Solid Waste Indicators (what we measure)

Overview

Waste is generated as part of everyday living when people throw things away that they no longer require. Matamata-Piako is responsible for promoting effective and efficient waste management and waste reduction practices within the district. Refuse collection services are provided to approximately 8,000 households and 800 commercial properties throughout the district.

Our Situation

Within Matamata-Piako, Council has three refuse transfer stations, located at Waihou, Morrinsville and Matamata. They are all adjacent to landfills, which are closed in a way that manages unfavourable effects on the environment. Waste from the transfer stations is transported out of the district to a privately owned landfill at Tirohia, south of Paeroa. Compliance of the district’s landfills with their respective resource consent conditions is monitored regularly. Council monitors the amount and quality of leachate from the landfills to nearby surface water bodies, both up and downstream of the landfill location. Council also monitors three to four sampling bores near the landfill. The groundwater quality at the sampling sites has been good - satisfactory since 2000. Council’s sampling sites achieved a compliance rate of 100 percent with Environment Waikato’s Standards during 2009/10. In 2010/11 the Waihou Refuse Dump and Matamata Landfill had high levels of compliance with their resource consent conditions. The Morrinsville Landfill had partial non compliance, due to monitoring not being undertaken at the agreed intervals, and some monitoring results not being provided. However, there were no environmental concerns: there was no damage in need of urgent attention, and the quality and quantity of leachate pumped from the landfill had remained consistent.

There have been no reported incidents or spills involving hazardous waste in the district during the 2000/01 - 2009/10 period. In the 2010/11 period there was one spillage of septage on to a roadway.

Quantity of Waste Generated and Recycled

The following graphs show how much waste is being disposed to transfer stations in our district and how much of this waste is being recycled/composted.