Recycle your Soft Plastic bags #Dunedin

[stuff.co.nz]

“The objective is for 70% of New Zealanders to have access to a drop-off facility for soft plastics within 20km of their home.” –Scott Simpson

### ODT Online Fri, 23 Jun 2017
Recycling for plastic packaging arrives
By John Lewis
All those plastic bags floating around after shopping expeditions can now be recycled under a joint initiative between the retail sector, the packaging industry and the Government. The Love New Zealand Soft Plastics Recycling programme was launched in Dunedin yesterday, and will enable soft plastics and soft packaging such as shopping bags, bread bags, frozen food bags and food wrap to be recycled at the 14 New World, Countdown, FreshChoice, Pak’n Save and The Warehouse stores in Dunedin and Mosgiel. Associate Environment Minister Scott Simpson said the programme was already running in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Canterbury. […] The $700,000 contribution from the Government’s waste minimisation fund was being matched by contributions from retailers and some suppliers, bringing the total project funding  to more than $1.6million. […] Cargill Enterprises would collect the recycled plastics from the shops. 
Read more

Last year I convivially swapped emails with the manager of Centre City New World enquiring about how soon the store would adopt the national soft plastics recycling programme. He kindly immediately contacted FoodStuffs to find out ….well the day has come! Happy customer!

Try this simple test to help identify recyclable plastic material…
“The test is if you can pull it and stays stringy in consistency, it’s fine. But if you can tear it cleanly it is not recyclable.” Stuff

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Soft Plastics Recycling 
The Love NZ Soft Plastics Programme is about informing New Zealanders about how to keep plastic bags and packaging out of landfill. Collect all the soft plastics which you use at home, make sure the bags are empty and dry and drop them into the Love NZ Soft Plastics Recycling bins at participating stores.

The project is supported by major brands including Asaleo Care, Ceres Organics, Coca Cola Amatil, Cottonsoft, Fonterra, Frucor, George Weston Foods, Goodman Fielder, Griffins, Hubbards, Kathmandu, Kelloggs, Kimberly-Clark, Lululemon, Mars, Mother Earth, Mondelez (Cadbury), Nestle, New Zealand Post, Pams, Pure Delish, Simplot (Birds Eye), Spicers, SunRice and Wrigleys; Amcor Flexibles, Astron, Coveris, Snell Packaging & Safety with many others committed to joining the programme. Soft plastic bags are not currently collected for recycling by councils because they can contaminate the recycling process. New Zealanders use over 1.6 billion plastic bags in the home every year. The project takes all soft plastic bags including bread bags, frozen food bags, toilet paper packaging, confectionery and biscuit wrap, chip bags, pasta and rice bags, courier envelopes, shopping bags, sanitary hygiene packaging – basically anything made of plastic which can be scrunched into a ball. Customers can bring their used soft plastics back to store and put them in the recycling bin.

█ Website: http://www.recycling.kiwi.nz/soft-plastics

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

Delta’s PR consultant

WHEN Delta’s ‘award winning’ young executive Grady Cameron, the Delta Board – woebegone* directors Ian Parton (from 25 Oct 2012), Stuart McLauchlan (1 Jun 2007), David Frow (25 Oct 2012), Trevor Kempton (1 Nov 2013) and Stephen Thompson [Deloitte!] (1 Jun 2016) – the rotten-tooth chair of DCHL Graham Crombie, and the Mayor of City Liabilities and Risk Dave Cull FAIL to Communicate Honestly with the concerned public on Delta’s utter degradation and collapse of Our electricity network —What Do You Do ?

You send in the crows or, a PR clown.

None other than public relations consultant and former broadcaster Spiro Anastasiou. Mr Ana-sneeze rates himself as “a strategic communications specialist with extensive experience in managing issues of public and political sensitivity”. The newest partner in SenateSHJ’s Wellington office, who heads their government relations practice. He returns to consulting “from a role leading strategic communications at the Ministry of Health where he managed the Ministry’s public information programme during the Swine Flu pandemic and was seconded to the Canterbury earthquake response in the All of Government communications role during the two and half month state of national emergency”. Ana-sneeze joined the Ministry of Health “….after more than 10 years consulting in a range of sectors where he provided strategic advice and tactical support to CEOs and senior leaders. This included specialist projects such as industrial relations and change, many with a very high public profile.” Ana-sneeze’s strength is his experience in “….building successful working relationships and a proven track record in government relations. He has excellent media and communication skills developed during a 15 year career in broadcast journalism before he entered consultancy….a native Wellingtonian [blahblah] He enjoys reading and cooking, is a keen fisherman and an enthusiastic golfer.”

