Soft plastic recycling launch in Invercargill
Invercargill residents can now recycle their soft plastic collections following the launch of the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme in the region today.
A range of local leaders joined members of The Packaging Forum’s Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme as part of the launch of the new soft plastics collection service, at The Warehouse Invercargill today.
The distinctive recycling bins can be found at The Warehouse Invercargill on Leven Street; and at Woolworths Tay Street and Woolworths Waikiwi in Invercargill; and collections at these stores are currently underway.
In addition, the Scheme is pleased to announce that in the coming weeks soft plastic recycling bins will also be located at The Warehouse Gore, and Woolworths Gore.
Recycle South will collect and bale the soft plastic, preparing it for safe transport to Future Post’s facility in Blenheim for recycling into fence posts and raised garden beds.
Lyn Mayes, Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme manager, says the whole team is proud to be able to bring the Scheme to Invercargill.
“We’re very proud to be able to say we now have soft plastic recycling the length and breadth of the country, from Invercargill in the South to Waipapa in the Far North.
“We’ve had considerable requests from locals wanting us to bring soft plastics recycling to the region and Recycle South has been instrumental in helping us achieve this. Initially we were launching in Invercargill, with the aim of expanding to other districts such as Gore, but due to our relationship with Recycle South and our retail partners, we’re rapt to be expanding collections to Gore.
“It truly is a team effort as the network is multi-layered and significant logistical planning is required – from retailers and their staff managing the bins in store, collectors having capacity to store and bale soft plastics, and matching what we collect with the demand from the three New Zealand processing plants,” says Ms Mayes.
Hamish McMurdo, General Manager, Recycle South says: “Recycle South is pleased to be a part of the soft plastics return scheme. Given our ability to further process these plastics back into resin on shore, Recycle South is able to continue to provide working opportunities for our disabled staff.”
To celebrate the launch of soft plastic recycling to the region the Scheme is giving away a Future Post garden bed made from approximately 14,000 bread bags to The Warehouse’s chosen recipient, South Alive. South Alive is a community led development organisation that has been working to build pride in South Invercargill since 2012. One of the initiatives run by South Alive is their community gardens programme, which provide produce to nourish the local community. The gardens have also been used for various community workshops such as bucket gardening, composting, and seed saving.
The Scheme has experienced considerable growth in recent months having launched in Marlborough, Nelson, and Tasman regions; as well as throughout the wider Otago and Central Otago regions (Dunedin, Mosgiel, Queenstown, Alexandra and Wanaka), and last month in Whanganui.
In the last year the Scheme collected 745 tonnes of post-consumer soft plastic – the equivalent of 115 million bags or wrappers, and enough to be made into 76,000 Future Posts. All the soft plastic collected through the Scheme is recycled here in New Zealand.
With the addition of Invercargill joining the soft plastic collection service, more than 87% New Zealanders have access to a soft plastic recycling bin within 20km home or work.
Ms Mayes adds that the Scheme has reached more than 300 drop off locations with Scheme members also placing over 100 collection bins at their premises for use by their staff which is incredible and reflects the growing interest in soft plastic recycling, and the need to divert as much waste away from landfill as possible.
Phil Cumming, Group Sustainability Lead at The Warehouse Group says: “The Warehouse is really pleased to be able to support the local community with a new soft plastics recycling bin in our Invercargill store. We want to help our customers make easier, more affordable, and more sustainable choices so having an easy and accessible place to recycle soft plastics is one great way we can do this. We’re proud to now have 52 stores across New Zealand that are part of the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme with The Packaging Forum.”
Group Manager for Southland Woolworths New Zealand, David Smale says: “We are thrilled to see the continued rollout of the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme across Aotearoa New Zealand. With the introduction of our Invercargill stores into the mix, we are slowly ensuring more customers across the country can easily access a soft plastic recycling bin.
“By participating in programmes like these, Woolworths New Zealand demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and provides means for customers to more easily recycle some of their food packaging. We are delighted to see the soft plastics scheme grow and spread across the country and we look forward to continuing to work towards a better tomorrow for New Zealand,” says Mr Smale.
Rob Langford, CEO, The Packaging Forum (operator of the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme - SPRS) says the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme is a voluntary product stewardship scheme run and funded 100 percent by members.
“Growing the Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme demonstrates our commitment to leverage partnerships to overcome challenges and deliver industry led solutions. The Packaging Forum operates several additional recycling schemes, including programmes for glass as well as food and beverage cartons, and is working on another solution for plastic and metal caps and lids. These schemes, just like our Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme, are real examples of how industry can voluntarily collaborate and succeed in its responsibility to deal with the end-of-life recovery for packaging,” says Mr Langford.
