With a lot of people no doubt having a tidy-up around the section over the holiday break I feel I should warn them of potentially a rather unpleasant surprise should they go to dump green waste at the local transfer station.
It is, I believe, Gore District Council’s policy that the first 100kg is free of charge but over 100kg incurs a charge.
Fair enough, one might say, but how many are aware that if you have 115kg on your tailer then you get charged for the whole 115kg?
Not the 15kg over 100.
So what happened to the first 100kg? Free? Surely council needs to have a discussion about this anomaly.
Food for thought; I pull on to weighbridge and are informed I have 105kg.
Rather than be charged for 105kg I reverse off, return to the scene of the crime, shovel say 10kg back on my trailer and go back on scales.
Hey all good — under 100kg, free to go.
Incidentally, I find staff at the transfer station very courteous and helpful.
No beef with them, they are only following some rather unfair to my mind policy re green waste.
Ralph Beale, Gore
REPLY:
Thank you for the opportunity to clarify any misunderstandings about waste disposal costs.
The Gore transfer station charges are approved each year by the council as part of its fees and charges. The current fees came into effect on 1 August 2023.
It is important to highlight that the disposal of any waste through the transfer station is not free. There is a cost to processing all waste.
In 2020 the council decided not to charge for the disposal of green waste due to kerbside recycling being discontinued. The cost of processing the green waste has been picked up by ratepayers since then.
Due to increasing disposal rates, in its 2023-24 annual plan the council decided these costs should be borne by users. The council recognised the desirability to provide a no charge allowance for up to 100kg of green waste for residents. However, to recover some costs it was decided that when the 100kg limit is reached, the user has to pay the full cost of the green waste processed through the transfer station.
The council’s fees and charges will again be reviewed through the 2024-2034 long-term plan process. People are encouraged to submit through this process on any changes they wish the council to consider for the future.
— Jason Domigan, Gore District Council general manager critical services
