Recycling saves natural resources, is good for the environment and reduces the amount of material going to landfill.
And it may may be easier than you think. Check out the options on this page. If you know of any recycling options that aren't covered here, please let us know. Email info@trc.govt.nz or call the Council on 06 765 7127.
On this page you'll also find downloadable recycling labels for your home or office.
Kerbside recycling collections in Taranaki
Most urban areas in Taranaki have recycling collections. Separate wheelie bins are provided for recycling in South Taranaki and Stratford. In the New Plymouth District recyclables should be sorted into small shopping bags and placed beside general refuse for collection.
For more information on collections, see:
New Plymouth District Council recycling information
Stratford District Council rubbish and recycling information
South Taranaki District Council recycling information
What you can recycle at your kerbside
Glass
Whole bottles and jars only (without lids).
Paper and cardboard
Newspaper, magazines, printer paper, office paper and flattened cardboard boxes. NOT waxed paper (milk cartons), or carbon paper.
Cans
Aluminium or steel beverage cans and food cans. Wash and squash.
Plastic
Milk, water and soft drink bottles, plastic containers with the recycling symbols 1 or 2 on the base, and shopping or bread bags. Remove lids, wash and squash.
Other material
Antifreeze (glycol)
Contact ERS NZ Ltd (0800 377 911).
Batteries - button
From watches, calculators and hearing aids. Contact your local jeweller.
Batteries - vehicle
Boat, car, motorbike and truck batteries. Take to a scrap metal dealer, Exide Technologies (24 Hobson Street, New Plymouth), Repco (137 Courtenay Street, New Plymouth, and 57 High Street, Hawera), or ask at your local garage.
Batteries - other
From cellphones, power tools and video cameras. Contact the supplier of the appliance or your local electrician. Ask at your local Telecom or Vodafone dealer as they have a 'take back' policy for cellphones and cellphone batteries.
Car bodies
Enquire at your local car wreckers or scrap-metal dealers regarding collection.
Clothing
Donate good quality used clothing to Red Cross or church groups, charity collections or clothing bins, or take to second-hand clothing shops near you.
Concrete and bricks
Clean used concrete and bricks can be dropped off for recycling at Jones Quarry, Mahoetahi Road, between New Plymouth and Waitara. call 06 754 8500 or 027 276 2498.
Computers, monitors, printers and fax machines
If your unwanted computer equipment, printer or fax machine still has life left in it and you are happy to give it away, you could offer it to a charity shop (Hospice shop, for example). Or you could list it on Freecycle or offer it to a local school.
Otherwise you could list your items for sale on TradeMe or selll them to a second-hand dealer, store them until the next next eDay (September /October), or take your items to the landfill (disposal fees will apply).
Large businesses and organisations upgrading their IT equipment can ensure their contract requires the supplier to take back superceded equipment. If the supplier is unwilling to do this, approach other suppliers.
Note: Delete all personal data from your computer before disposing of it. If in doubt about how to do this, contact a computer service shop.
Green waste
Grass clippings, hedge trimmings, leaves. Check out your local transfer station for green waste disposal options (charges may apply) or check out the Yellow Pages for green waste collectors in your area. South Taranaki District Council has a kerbside green waste collection service. Click here for more details.
Hazardous waste
Lead-based paint and garden chemicals. Dispose as hazardous waste at transfer stations at Colson Rd (New Plymouth), Scott Street (Hawera) or Cordelia Street (Stratford). Domestic quantities only.
Lightbulbs (energysaver)
Energysaver lightbulbs can be recycled at Mitre 10 stores in New Plymouth, Stratford and Hawera (click here for addresses and maps), and Bunnings stores in Bell Block (click here for map) and Hawera (click here for map).
Metals - ferrous
Machinery, whiteware, steel drums, steel cans, galvanised steel. Take to a scrap metal dealer, or some transfer stations have separate areas for recycling scrap metal.
Metals - non-ferrous
Copper, brass, bronze, lead, stainless steel, aluminium. Take to a scrap metal dealer, or some transfer stations have separate areas for recycling scrap metal.
Mobile phones
Vodafone and Telecom accept old equipment and have drop-off bins in their shops for phones, chargers and batteries, or you can store it until the next eDay.
Or you can support Starship Hospital through their Mobile Phone Recycling Programme - pick up a freepost envelope from newspaper offices, ASB Bank branches, Telecom stores or The Warehouse, package the phone and pop it into a post box. Phones in working order are refurbished and exported to places such as Hong Kong, China or to Eastern Europe, while those beyond repair are recycled through the correct environmental channels. Funds raised go toward essential equipment and services for Starship Hospital.
Oil filters
Two companies offer a recycling service for oil filters to motor vehicle workshops and other major oil filter users in Taranaki: ERS NZ Ltd (0800 377 911) and Ecocrush (Stuart Edwards, 027 434 5837). They collect the filters, extract the oil for reuse, and recycle the metal. There is a charge. Contact them for more information.
Oil from vehicle engines
Take to Caltex Eliot Street, New Plymouth - small amounts only, during business hours. No charge.
Or take to transfer stations at Colson Road (New Plymouth) or Scott Street (Hawera), ask at your local garage or, if you have large volumes, contact Transpacific Industries Group (New Plymouth). Charges may apply.
