Glass collection decision should wait for more Government direction

A Christchurch City Council report is recommending deferring a decision on introducing a separate glass collection service until more is known about the implications of the Government’s plan for improving recycling in New Zealand.

In November 2021 the Council asked staff to look at options for separate glass collection and recycling so that it could be considered as part of the 2022-23 Annual Plan.

However, since that request was made the Government has announced plans to shake-up the country’s recycling system. It has released the consultation document Te panoni to haungarua - Transforming Recycling which specifically addresses the standardisation of kerbside recycling and the potential mandatory separation of glass and paper/cardboard products.

 The Government is also proposing a Container Return Scheme (CRS) for New Zealand, whereby the costs of recycling beverage containers would be applied at sale  and people would get money for returning their empty beverage containers for recycling.

In a report prepared for next week’s Council meeting, staff are recommending that Council defer a decision on introducing a separate glass collection service in Christchurch until more information is available about the Government’s planned changes.

“It is highly likely that the proposal for a Container Return Scheme and improvements to kerbside recycling will have significant implications for the services provided by the Council,’’ the report says.

“These impacts will need to be fully considered in any decision on a separate glass collection scheme for Christchurch district.’’

The report says an options analysis shows that moving to a separate glass collection would currently come at a cost to the Council.

It also notes that recycling markets do not necessarily exist for all glass produced in New Zealand and that there is an oversupply of glass in the market.

The report also highlights the possibility that there could be negative climate change impacts if the Council was to move to a separate glass recycling collection soon.

“The carbon cost of transporting recycled materials over long distances – particularly if they are heavy materials, like glass – can offset the gains of using those recovered materials.

“There is only one glass recycling facility in New Zealand located in Auckland and therefore the greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation of glass for processing are significant,’’ the report says.