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Wheelie Bins
Council provides a kerbside collection service to residential properties in most urban areas of the district and to some commercial premises and rural households along service routes. This is one of Council’s most popular services, consistently scoring over 90% in resident satisfaction surveys.
Each property has two 240 litre wheelie bins – a yellow-lidded bin for recyclables and a green-lidded bin for residual waste. The service alternates between collection of recyclables one week followed by general rubbish the next.
Recycling was introduced to the service in April 2012 in response to community demand, to meet our environmental responsibilities and to minimise the costs of waste disposal for ratepayers. By reducing the amount of waste going to landfill, we reduce the amount we have to pay in waste levies and emissions charges.
You can recycle rigid plastics, metal cans, paper and cardboard in your yellow-lidded bin. Glass is excluded from kerbside recycling because the costs involved are currently too great.
Download the brochure or see the FAQ’s below for more information about what can and can’t go in your wheelie bins and answers to other frequently asked questions.
What can and can’t go in my wheelie bin? Why do we need to separate recyclables? Why can’t I put glass or plastic bags in my recycling bin? What happens if I put the wrong things in my bin? What bin do I put out this week? I have too much waste to fit in my wheelie bins. What can I do? Can I have an extra bin or swap my yellow-lidded bin for another green-lidded bin? What’s happening? - My bin was only half emptied! Help - I have a smelly wheelie bin! Who do I contact if there was a missed collection or if my bin was damaged or stolen? I don’t have a wheelie bin but I’d like to join the service. Can I stop my wheelie bin service? How much does the wheelie bin service cost? Where does my waste and recycling go? What happens if my collection day falls on a public holiday? What happens if bad weather closes the roads?
What can and can’t go in my wheelie bin?
Home waste guide
This A4 guide to sorting your waste at home makes it easy to know which waste goes where – compost, recycling or rubbish. Print and place somewhere handy (i.e on your fridge) as a helpful reference. Click on the image below to download.
Why do we need to separate recyclables?
The main drivers for a two-bin scheme are environmental awareness, community demand and government legislation. By separating and recycling what we can, we reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and therefore reduce the amount we pay in waste levies and emissions charges. Recycling also contributes to meeting our environmental responsibilities.
Why can’t I put glass or soft plastics in my recycling bin?
Glass is excluded from kerbside recycling collection because of the significant costs involved in collecting and sorting this material. You can recycle your glass for free at the Mt Cooee Landfill and the Clinton, Lawrence, Milton, Owaka and Tapanui transfer stations.
Soft plastics such as plastic bags, chip packets, and gladwrap can’t be recycled through the kerbside collection because of the process at the sorting plant in Dunedin. The first part of the sorting process is done by machine and plastic bags and film are so light that the machinery recognises it as paper, meaning that the paper gets contaminated with plastic. Because of this only rigid plastics, numbered 1 -7 should be put in your yellow-lidded bin.
What happens if I put the wrong things in my bin?
The rules around what can and can’t go in each bin have been made to protect the health and safety of staff and to ensure a cost-effective and efficient service is provided to ratepayers. The success of the service relies on everyone putting the right items in the right bins. Contamination is taken seriously, with a “three strikes” system meaning that you get two warnings before your service is suspended for three months if it is found to be contaminated a third time.
What bin do I put out this week?
Having trouble remembering which bin to put out each week? Download and print this calendar and place in a handy spot – e.g. on your fridge.
(PDF, 453kb, opens new window)
Your bin needs to be out by 7am on the day of collection to ensure it is collected. You have the same collection day each week.
Rural households who have opted into the service will be collected once a week as the collection truck passes your property. Click here to view a map of the rural wheelie bin collection route.
I have too much waste to fit in my wheelie bins. What can I do?
If you’re finding that your green-lidded bin is filling up quicker than it is emptied there are some simple things you can do to solve this:
If you have more recyclables than can fit in your yellow-lidded bin you can dispose of these for free at Mt Cooee and the Clinton, Lawrence, Milton, Owaka and Tapanui transfer stations.
See our waste minimisation page for more helpful tips and information.
Can I have an extra bin or swap my yellow-lidded bin for another green-lidded bin?
No - in the interest of waste minimisation only one set of bins is provided to each property. Additional waste is the responsibility of the householder and can be disposed of at the Mt Cooee landfill or one of Council’s ten waste transfer stations.
Because the bins are rated as a set, they only come in pairs - you cannot swap your yellow-lidded bin for a green-lidded bin (or vice-versa).
What’s happening? - My bin was only half emptied!
A small number of people have found that their bins have only been half emptied on their collection day. This seems to be happening when rubbish is compacted too tightly in the bin and gets stuck. To ensure that your bin is fully emptied in the future don’t compact the rubbish in the bin. Remember, the bin must not weigh more than 30kg – if you need to compact your waste your bin probably weighs more than this.
Help - I have a smelly wheelie bin!
Some people may find that their green-lidded wheelie bin is a bit smellier now that it’s only emptied once a fortnight. However, there are some easy ways to reduce the risk of this happening:
Yellow-lidded bins should not get smelly as they should only contain clean, non-organic material.
Who do I contact if there was a missed collection or if my bin was damaged or stolen?
Contact Council on 0800 801 350, email help.desk@cluthadc.govt.nz
I don’t have a wheelie bin but I’d like to join the service
Great! Please fill out an application form and return to the address specified. If you’re on the collection route we’ll generally have your new bins delivered within a week. If you’re not on the collection route we may be able to offer you the service if you’re prepared to transport your bins to the route – we will be in touch if this is the case.
Can I stop my wheelie bin service?
For public health reasons, residential properties in defined urban areas cannot opt-out of the wheelie bin service – you have the choice not to use them, but you will continue to pay for the service through your rates.
If you have voluntarily joined the collection service you can stop the service at any time - please contact us on 0800 801 350. Your wheelie bins will generally be uplifted from your property within a week of cancellation.
How much does the wheelie bin service cost?
The wheelie bin service is funded by rates on the properties that Council is prepared to provide the service to. This rate is set by Council annually and is currently around $170 (incl GST) per year.
Where does my waste and recycling go?
Our Waste Management contractor, Delta, takes recyclables to Dunedin for sorting. From there it is sent to a variety of places in New Zealand and overseas for processing and re-use into new products. The waste from your green-lidded bin is disposed of at the Mount Cooee Landfill.
What happens if my collection day falls on a public holiday?
There are no collections on Christmas Day, New Year's Day or the morning of ANZAC Day (25 April). In general, bins usually collected on theses days are collected the following day (or later in the day on ANZAC Day). Council advertises any changes to the collection schedule.
What happens if bad weather closes the roads?
If we can’t collect your wheelie bin on your usual collection day due to bad weather, we will collect it on the next available day. Notification will be issued beforehand to confirm what day.
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