Two national paint recycling schemes are available in the region: PaintWise (managed by the Resene Foundation), available through the New Plymouth Resene Colorshop; and Enviropaints, available through Placemakers stores.
PaintWise accepts any brand of decorative paint, but not automotive and marine paints, and not paint thinners, solvents or aerosols. Click here for the address of the New Plymouth Resene Colorshop (132 Molesworth Street). A small charge applies to non-Resene branded product and trade returns to help offset the costs of the PaintWise programme. Rusty and empty tins are also accepted. The collected paint has a mix of end uses including community donation (paint as is), community donation for anti-graffiti work (blended waterborne grey paint) and other uses such as manufacture into PaintCrete. Containers collected through PaintWise will also be recycled. The New Plymouth Resene Colorshop is at 132 Molesworth Street (view map). See www.resene.co.nz/paintwise for more information.
Enviropaints accepts liquid acrylic paint, liquid oil-based paint, oil-based stains, tung oil, turps, meths, raw or boiled linseed oil and Enviropaint cartons. These can be recycled at PlaceMakers stores in New Plymouth, Stratford and Hawera (Click here to find addresses and maps). Note: Paint products must still be in original containers. This service does NOT apply to automotive or marine paints, lead-based or bituminous paints, polyurethane, filling compound, texture coating or gritty paint, empty containers, rusty cans, varnish, aerosols, acids or adhesives. For more information, see www.enviropaints.co.nz/About+Us.
Note: If paint is already partially dried out, it is unsuitable for recycling. Simply leave the top off the container until the paint is dried out completely, then put the tin out in the rubbish, or take it to PaintWise
Pharmaceuticals
Medicines, drugs and other pharmacy waste. Ask your local pharmacy about disposal of old medicines.
Photocopiers
If you have an unwanted photocopier, contact the manufacturer (for example. Fuji Xerox, Konica Minolta, Ricoh or Canon), as they may be willing to collect it for refurbishing or recycling. There might be a cost, depending on location, age of machine and other factors.
Solvents
Check with your supplier first as some offer a take-back system; otherwise contact TPI New Plymouth on 06 755 9150
Toner cartridges
To recycle copier and printer toner cartridges, contact Cartridge World New Plymouth on 06 757 4380 or the Toner Recycling Company (TRC) on 0800 180 160.
Whiteware
Old and non-operating whiteware can be recycled. Contact your local scrap metal dealer, or, in New Plymouth, drop off at the New Plymouth Transfer Station, which charges an acceptance fee of $20 for items which need degassing or $15 for other items. Fridges and air conditioners should be degassed befoe recycling.
eDay
Electronic waste (e-waste) contains hazardous materials which can seriously harm the environment, wildlife and human health if disposed of inappropriately.
eDay provides an annual opportunity for households and schools to dispose of their obsolete computers, monitors, printers, scanners, faxes and mobile phones in an environmentally responsible way.
It is a free cars-only drive-through recycling event.
Co-ordinated nationally by the Computer Access New Zealand Trust (CANZ), eDay is one action that we can make Taranaki a more sustainable community. It is specifically for households and schools. Businesses are expected to make their own disposal arrangements with their suppliers.
Approximately 95 per cent of the materials in a computer or associated equipment can be recycled.
Taranaki's inaugural eDay in was held in 2008 at three sites, New Plymouth, Stratford and Hawera, and was repeated again at the same sites in 2009. All the items delivered to the drop-off centres were either destined to be sorted for reuse (e.g. larger monitors or LCD screens) or broken down and the reclaimed material (e.g. gold, copper, lead, and glass) recycled. The material recovery process is internationally certified and environmentally safe.
Information on eDay 2010 will be available closer to the event. Keep an eye on the eDay website.
Taranaki's eDay stats:
|
Centre |
Volunteers |
Vehicles |
Items |
Tonnes |
||||
|
|
2008 |
2009 |
2008 |
2009 |
2008 |
2009 |
2008 |
2009 |
|
New Plymouth |
80 |
100 |
624 |
780 |
2790 |
3656 |
28 |
40 |
|
Stratford |
20 |
20 |
84 |
109 |
355 |
461 |
4 |
4 |
|
Hawera |
26 |
42 |
154 |
159 |
657 |
812 |
7 |
9 |
Freecycle group
This is a web-based resources exchange which aims to keep good stuff out of landfills. Click on this link: New Plymouth Freecycle. The group covers the whole of Taranaki and is open to all who want to recycle that special something rather than throw it away.
DonateNZ
You can give away new, surplus or used goods to a deserving community organisation near you. It's simple through DonateNZ.
You can recycle some material for free at most of these transfer stations. Ask your local council or check out their website for more information.
South Taranaki District Council
Just Rubbish Ltd also runs a private transfer station at 240 Connett Road East, Bell Block, where the standard range of recyclables is accepted for free, and greenwaste, clean concrete and clean fill are accepted for a charge.
| Downloadable recycling labels | |
| Reduce your rubbish | 62kb |
| Cardboard, paper, newspaper | 410kb |
| Batteries | 429kb |
| Food scraps, tea bags & tissues | 113kb |
| Paper | 78kb |
| Aluminium/steel cans | 202kb |
| Glass bottles and jars | 355kb |
| Milk bottles, drink bottles, supermarket bags | 123kb |
| Non-recyclable waste | 16kb |
| Multi-recycling | 63kb |