Skip to main content.

3 Waste facilities in Wellington region

3.1 Waste disposal facilities

During the period studied for this research, 2003–2005, there were six landfills and one stand-alone transfer station in the Wellington catchment. Several of the landfills also contain “transfer stations” for the use of smaller vehicles. A brief description of the facilities is presented in the table below.

Table 3.1 – Disposal facilities in the Wellington region

Northern landfill – closed February 2006

Owned by

Wellington City Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

No hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste separated and composted

Gate charge for general waste

$71.70/tonne

Cover material

Cleanfill and imported material

Otaihanga landfill

Owned by

Kapiti Coast District Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

No hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste separated and composted

Sludge from Paraparaumu wastewater treatment plant

Gate charge for general waste

$22/cubic metre

Cover material

Cleanfill

Otaki transfer station

Owned by

Kapiti Coast District Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

No hazardous wastes accepted

All materials taken to Otaihanga landfill

Greenwaste separated and composted

Gate charge for general waste

$22/cubic metre

Silverstream landfill

Owned by

Hutt City Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

Hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste disposed of to landfill

Sludge from Te Marua water treatment plant

Sludge from Seaview wastewater treatment plant

Gate charge for general waste

$68/tonne

Cover material

Sawdust

Southern landfill

Owned by

Wellington City Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

Hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste separated and composted

Gate charge for general waste

$78/tonne (reduced from $101/tonne in 2006)

Gate charge for cleanfill

$4.20/tonne on an as required basis (reduced from $10.20/tonne in 2006)

Cover material

Cleanfill and imported material

Spicer landfill

Owned by

Porirua City Council – 78.5%

Wellington City Council – 21.5%

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

Hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste disposed of to landfill

Sludge from Porirua Treatment Plant

Gate charge for general waste

$80/tonne

Cover material

Cleanfill

Wainuiomata landfill

Owned by

Hutt City Council

Waste types

General commercial and residential wastes

No hazardous wastes accepted

Council domestic kerbside collections

Greenwaste disposed of to landfill

Sludge from Wainui water treatment plant

Gate charge for general waste

$68/tonne

Cover material

Minor amounts of sawdust

3.2 Cleanfills

The New Zealand Waste Strategy defines “cleanfills” as “waste disposal sites that accept only inert wastes. These include materials such as clay, soil, rock, concrete and bricks.”

The establishment and operation of cleanfills are subject to different controls by different local authorities. District plans may require land use consents for cleanfills, and regional councils may require resource consents to control the environmental effects. The monitoring and reporting of volumes and types of materials disposed of at cleanfills may or may not be required as part of the consent process.

In many district and regional plans cleanfills can be a permitted activity, depending on factors such as size and proximity to watercourses. This means that cleanfill sites, particularly relatively small, short-term operations, may not be known to councils.

The cleanfill sites in the table that follows are known to be operating in the Wellington region. The list is not likely to include all sites in the region.

Table 3.2 – Cleanfill sites

Hutt City Council

Manor Park – Dry Creek Quarry

Manor Park – Benmore Crescent

Mangaroa Valley

Wainuiomata – Waiu Street

Kapiti Coast District Council

Otaki transfer station, on closed landfill site

Porirua City Council

Three consented sites, including one at Judgeford

Wellington City Council

C&D Landfills Ltd in Careys Gulley, alongside Southern landfill

T&T Landfill in Happy Valley

3.3 Composting

There are two commercial composting operations in the Wellington region:

  • Living Earth site, part of the Careys Gully complex in Wellington that includes the Southern landfill – processes sewage sludge and greenwaste

  • Site at the Otaihanga landfill, operated by Composting New Zealand Ltd – processes greenwaste

[ |