Page 24 from: July / August 2005

Waste management policy

The title of the document containing New
Zealand’s official Waste Strategy is: ‘Towards Zero
Waste and a Sustainable New Zealand’. However,
‘Zero Waste’ is not the government’s official policy.
‘As a government, we have not advocated zero
waste, as we’re not in a position to do so because we
don’t control the infrastructure,’ explains Chris
Purchas, Senior Adviser – Sustainable Industry of
the Ministry for the Environment (or Manatu Mo
Te Taiao in the Maori language). ‘However, at a
local level, about 50% of the councils have commit-
ted to a zero waste target which they see more as an
aspirational goal.’

According to Mr Purchas, the value of the Zero
Waste strategy/targets is that ‘they make people
think a bit differently about waste issues’ while also
‘encouraging people to come up with creative plans
about how to minimise waste’.

There is also a ‘Zero Waste New Zealand Trust’,
which was founded some six years ago and is based
in Auckland. Although the trust receives some
funding from the New Zealand government, most
of its income comes from the Tindall Foundation.

Meanwhile, the New Zealand initiative has
become a movement with international branches in
Australia, the UK, India and South Africa. It is con-
sidered to be an informal consultant group think-
tank.

Landfilling versus incineration

Almost 100% of all waste in New Zealand is land-
filled, leading Mr Purchas to explain why the coun-
try has no incineration plants. ‘The main reason is
cost,’ he says. ‘Operation of an incinerator is quite
volume dependent – you need large volumes of
waste to make it cost effective. As New Zealand is a
long and “skinny” country, transport costs would be
very high. Furthermore, there is enough landfill
capacity in New Zealand for the foreseeable future.
Incineration can’t compete with landfilling in New
Zealand as it is simply too expensive.’

Local councils or private companies operating

Recycling International • July/August 2005 24

New Zealand – Facts & Figures
New Zealand was discovered in about A.D. 800 when the

Polynesian Maori reached the islands. In 1840, their chieftains
entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which
they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria of England while retaining
territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the first organ-
ised colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872
ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New
Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the
UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand’s full participation in
a number of defence alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the
government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.

New Zealand’s surface area is 268,021 sq km/103,474 sq mile, which
is roughly the same size as the state of Colorado in the USA
or the UK. It has a coast line of 15 134 km/9 398 mile.

It has a climate with sharp regional contrasts and the
country’s highest point with 3754/11 144 ft is Aoraki-
Mount Cook in the New Zealand Alps on the South Island.

There are two official languages, English and Maori,
and, as a result, many signs are bi-lingual. The country
has a population of 4,035 million, of which about 80% lives
in cities. Auckland on the North Island is the only city
with more than one million inhabitants. The capital is
Wellington and other major cities include: Christchurch,
Dunedin, Invercargill, Queenstown and Hamilton.

Over the past 20 years New Zealand has transformed
from an agrarian economy to a more industrialized, free market
economy that can compete globally. Per capita income has risen for
six consecutive years and is now more than US$ 23 000/€ 18.500 in
purchasing power parity terms. New Zealand is heavily dependent
on trade – particularly in agricultural products – to drive growth.
Exports are equal to about 20% of GDP. GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 4.6%, industry: 27.4%, services: 68%. The 2004 GDP
growth rate 2004 was 4.8%

Agricultural products include: wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses,
fruits, vegetables; wool, beef, lamb and mutton, dairy products and
fish. The main industries are: food processing, wood and paper prod-
ucts, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and
insurance, tourism and mining. The country’s export commodities
are mainly dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish,
machinery, while its main export partners are Australia 19.6%, USA
14.3%, Japan 11.4%, China 6.3%, UK 5.1%.

Auckland is New
Zealand’s only city
with more than one
million inhabitants.

N E W Z E A L A N D

Simon and Lynette
Westgaard of Auckland-
based stainless steel
recycler Commercial
Metals. Since 1999,
Lynette has been paint-
ing what she calls
‘abstract portraits of
scrap’ through which
she gives expression to
‘the contrast between
the hardness of metal
scrap and the softness
of a painting’. For more
information, contact
Lynette Westgaard at:
[email protected]

Baling of aluminium at SimsPacific Metal’s operation in
Auckland.

Recycling station in Christchurch’s main shopping street.