Currently those who receive the kerbside service pay $41 in their rates per year, plus $3 per bag for their rubbish bags ($156 per year if you buy one bag per week).

We’re proposing to increase the targeted rate to $131 per year in 2021/22 to help cover the increasing costs of this service, as explained above, and residents would continue to buy rubbish bags. The current rubbish and recycling service would still continue until 2023 – this increase is just to cover the rising costs, so we can pay the bill.

The rubbish and recycling rate would then increase again in 2023 to around $328 per year to cover the costs of the new service. While this is a big jump, residents would no longer need to buy rubbish bags ($156 if you buy one bag per week) - so the money you’d usually spend on these at the supermarket would go towards your rates instead. You would also receive a food waste collection.

All households eligible for the kerbside collection service would be charged this targeted rate – regardless of whether or not they choose to use the service. This means anyone using a private collection service may decide not to continue with this, depending on their needs. We won’t be able to confirm the exact costs of this option until we’ve gone through a tender process for a new contract so we’ve based our budgeting on similar changes in other areas and expert advice.

Last year we asked for your feedback on our proposal for the new kerbside service from 2023. You can read through the challenges and our proposal here and have your say. 

There are challenges in how recycling is collected in the CBD areas as Matamata, Morrinsville, Te Aroha, as well as a number of settlements are all on busy state highways with limited space for collection vehicles to safely manoeuver.    

There are health and safety risks for the runners as well as traffic management issues caused by a rubbish/recycling collection truck moving slowly and constantly stopping in the CBD.

Should we shift from a bag to wheelie bin collection in 2023, this issue will increase with even more wheelie bins placed out for collection in the CBDs. Wheelie bins must be picked by a truck arm, which would be problematic with parked vehicles in the CBDs blocking access.

The current kerbside collection service is not suitable for most businesses as it is designed for residential collections. Currently, a busy café/bar may need two-to-three green crates and recycling bins and a business that hires more than 20 people may generate up to 10 rubbish bags a week but pay the same targeted rate as a household with only one wheelie bin, glass crate and rubbish bag.  

We are reviewing how collections within the CBD could look as part of the new service. This could include dropping CBD collections completely and leaving it to the private sector

While we do service a small number of private roads now, this will be reviewed as part of the new service in 2023.

A review is necessary as many private roads are narrow. Collection trucks, among various other nationwide services, have difficulty accessing these roads and safely manoeuver around parked vehicles. 

Due to the size of these vehicles there is the chance private roads can be damaged and this leaves the council and our contractors liable for the cost of repairs, which is unacceptable. This is not unique to Matamata-Piako and is a challenge within councils and other services nationwide.

Multi-development units include five or more residential units that share amenities. Our Solid Waste Management and Minimisation Bylaw 2017 states that ‘the owner and manager of a multi-unit development must make provision for the management of all waste generated within the property’.

Our bylaw around how rubbish and recycling is collected from these designated areas is not enforced and we are proposing it become mandatory in existing and future multi-unit  developments.

If you think this affects you, we recommend thoroughly reading the bylaw sections 7.22 to 7.28.