Increase in transfer station fees proposed to maintain even playing field

The proposed increases would affect mainly domestic rubbish and the increase would range from $2 extra for a car boot of green waste to $7 more for a trailer of rubbish.

The proposal would ensure that the cost of waste disposal is consistent across the District, with the same prices charged at the main refuse transfer station Re:Sort on Kioreroa Road and the outlying rural transfer stations.

The move has been prompted by advice from the Northland Regional Landfill Limited Partnership (who operate Re:Sort) that it intends to increase the fees at Re:Sort on 1 May, to accommodate recent increases in operating costs.

WDC CEO and NRLLP director Mark Simpson said the NRLLP management had made a compelling case for the price increases.

“Councillor Warwick Syers (Chairman) and I are members of the board. Our mandate is to ensure fairness for users and the best outcome for ratepayers.

“In this case NRLLP showed clearly that the cost of rubbish disposal had risen.  They showed that domestic users were paying less per tonne than commercial users, which is unfair. The proposed changes would apportion charges according to average weight and equate to $148 per tonne.”

WDC staff have outlined the risks to the ratepayers if there was a price differential between Re:Sort and the rural transfer stations.

“Council sets the fees for the rural transfer stations. If the rural transfer stations had lower fees than Re:Sort, some users would travel further to use the slightly cheaper transfer stations, and the ratepayer would wind up footing the bill for more rubbish to be collected from those stations and taken to the landfill.  It would be a false economy all round.

“In the interests of a fair share of the costs being met by all users, and ensuring that the bulk of the costs are covered by users not by general ratepayers, these increases are the most sensible option,” Mr Simpson said.