Let’s see where this goes —and if Grady and Spiro darling, are to be seen golfing together or co-occupying Delta’s corporate box at the Stadium – on which we have cameras trained. It was bad enough having to secret-squirrel GPS trackers to All (excessive numbers of) company vehicles two weeks ago.

*Understatement, meaning incompetent and grossly negligent.

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The Varmints:

● Delta Utility Services Ltd http://www.companies.govt.nz/co/453486

● Aurora Energy Ltd http://www.companies.govt.nz/co/471661
[Mr Thompson of Deloitte appointed 20 Jun 2016]

● Dunedin City Holdings Ltd http://www.companies.govt.nz/co/559098

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

Delta mobile substation, Willis St [industrial/port area]

Sat, 12 Nov 2016 at 3.13 p.m.
Christchurch Driver [CD] phones in a query about the Delta truck parked at Dunedin harbourside: “This jury rig set-up has been in place for at least 6 months – Richard may have more info.”

Photos received at 10:21 p.m.

Images: CD

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What if? query to Richard
Sat, 12 Nov 2016 at 5:42 p.m.
Someone is about to send me photos (not sure when today), of what I think from their description must be a mobile substation? There’s a Delta truck hooked into the network on Willis St, Dunedin harbourside, it’s been there for a few months – can you tell me what the truck is and what it’s there for? – Presumably delivering for local businesses in the industrial zone ? Typically these trucks (if a substation?) are used for continuous supply while maintenance is carried out but given how long this one’s been parked we wonder why the lengthy deployment.

DCC Webmap – Location of Delta mobile substation (arrowed), 24 Willis St

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Reply from Richard Healey
Sat, 12 Nov 2016 at 6:03 p.m.

Yes, that is a mobile substation. It was installed to take the load of a failed transformer nearby. Classic Delta story.
The network refuse to keep strategic spares. Transformers have a 12-week lead time. In this case we ordered a transformer and installed it near that mobile sub but another transformer failed just as we were about to liven it and we pulled it out again to replace the new failure.

A short while ago we had five transformers fail in one night (lightning). Because there are no spares we ended up going to the scrap pile and pulling out five discarded transformers. After painting over the letter s on the side of each one we changed the oil, tested them and put them back on poles.

The second failed transformer was on the corner of Strathallen Street and Andy Bay Road. It was hit by a car.
That means waiting another 12 weeks for a replacement.

[ends]

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

This post is offered in the public interest.

Recyclable coffee cups and lids….

[thelittleblackcoffeecup.com USA]

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New Zealand packaging advocacy group The Packaging Forum issued a press release yesterday disputing Ms Irvine’s comments.

### ODT Online Wed, 7 Sep 2016
Claim about coffee cup lid incorrect
By Vaughan Elder
A Dunedin City Council staff member has admitted being incorrect when she said coffee cup lids being sold as compostable could not be composted in New Zealand. Council waste manager Catherine Irvine said the polylactide (PLA) disposable coffee cup lids still presented as an issue as there were no facilities in Dunedin and many other parts of New Zealand where they could be composted. However, her claim no facilities in New Zealand could compost them was incorrect and since a report in the Otago Daily Times on Saturday, she had been contacted by Wellington City Council saying it had a contractor which had begun composting the lids using a special additive. Read more

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Companies selling lids could breach Fair Trading Act if sold as compostable or biodegradable when not compostable in NZ –Commerce Commission

### ODT Online Sun, 4 Sep 2016
Coffee cup lids not compostable in NZ
By Vaughan Elder
Dunedin cafes buying so-called compostable coffee cups are being “misled”, in what could be a breach of the Fair Trading Act. Dunedin City Council waste manager Catherine Irvine said polylactide (PLA) disposable coffee cup lids were being sold as compostable when there were no facilities in New Zealand capable of composting them. As a result, well-meaning cafes in Dunedin and across New Zealand were paying a premium for the lids in an attempt to “do the right thing” when they could not even be recycled, Ms Irvine said.
Read more

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Are they recyclable ? ? ?

