Auckland opens to recycling

A NZ$4.2 million (US$2.8 million) comprehensive recycling facility was officially opened by New Zealand Environment Minister Dr. Nick Smith on 24 July at Onehunga, Auckland. The CID Resource Recovery facility has a capacity of 100,000 tonnes per year (half of which is expected to come from the construction industry) and is the largest in the country and the first to be established in Auckland.

The facility was part funded by a government grant of NZ$2.1 million (US$1.4 million) from the Waste Minimisation Fund, which was established from a NZ$10 (US$6.7) per tonne levy on landfilled waste introduced in July 2009 and which has generated more than NZ$60 (US$40 million) used to fund more than 100 projects in the last five years

Dr. Smith said at the opening: “This new recycling facility is about greening the building industry, enabling 30,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste to be diverted from going to landfill. It will enable thousands of tonnes of wood, plasterboard, steel, plastic and aggregates from the construction industry to be sorted and re-processed into a reusable form.” He went on to say that using a tax disincentive for sending waste to landfill and then the proceeds of that tax to partner with private business was a smart approach to reducing waste.