Other
Food Waste
Food waste is sourced from various cooked food waste, meats, veggies, dairy produce, can be mixed with serviettes.
Breakdown of recyclables we can claim from food waste.
Waste resources: food waste, various cooked food waste, meats, veggies, dairy produce, can be mixed with serviettes.
Pre or post consumer waste: All food waste is post-consumer.
Waste supplier profile: Sourced from wide range of cafes, restaurants, shopping centres, public services and social venues.
Products types remanufactured: Usually turned into compost.
Plastic Film
Low density polyethylene (LDPE), number 4, is a plastic material that is readily recyclable under the right conditions. Similarly to most plastics, colour matters. Clean and clear LDPE materials are often found in the form of shrink wrap, bubble wrap and plastic packaging for clothing items.
At the commercial level, this material presents a recycling opportunity that is only viable given the material is clear and clean.
Aluminium Cans
This is what typically happens to aluminium cans collected for recycling in NZ.
Recycling aluminium requires only 5% of the energy and produces only 5% of the CO2 emissions as compared with primary production and reduces the waste going to landfill. Aluminium can be recycled indefinitely, as reprocessing does not damage its structure. Aluminium is also the most cost-effective material to recycle.
By recycling your aluminium and steel you will reduce your cost of waste to landfill and ensure that an important resource is not wasted.
Breakdown of recyclables we can claim from aluminium can waste.
Waste resources: aluminium, various cans.
Pre or post consumer waste: All aluminium is post-consumer.
Waste supplier profile: Sourced from wide range of cafes, restaurants, shopping centres, public services and social venues.
Products types remanufactured: Turned into new cans.
A recycled aluminium can saves enough energy to run a television for three hours.
Aluminium is a key resource to recover and it makes sense to recycle cans, they are light and can easily be crushed for transportation.
Its refreshing to know that the next aluminium can you drink from could well come back years down the track and hold another soft drink for you.
Steel Cans
This is what typically happens to steel cans collected for recycling in NZ.
Steel is the world’s most recycled material. Steel packaging is used for drink cans, food and petfood cans, paint cans, aerosols and containers of many other household and industrial products.
By recycling your steel you will reduce your cost of waste to landfill and ensure that an important resource is not wasted.
Breakdown of recyclables we can claim from steel can waste.
Waste resources: steel, various cans.
Pre or post consumer waste: All steel is post-consumer.
Waste supplier profile: Sourced from wide range of cafes, restaurants, shopping centres, public services and social venues.
Products types remanufactured: Turned into new cans and various other steel products.
Steel cans are the easiest type of packaging to recycle as they can be
picked out of the garbage and recycling waste by magnetic separation.
Each steel can is 100% recyclable. It can be recycled over and over again into new products like, bikes and of course new steel cans.
Steel cans, often called tin cans, have only a very thin layer of tin - 15 millionths of an inch thick to prevent corrosion – thinner than the skin of a soap bubble.
E-Waste Recycling
'E-waste' refers to any electronic device that is no longer being used or has reached the end of its life cycle. This includes anything with plugs, cords, and electronic components (e.g. phones, computers, TVs, power tools, and appliances).
The amount of e-waste New Zealand generates is growing at an astonishing rate, due in part to the introduction of new technologies and 'planned obsolescence' (when products are intentionally produced or designed to be discarded and replaced after a short period of time).
This is problematic as many e-waste items contain toxic heavy metals like cadmium, lead and mercury. The plastic casing and wiring of computer equipment can also contain hazardous materials, such as brominated flame retardants (a neuro-toxin). If this waste is sent to a landfill, there is a risk that these hazardous substances will produce leachates that pollute our environment.
Leachates are produced when percolating water and other liquids pick up heavy metals and decomposing organic waste. Uncollected leachate can contaminate groundwater and soil. Hazardous wastes can persist in the environment and enter the food chain, harming future generations.
Disposal of e-waste in general waste or recycling bins is also a fire hazard. When items containing batteries are compacted in the back of a rubbish or recycling truck, the battery casing breaks and leaks its highly flammable contents through the load. In 2021, there were 18 rubbish truck fires in Auckland alone!
While some manufacturers promote trade-in initiatives when new products are purchased, there is no nationwide incentive for this to always happen, as Aotearoa New Zealand does not yet have mandatory regulated product stewardship schemes for e-waste.
How should we dispose of our e-waste?There are a number of organisations across Aotearoa New Zealand who can refurbish e-waste to extend their lifespan, or alternatively separate out the recyclable components so that they can be recycled into a wide range of products (typically overseas). Many items are free to recycle, while larger items tend to have a small fee. The residual waste (i.e. the parts that are not able to be recycled) is then sent to a landfill.
- Check out your local Council website - many Councils provide e-waste collection points at their transfer stations.
- Some types of e-waste can be dropped off at select Noel Leeming and Warehouse Stationery stores (see TechCollect NZ for more details).
- Mobile phones can be dropped off at any 2 Degrees, Spark, or OneNZ retail store to be recycled through RE:MOBILE.
- Laptops (under 10 years old, with a charger) and tablets (under 6 years old, preferably with a charger) can be donated to Recycle a Device (RAD). RAD teaches students how to refurbish these devices, which then get donated to students and young people who need them.
- A range of batteries can be dropped off at most Bunnings stores.
- Car batteries can be dropped off for recycling at any Supercheap Auto store.
- More than 300 different electrical items (including batteries) are accepted by Upcycle.
- Fluorescent (mercury) lamps can be recycled through Interwaste.
- Various types of e-waste can be dropped off at EcoMatters.
- Hearing aids can be dropped off at Bay Audiology.
- Phoenix Metalman accept some electronics (including appliances, computers, TVs and stereos) and several battery types.
- Computer Recycling, E-cycle and Abilities Recycling accept various electronics, including appliances, printers, whiteware, cables and wiring, batteries and more.
Soft Plastics Recycling
The Soft Plastics Recycling Scheme is a project led by The Packaging Forum which invests in and promotes recycling solutions for hard-to-recycle soft plastic packaging.
The programme assists New Zealanders in keeping soft plastics out of landfill by working with numerous social enterprises nationwide to collect and process soft plastics packaging dropped off to retail and supermarket outlets by customers.
The project takes soft plastics packaging including bread bags, frozen food bags, toilet paper packaging, confectionery and biscuit wrap, chip bags, pasta and rice bags, courier envelopes, shopping bags, sanitary hygiene packaging - basically anything made of plastic which can be scrunched into a ball.
The material is then processed and distributed to different businesses that create fence posts, building products, garden edging, etc.
All soft plastics materials dropped off must be empty, clean and dry.
To find out more on Soft Plastics Recycling, follow the link below.