Recycling hits crisis point
China’s far-reaching decision to effectively shut out New Zealand’s recyclables has resulted in about 100 tonnes of Southland’s plastics being stockpiled because there is nowhere else to send it.
China historically accepted 50 per cent of the world’s recyclables but last year announced restrictions on many types of materials.
Many councils and recycling operators in New Zealand are struggling to cope because of the lack of markets and decreasing prices.
In a Waste Management Institute of New Zealand [WasteMINZ] discussion paper, the country’s recycling sector is calling on the Government to take action to avert the country’s recycling crisis.
A report to the Invercargill City Council this week says Christchurch City Council is bailing out its recycling company as the fall in revenue from the sale of recyclables was no longer able to meet their operating costs.
WasteNet Southland senior waste officer Donna Peterson said China’s recycling policy changes had affected all of New Zealand’s recycling operators including WasteNet.
WasteNet operates a recycling processing contract in collaboration with the three Southland councils.
‘‘The impact to WasteNet Southland and our recycling contractor is previous recycling markets for plastics are now closed, and new markets are needed to be sourced,’’ Peterson said.
The contractor had started to stockpile plastic products as the majority of Southland’s plastic recycling was previously sold to China.
‘‘While we are looking for alternative markets to China ... the product is being stockpiled or sold at a loss.’’
Paper and cardboard stayed within New Zealand or was on-sold to Australia, so had not been impacted.
Glass had always been a topical issue for Southland, as the costeffective option was to stockpile recovered glass for use in construction.
‘‘Therefore Southland glass collected for recycling remains within the region.’’
WasteNet Southland was working with its recycling contractor and it was also working with WasteMINZ to source national solutions, she said.
Residents could help out by recycling properly.
‘‘The better quality of recycling we can produce, the easier it is to sell it to the new markets.’’
Long term solutions for recycling was needed in New Zealand, she said.
‘‘We believe there is room in the New Zealand market for the country to be able to support its own recycling industry, thereby reducing our reliance on international markets.’’
Council senior staffer Malcolm Loan, speaking at a council meeting this week, said many people were very concerned about the reducing ability to be able to sell recycling material.
Councillor Lloyd Esler said China’s pulling out of the market was a wakeup call for New Zealand to get systems in place to deal with its recycling material.
‘‘What worries me is people will say, we just won’t bother with recycling.’’
Councillor Ian Pottinger suggested a lot of councils may be getting legal opinions if the cost of recycling was such that it made more sense to bury it. ‘‘There must be a tipping point.’’
Councillor Karen Arnold said New Zealand had not been doing true recycling – it had been dumping dirty product on China and they had been happy to take it until recently,’’ Arnold said.
‘‘This is a challenge to the New Zealand society, what is recycling, is it just having a dirty pizza [box] in one bin ... I don’t think that is recycling.
‘‘Good on China, I say.’’
‘‘What worries me is people will say, we just won’t bother with recycling.’’ Councillor Lloyd Esler