Waste for art's sake a first

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Summer Forgie (left) and Waitaki Resource Exchange co-ordinator Maxine Woodhouse use discarded bubble wrap to protect art work to be auctioned by St Kevins College later this month. Photo by David Bruce.

An art auction at St Kevins College is the first to benefit from a new scheme in the Waitaki district aimed at encouraging people to look at their waste as a resource.

The Waitaki Resource Exchange, administered by the Waitaki Resource Recovery Trust with funding from the Waitaki District Council, wants businesses and organisations to reconsider dumping rubbish which someone else could use.

The exchange was launched yesterday and had its first success when St Kevins College collected a pile of bubble wrap for an art auction on February 20 at the Woolstore.

The auction has about 50 art works by pupils and prominent artists, including Grahame Sydney and Colin Wheeler.

One of the organisers of the event, Summer Forgie, said the bubble wrap was needed to protect the art works.

The school had looked at buying it, but it was going to be very expensive and eat into the proceeds from the auction.

She approached the resource exchange, which had two wool bales of bubble wrap from an Oamaru business.

Yesterday, it went to the school to be reused.

Exchange co-ordinator Maxine Woodhouse said there had already been a lot of interest in the exchange - 10 businesses had contacted her before the launch to learn more about it.

A newsletter is being prepared to distribute to businesses.

The exchange is listed on the website www.resourcewaitaki.co.nz [2].

david.bruce@odt.co.nz