You may notice some new friends along the Taupō lakefront in the form of updated rubbish and recycling bins.
We’re trialling new signage on some of our busiest bins. While the bins are there to help keep our beautiful lakefront litter-free, the new designs also make it easier to see what rubbish or recycling should go into each one.
Taupō District Council waste minimisation officer Shannon Hanson audited five high-use public recycling bins last year and found over half of the contents were not actually recyclable. Contamination means the whole bin may have to be sent to landfill.
Public recycling bins can only take clean plastics marked 1,2,5, (no bottle caps), aluminium and tin cans (no lids or the lids pushed inside); and glass bottles (unbroken).
All takeaway containers, soft plastics, dog poo bags and nappies must go into the rubbish bin. Takeaway coffee cups also go in general waste. Due to the type of plastic within the paper, they are not accepted for recycling anywhere in New Zealand. If you can, take your own cup or grab a reusable one from your local café.
You can find the new-look bins with a shiny new colour scheme, graphics and bilingual signage at Two Mile Bay and Nukuhau boat ramp, next to the Taupō Superloo and two sets of bins on Roberts Street.
Our council environmental rangers have been working over the holidays to make sure our district is clean and tidy, so help the team and look after the place we love.