### Australian Business Traveller 10 Feb 2016
Air New Zealand’s coffee app hits one million cups, and counting
By David Flynn
We’re probably not alone in putting ‘good coffee’ rather high on the list of what makes a great airport lounge, and we love that Air New Zealand’s clever coffee app makes it easier to enjoy your chosen brew. Plenty of NZ passengers do, too – the app has logged over one million orders since it went live in August 2014. And using an app to streamline the process of ordering a cuppa in the lounge is a typically Air New Zealand thing.
Travellers in Air New Zealand lounges can order a coffee straight from their smartphone or even Apple Watch using the airline’s app, with an iPad located near the barista station offering the same functionality.
Here’s a walkthrough of how it works. Sidle up to the barista bar and tap to get started: note that the app also advises how long the current wait is….
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election Year. This post is offered in the public interest.

New Zealand waste recycling

How many businesses in Dunedin have a zero waste policy or strategies in place for minimisation of waste and packaging? Would the city and regional councils even care? Do they facilitate? What is Otago Chamber of Commerce advocating to its membership?

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Link received from Hype O’Thermia
Saturday, 5 April 2014 10:54 a.m.

### stuff.co.nz Last updated 05:00 05/04/2014
Recycling buyers losing patience
By Abbie Napier
On your way to work you stop and grab a takeaway coffee. A few minutes later, you make the point of putting it in the recycling bin, secure in the knowledge you’ve done your bit for global warming today. A few hours later, a recycling collection truck comes by and ferries the recycling bin contents to a sorting plant. Diligent and nimble-fingered staff grab your takeaway cup off the conveyor belt and throw it into the rubbish pile headed for landfill.

Contrary to popular belief, cardboard takeaway coffee cups are no longer being recycled. Neither are plastic bottle caps, supermarket shopping bags, pizza boxes or beer boxes.

New Zealand is reliant on the custom of foreign recycling companies which set the standards, and they are getting fussy. New Zealand has no recycling facilities. There are plenty of collecting and sorting depots, but none can actually recycle the material they collect. Instead, Kiwi companies sort and grade items. Companies from China, Indonesia, India and Vietnam then tender for a shipment of a certain grade of paper, plastic or aluminium. Bales are stacked into shipping containers and sent overseas, where they are eventually recycled.

Mastagard is the South Island’s largest independently-owned recycling and waste collection company. Quality assurance and shipping manager Dave Oberholzer said the recycling industry was changing. In the past five months, he has had to slowly start excluding items like takeaway coffee cups from his recycling operation. Oberholzer said if a centrally-located recycling facility was set up in New Zealand, it would be well used. It would stop the recycling industry from being dictated by foreign companies and would cost less for local companies.
Read more

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WHITCOULLS CRINGE PALACE – DUNEDIN
Have you visited Whitcoulls ‘revamped’ store in George Street lately? Books and magazines have been pushed to the back of store, book displays promoting new titles are ho-hum (so bad, why bother?), try finding the book section that interests you… Replacing the books at front of store are shelves and shelves of hideous brightly-coloured ‘over-packaged’ childrens toys and education aids.

With these changes, Whitcoulls transcends the last ten or so years of middle-of-the-road dullness. Not in a good way. Apart from nearly going bust, the company has made the large premises mind-numbingly awful – functionally and aesthetically. This is Cringe Palace.

What is Whitcoulls telling New Zealand families? “Welcome to the throw-away age!” “Books, what are books?! (we don’t know)” “Buy cheap trash from shipping containers, manufactured by overseas underclasses!” “Fight your way through the packaging!” “These products can’t be recycled here, that’s a good thing!” Et cetera.

Whitcoulls has been diminished and devalued by its owners and directors. The retail market is always hard, especially for ‘average’ book stores. But for ‘imagining the scene’ that promotes child and adult education and entertainment, if not stationery supplies… Whitcoulls has concussion and blindness. By abandoning and denying innovation and inspiration, Whitcoulls fails all the challenges that make New Zealand retail fun and edgy.

