Farm Waste
The New Zealand Rural Waste Minimisation Project:
The New Zealand Rural Waste Minimisation Project:
The New Zealand Rural Waste Minimisation Project finds ways for rural communities to better manage on-farm waste like soft plastics, old chemicals and used oil.
It is helping preserve the environment by offering farmers and growers nationwide recycling and recovery events throughout the year. These events allow farmers and growers to sustainably clear a variety of farm waste in one go – removing some of the recycling challenges they face. Rural communities around the country will benefit from the opportunity to recycle or sustainably dispose of agrichemical containers, unwanted agrichemicals, used motor oil, seed and feed bags, and soft plastics like silage and bale wrap.
With backing from the Ministry for the Environment, Agrecovery is offering farmers and growers the chance to repurpose this waste into useful materials. It has sustainable recovery options for the waste that can’t be recycled.
Collection Events –Agrecovery holds a series of collection events in areas without a fixed collection site. Visit The Recovery Website for more information.
Agrecovery
Agrecovery provides New Zealand farmers and growers with nationwide programmes for container recycling, drum recovery, and the collection of unwanted or expired chemicals.
Agrecovery, a not-for-profit charitable trust, is a product stewardship scheme, one of a worldwide network of similar national schemes affiliated to Crop Life International Standards.
Burning and Burying - Dos and Don’ts
Burning and Burying - Dos and Don’ts
Under Environment Canterbury (ECan)'s Natural Resources Regional Plan (NRRP), there are some waste products that you are not allowed to burn. This includes:
| Treated wood | Painted, stained or oiled wood |
| Plastics including silage/bale wrap | Metals and materials containing metals |
| Fuel with a sulphur content greater than 1% by weight | Materials containing asbestos |
| Rubber | Synthetic materials |
| Tar or bitumen | Used or waste oil |
| Motor vehicle parts | Paint and other surface coating materials |
| Sludge from industrial processes | Medical waste, pathological wastes, quarantine waste or animal waste (except as provided for in Rule AQL32 of the Air Plan) |
Untreated wood and green waste can still be burned, but there are restrictions around this regarding the way they affect air quality and to avoid nuisance caused to other people.
If you are unsure of what you can burn and when, contact Environment Canterbury.
Recycling options
Here are some ways you can dispose waste material in a responsible and sustainable way:
Material | For information and advice | Local options |
For on farm rubbish and recycling collections; individual or joint farm pickups | Envirowaste 03 308 3143 or 0800 627 8249 | |
Silage and bale wrap, polypropylene bags, HDPE drums recycling and recovery, vineyard nets, polypropylene twines, irrigation pipe | Plasback (0508 338 240) | Envirowaste |
Agrichemical, animal health and dairy hygiene plastic containers (0-60L) – empty and triple rinsed Agrichemicals, plastic and steel drums 61-1000 litres | Agrecovery (0800 247 326) | Empty and triple rinsed 0-60L containers can be dropped off at Agrecovery drop-off sites at:
|
Paint | ||
Scrap metal |
| |
Other disposal options
Treated or painted timber/wood, asbestos, rubber, medical/pathological wastes, tar/bitumen, motor vehicle parts | Contact a licenced waste disposal contractor or check with your local vet for animal medical wastes and sharps. |