Costing between $1.4 million to $1.7m, the trial aimed to assess a wider region rollout – possibly by 2028.
Photo: Supplied / Auckland Council
Aucklanders will find out next week if a six month-trial to move the weekly kerbside rubbish collection to fortnightly, affecting about 10,000 households, will go ahead next year.
The proposed trial will be voted on by the Policy, Planning and Development Committee at a meeting on 16 December, following public consultation which showed strong opposition from Aucklanders.
It’s proposed that parts of Clendon Park/Weymouth in the south, Te Atatū Peninsula in West Auckland and Panmure/Tāmaki will trial a fortnightly rubbish collection from February to August 2026.
Costing between $1.4 million to $1.7m, the trial aimed to assess a wider region rollout – possibly by 2028.
Manurewa-Papakura councillor Daniel Newman said council should abandon the proposed fortnightly household rubbish collection trial and listen to Aucklanders who strongly objected to the idea.
“The feedback from Clendon, Weymouth, Panmure and Te Atatū Peninsula was categoric – fortnightly is a dead duck,” Newman said.
“Aucklanders are telling me they want a permanent region-wide weekly rubbish collection service, and I agree with them.”
Results from a public consultation in October showed 78 percent of 5086 submitters opposed the trial, 4 percent were unsure and 18 percent supported it.
Common themes to those that opposed included worries about managing fuller bins, smells, hygiene and whether they would have enough bin space, particularly in big households.
Newman, who was one of four councillors that voted against the trial last year, said the Waste Minimisation Plan will need to be changed to abandon the fortnightly option.
“That should not be a difficult exercise. We know what Aucklanders think. We knew in October 2024 that a clear majority of submitters opposed fortnightly, and that opposition has grown much stronger over time.
“Even beyond the proposed trial suburbs, the feedback from every other mainland local board area reflected strong opposition to fortnightly – a wholly unloved reform.”
Maungakiekie-Tāmaki councillor Josephine Bartley said she hoped the people’s voice will be considered at next week’s vote.
“But also for solutions going forward, as we need to do more with our communities about recycling, food waste, illegal dumping, inorganic collections, reducing what goes to landfills, using community recycling centres more.”
Council’s general manager of waste solutions Justine Haves in an earlier interview said councillors will be presented with a range of information to inform their decision – including community feedback collected through the public consultation, at next week’s meeting.
They will also be presented with how the trial would work and the support available for potential trial participants; and how it aligns with Auckland’s Waste Minimisation and Management Plan 2024.
“Once a decision is made, we’ll inform the public through a media release and send direct communications to households in the proposed trial areas to let them know whether the trial will go ahead,” she said.
“If the proposal is not approved, the current weekly rubbish collections will continue in those areas.”
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.