Whitcoulls George Street resembles another $2 store, with huge mark-ups. The proud historical Whitcoull’s brand is LOST. Packaged Junk is now the primary ‘store presence’. Ghastly.

We won’t be back.

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Related Post and Comments:
5.12.09 Dunedin’s kerbside waste collections

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Dirty nappies and more: Dunedinites abuse kerbside collection system

Workers sorting the material said they were also dealing with “thousands” of dirty nappies discarded as recycling each day.

Contamination levels, reported as between 2% and 2.5% in July last year, were actually “about 12%”. This was high compared with other New Zealand centres. “It should be about 5% overall.”

### ODT Online Sat, 7 Jan 2012
DCC worker jabbed by dumped needle
By Chris Morris
A worker at Dunedin’s recycling plant is facing a nervous six-month wait for blood test results after being pricked by a discarded syringe. The incident happened as the woman worked at the Green Island recycling plant last week, sorting through items coming down a conveyor belt as part of the Dunedin City Council’s kerbside collection operation.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

WebUrbanist on steel shipping container reuse

### weburbanist.com 26 May 2008
Architecture & Design
10 Clever Architectural Creations Using Cargo Containers: Shipping Container Homes and Offices
By Urbanist
With the green theme growing in popularity across every stretch of the world, more and more people are turning to cargo container homes for green alternatives for office, and even new home, construction. There are countless numbers of empty, unused shipping containers around the world just sitting on the shipping docks and taking up space. The reason for this is that it’s too expensive for a country to ship empty containers back to the their origin in most cases, it’s just cheaper to buy new containers from Asia. The result is an extremely high surplus of empty shipping containers that are just waiting to become someone’s home or office.
Read more

Related links at WebUrbanist:
14.12.09 30 Cargo Container Offices, Stores and Businesses
1.12.09 30 Steel Shipping Container House & Home Designs
25.8.08 Design or Buy Shipping Container Homes
1.6.08 More Awesome Shipping Container Homes

Photo source: WebUrbanist

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The grey-coloured cliffside house at Happy Valley (pictured above) was Wellington’s first container house. It was designed by Ross Stevens, one of New Zealand’s leading industrial designers. Stevens is a senior lecturer at the School of Design, Victoria University.

Further information:
House Location Map
20.4.08 New Photographs by Tim Stephens
23.5.08 Inhabitat article

ResearchArchive @ Victoria
Sustainability in Prefabricated Architecture: A Comparative Life Cycle Analysis of Container Architecture for Residential Structures (2010)
[Master of Architecture Thesis]
Author: Palma Olivares, Alejo Andres
Advisor: Robert Vale

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Surprise! DCC continues to create CONFUSION

Firstly: No CityTalk was delivered to my central city residence…

### ODT Online Mon, 25 Oct 2010
Confusion as deadline draws near
By Chris Morris
Confusion surrounding Dunedin’s new kerbside collection service could drive up the cost of the scheme for the city’s 45,000 households, the Dunedin City Council is warning. The new service is due to be launched on February 28 next year, but members of the public have only until October 31 to tell the council if they want a smaller recycling wheelie bin as part of the new service.

DCC’s new refuse service
– Due to launch on February 28.
– Cost $63 per household, paid by uniform annual charge (UAC).
– 240-litre wheelie bin, or 80-litre wheelie bin substitute, for non-glass recyclables.
– Existing black bags for rubbish.
– Existing blue crates for glass.
– October 31 deadline to request smaller 80-litre wheelie bin, if required.

Read more

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Let’s be clear. DCC has completely fudged central city Parking and that particular cloud hasn’t dispersed. Now this mess with household waste collections. Communication is? DCC in own bubble, AGAIN.

Dunedin prides itself on being a university town, with a higher than average number of residents holding degrees. And yet, the Council has no idea how to provide timely sage advice to residents on the matter of cost, convenience and affordability for rubbish collections. Surprising, given the number of submissions Council received from the public. Where’s the follow up?

I have no ability to accept ANY wheelie bin of whatever size. So what are my alternatives, DCC? Where is my letter or a webpage I can consult to get to the heart of the matter?

On the surface of it, as I submitted in writing, with the advent of wheelie bins I will be doing less recycling than ever before – since all of my recyclable waste, apart from glass, has to go to landfill in a black bag. Because, there appears to be no alternative provided by the Council. This stinks.

