Waste Streams
- Agrichemicals –The Ministry is committed to reducing the amount of unwanted agrichemicals sitting around on properties in rural New Zealand. From 2003-2009 the Ministry for the Environment worked with 13 regional councils to collect and remove agricultural chemicals from rural properties. This page details the results of these collections.
- Construction and Demolition Waste –Waste from construction and demolition (C&D) activities is a large source of waste in New Zealand, representing up to 50 percent of all waste generated in New Zealand, 20 percent of all waste going to landfill and 80 percent of all waste going to cleanfill.
- Hazardous Waste – Hazardous waste comes from many sources - industry, small businesses, school laboratories, households to name a few. A waste is considered hazardous if it poses a risk to people or the environment if it is not properly managed, stored, transported and disposed of. This page outlines the Ministry's hazardous waste policy framework and provides links to specific tools and resources contributing to the management of hazardous wastes in New Zealand.
- Household lighting –Lighting impacts the environment from product manufacture through to final disposal. The manufacturing of lamps consumes energy and resources, lamps use energy to operate, and when lamps die they become waste that must be disposed of or recycled. Here you can find guidance on the types of household lamps (or light bulbs) available and good practice for their use and disposal to minimise their environmental impacts.
- Nappies –There is currently a lot of debate around the use of disposable versus reusable nappies.
- Organics – Organics is one of the largest waste streams. It comprises 23 percent of all material sent to landfill.
- Packaging - The New Zealand Packaging Accord was a five year initiative (2004-2009) to cut down on wasteful packaging. Those who signed it — industry, local and central government — voluntarily committed to doing what they can to reduce the proportion of packaging in our total waste stream. Here you will find a comprehensive background and Annual Reports from the Packaging Accord.
- Tyres – The disposal and storage of old and unwanted (end-of-life) tyres has a number of potential adverse environmental and health impacts. The Ministry has been working with the tyre industry, the Motor Trade Association, councils and other groups interested in tyre management to develop sustainable systems for the management of end-of-life tyres. This page provides information on the Ministry’s work programme for old and unwanted tyres and tools for local and regional councils on tyre storage and enforcement options.
- Used oil – Used oil is the single largest non-watery liquid waste stream in New Zealand. An estimated 30 million litres are generated each year. This page contains information on several projects dealing with used oil that the Ministry has been involved with.
- Waste electrical and electronic equipment – Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) is the world’s fastest growing type of waste. Many of these products contain toxic substances that can harm the environment or human health when disposed of. Electronic equipment also contains valuable resources, such as copper, platinum and gold. Unwanted equipment that is properly disassembled and recycled can prevent hazardous substances entering the environment and reduce the use of natural resources (needed to manufacture new products). These web pages provide guidance on managing and handling WEEE in an environmentally sound manner.
- Wastewater – Wastewater is the biggest waste by volume in New Zealand. Approximately 1.5 billion litres of domestic wastewater is discharged into the environment daily. A number of joint initiatives exist to manage wastewater.
Last updated:March 15 2011
