be levied.
Four different options are being considered.
If the levy increased to $60 per tonne, the cost of a roadside rubbish bag could be expected to increase to $2.83.
The levies bring in about $30m a year, which would rise to $220m to $250m a year under the proposed changes.
Half of that money is returned to local councils to spend on reducing waste, while the other half goes into the waste minimisation fund.
Better data collection, including setting up a central record of landfills and collecting information on the types of materials being dumped, is also proposed.
Local Government NZ welcomed the proposal. President Dave Cull said it was a chance to shape systemic changes that would bring the country closer to a circular economy.
He specifically called for onshore recycling centres, a national waste minimisation strategy, expanded glass recycling capability, and controls on hard-torecycle plastics entering New Zealand.
But the Taxpayers’ Union has labelled the plan a ‘‘revenue grab that will hammer poorer taxpayers’’.
Spokesman Louis Houlbrook said it would have a disproportionate impact on the budgets of large households in the poorest suburbs.
The public can provide feedback on the proposal until February 3. No decision is expected until the middle of next year.