DCC, WHAT IS CUSTOMER SERVICE? HAVE YOUR COLLECTIVE MANAGERS FIGURED THIS OUT YET? Now, about CityTalk…

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Container complex idea, for Dunedin(?)

ODT 19.11.09 Food sellers keen on Noah’s Ark site

Let’s be blatant. Why not do some of this at the Noah’s Ark site in Marlow Park playground, St Kilda? Would work as a beach-side attraction (destination), creates its own shelter – food retailers, other vendors, and the general public would love it. A DESIGN feature for Dunedin. Hello, a fun reminder about city recycling!

Image: Orodreth via Flickr

### inhabitat.com 22 January 2010
Stunning Shipping Container City Springs up in Mexico
By Bridgette Meinhold
This hip, colourfully painted shipping container city recently sprung up just outside of Mexico city. Created by a small community of businesses, the project features restaurants, gallery space, bars, funky stores and even living spaces constructed completely out of recycled shipping containers.

Image: Sidabossa via Flickr

Container City is located about two hours outside of Mexico City in Cholula, and is comprised of about 50 standard shipping containers. The developers took 4500 m2 (48,500 sq ft) of space and plopped down the containers, stacking them to create courtyards, alleys and streets. The containers were then painted bright colours and outfitted with lighting, kitchens, dining areas and more.
Read more

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Images: containercity.com via Flickr

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Scotland Yard donates to London’s 2012 Olympic site

### Footprint: Hattie Hartman’s sustainability blog* 7 January 2010
Guns, knives, bullets: Olympic sustainable architecture
By sustainability
Knives, bullets, body armour, guns and items of jewellery that have been recovered from London’s streets have all been melted down to aid the construction of the capital’s 2012 Olympic site in Stratford.
Read more

-Hattie Hartmman is the Sustainability Editor of the Architects’ Journal.

*Part of the Architects’ Journal blog network.

Post by Elizabeth Kerr

Majora Carter, Founder, Sustainable South Bronx

TEDtalksDirector 06 January 2007

http://www.ted.com In an emotionally charged talk, MacArthur-winning activist Majora Carter details her fight for environmental justice in the South Bronx — and shows how minority neighbourhood suffer most from flawed urban policy.

TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers are invited to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes — including speakers such as Jill Bolte Taylor, Sir Ken Robinson, Hans Rosling, Al Gore and Arthur Benjamin. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, politics and the arts.

sundancechannel 30 May 2007

Post by Elizabeth Kerr

We heard this one.

Barry Stewart again. Channel 9 News tells us “plans to introduce kerbside recycling could be delayed”. Read more in Wednesday’s Otago Daily Times.

The fact is we already have some kerbside recycling. Dunedin City Council, however, has been considering the options to achieve greater recycling of waste gathered in residential kerbside collections.

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### ODT Online Wed, 25 Nov 2009
Wheelie bins still in the slow lane
By Chris Morris
The chairman of the Dunedin City Council’s infrastructure services committee has again signalled plans to introduce a new kerbside collection system in Dunedin could be delayed.
Read more

Post by Elizabeth Kerr

e-Waste Day

eDay 2009 is to be held on Saturday, 12 September 2009

Find out where your nearest drop off point is go to http://www.eday.org.nz/

Clean up New Zealand’s e-waste
Recycling electronic waste (e-waste) enables the recovery and reuse of valuable materials and ensures toxic materials are not buried in our landfills – so it’s better for our environment.

eDay is a cars-only drive-through recycling event which gives you the opportunity to recycle old computers or mobile phones in an environmentally sustainable way.

Over 16,550 cars dropped off 87,056 items during eDay 2008. A total of 946 tonnes of e-waste was diverted from our landfills. This year it is hoped to divert over 1,000 tonnes of e-waste from New Zealand landfills.

RWC 2011: Dropping the ball on sustainability

New Zealand has less than a 1,000 days to get sustainable…

### scoop.co.nz Friday, 29 May 2009, 2:41 pm
Opinion: Green My World Cup
By Gareth Hughes
The Rugby World Cup will be the biggest international event to come to New Zealand ever and our best chance in a generation to brand ourselves on the world stage as clean and green. But will we actually mean it this time?
Read more

Post by Elizabeth Kerr