Following the Government scraping the mandatory requirement for kerbside composting, Ashburton District Council revisited its decision but reaffirmed its plan to roll out a green waste service in September 2026. Photo: Supplied
If they no longer have to, will Ashburton still roll out green waste bins?
That was the question Mayor Neil Brown wanted answered during the recent council budget workshops at the end of January.
The government changed the mandatory requirements for councils to introduce food waste services at the end of last year.
It was a decision made months after the Ashburton District Council consulted on introducing a broader organic waste service, set to roll out in September 2026 with strong community support.
Brown felt it required another discussion following the government backtrack.
"Now we have a choice," Brown said.
"When we consulted on the long-term plan, we didn't have a choice. Now we do.
"I'm not saying we would change any decision, but I think we need to have the discussion to confirm or change [the decision]… because things have changed."
It made good sense to at least have the discussion, he said after the workshops concluded last week.
The brief discussion reaffirmed the council's direction.
"The decision to continue with the rollout was pretty straightforward.
"The community has expressed strong support for the introduction of a green-waste kerbside service and we've already secured substantial funding from the Ministry for the Environment.
"The tender process is going well and we remain on track to introduce the service from September next year, when our new waste management contract takes effect."
In November 2022, the government agreed to five policies to improve household recycling.
The standardisation of which materials can be included in recycling schemes took effect in February.
The new government decided at the end of last year that the other four (mandatory kerbside composting and recycling for urban areas, report on materials diverted from landfill, and performance standards for council recycling and composting schemes) will no longer go ahead.
The Ministry for the Environment update in December stated the government decision had been aimed at reducing additional costs on councils and allowing more choice around the timing for introducing any new services.
It also said the government would continue to support councils to introduce recycling and food scraps collections through the Waste Minimisation Fund.
A Ministry for the Environment spokesperson said the council was granted $863,000 through the Waste Minimisation Fund.
"This is to help the council establish a combined food and green waste kerbside collection service for households."
Ashburton has already received around 70 percent of its funding towards rolling out the bins.
The project is due to be completed by early 2026 and the council would have to "discuss any changes to this timeline with the ministry".
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
