FAQs

A Waste Management and Minimisation Plan (WMMP) is a six-yearly plan required by law that sets out how WasteNet Southland will work with councils, communities, and businesses to reduce waste and manage what's left over effectively. It's our roadmap for protecting Southland's environment, reducing costs for ratepayers, and making better use of resources over the next six years (2026-2032).

Southland generates about 160,000 tonnes of waste annually. Without proper planning, this costs ratepayers more, harms our environment, and wastes valuable resources. A regional approach helps us work smarter - sharing costs, coordinating services, and tackling waste issues that cross district boundaries like illegal dumping and construction waste.

This WMMP affects you in several ways, whether you live in town, rurally, or run a business:

• Resourcing allocated to support council-provided kerbside (wheelie bin) services, such as education about what can be recycled and how to use the services correctly.
• Frameworks and funding for community initiatives like school-based composting and reuse groups in your area.
• Fostering local support for product stewardship schemes may give you more options for disposing of items like batteries, farm plastics, and e-waste
• Developing and undertaking actions to manage and minimise illegal dumping across the region.
• Support and education about waste reduction opportunities, including ways that businesses can save money on waste disposal costs.
• Focus on emergency planning for waste management during extreme weather events
• Stronger advocacy to central government for national solutions that reduce local costs

The six-year review cycle is required by law under the Waste Minimisation Act 2008, but it's also essential for several practical reasons:

Things change: Over six years, significant changes occur that affect waste management:

• New technologies and recycling options become available
• Population and development patterns change
• National policy and legislation evolves (like new product stewardship schemes)
• Community priorities and needs shift
• Climate impacts and emergency management requirements develop
• Improved data and monitoring to inform decision-making, resource allocation and action plans.
• Ensuring waste services remain cost-effective and aligned with community priorities expressed through local elections and consultation

This review cycle strikes a balance between providing certainty for long-term planning while ensuring the plan stays relevant and effective as conditions change.

The development of this WMMP has been a collaborative process involving waste management expertise and extensive stakeholder input, and we're not finished yet - we need your input through this public consultation.

Initial Stakeholder Engagement: Development of the WMMP was informed by engagement with a wide range of stakeholders across Southland, including local government, industry, community organisations, mana whenua, businesses, and subject matter experts.

Mana whenua were also engaged, with rūnanga representatives providing specific input and endorsement on priorities, including separate glass collection, battery drop-off infrastructure, and increased waste education.

This WMMP introduces several new focus areas:

• Priority materials: We're targeting specific waste types like organic waste (food scraps and garden waste), textiles, construction waste, batteries, and agricultural plastics
• Product stewardship: Providing local support for national product stewardship schemes to ensure they word in Southland’s unique geography and for our communities, as well as encouraging  locally-led initiatives to reduce waste at the source
• Climate resilience: Emphasis on planning for waste management during emergencies and extreme weather
• Community partnerships: Ongoing support for community groups doing reuse, repair, and organics diversion work
• Better data: Improved monitoring of waste flows beyond just council services so that we can allocate funding and resources where they will have the most impact
• Glass separation: Investigating options to separate glass from recycling to improve recycling quality

Priority materials are waste types where we can make the biggest difference over the next six years. We've identified organic waste (food scraps), textiles, construction waste, batteries, glass, and agricultural plastics as priorities because they're either going to landfill unnecessarily, causing environmental problems, or have emerging solutions we can support.

WasteNet Southland is a shared solid waste service for the Gore District Council, Invercargill City Council and Southland District Council. Formed in the early 2000’s, WasteNet’s mission is to coordinate the effective and efficient delivery of waste services to the councils and the Southland region, including waste service contracts.

A regional approach enables cost efficiencies to be achieved through economies of scale and operational efficiencies, such as preparing one WMMP for the region rather than each council having its own WMMP. This regional approach means that education, projects, and services can be delivered more effectively and at a lower cost to residents.

No, this process isn’t focused on the bins at your house.

Review of kerbside services is a separate process already underway by the Gore District, Invercargill City, and Southland District Councils.

Instead, the WMMP takes a whole-of-region view and considers how we will manage and reduce waste in all areas of our community, not just households.   

Yes, we'd encourage you to submit again - here's why:

While Invercargill and Gore residents were asked about kerbside waste services in the second half of 2025, this WMMP consultation is much broader and covers the next six years of waste management across all of Southland.

This consultation is different because it covers:

• The entire regional approach to waste management, not just your household bins
• How we'll tackle priority waste streams like construction waste, textiles, batteries, and farm plastics
• Support for community initiatives like school-based composting and reuse facilities
• Product stewardship and business engagement
• Emergency waste planning and illegal dumping strategies
• Infrastructure and services across the whole region for the next six years

We want to hear from you again because:

• You might have different views on regional waste priorities than just household services
• Your circumstances or priorities may have changed
• You might have ideas about community initiatives, business support, or other aspects we didn't cover in the bins consultation
• The more people who participate, the better our final plan will be

Even if your main message is "keep doing what you're doing," that's still valuable feedback that helps us understand community priorities.

If you don’t receive kerbside collection services now, we are not currently planning to extend the service to you, however this may be a consideration in future. This isn’t a focus of the WMMP and would be led by your local council.  

WasteNet’s website contains information of materials which can go into your bins – check out www.wastenet.org.nz

Several options are available for items that can't go in your household bins:

Check the WasteNet website first: The website includes comprehensive information about where different materials can go, including transfer stations, recycling drop-off points, and locations for special collection services such as battery collection stations.

Product stewardship means producers take responsibility for their products' whole life cycle, not just the person or consumer paying for disposal at the end of the product’s use. Examples include tyre recycling schemes and farm plastic collection. We support businesses to access these schemes and encourage thinking about waste impacts when making purchasing decisions. This reduces pressure on councils and communities.

We're planning a multi-pronged approach:

• Better education about disposal options
• Reviewing enforcement tools and approaches
• Improving access to appropriate disposal options
• Possibly trialling fee waivers for community clean-ups
• Working with all three councils for consistent approaches

Agricultural waste is one of WasteNet's priority materials. We are planning to:

• Promote existing schemes like Agrecovery and Plasback for farm plastics as well as the roll-out of new national schemes targeted at farm plastics and containers
• Support better data collection on rural waste streams so we can better plan and provide for rural services and communities
• Work with farmers on waste reduction opportunities
• Advocate for more product stewardship schemes for agricultural products

Waste and climate are connected. This plan helps by:

• Reducing methane from landfills by diverting organic waste
• Supporting repair and reuse to reduce manufacturing emissions
• Better emergency planning for climate events
• Encouraging businesses to consider lifecycle emissions
• Improving material recovery instead of making new products

Community groups are essential partners. The plan encourages support for community-led initiatives, which may include:

• Community gardens and composting
• Reuse initiatives
• Repair services
• Clean-up activities.

WasteNet will track:

• Waste generation rates
• Recycling participation and contamination levels
• Diversion from landfill
• Progress on priority materials
• Community initiative participation
• Product stewardship scheme uptake
• Data quality improvements

Regular reporting will show how we're progressing toward our vision.

The plan runs 2026-2032 with different timeframes:

• Short term (2026-2028): Education expansion, data improvements, service refinements
• Medium term (2028-2032): Infrastructure assessments, community initiative support
• Ongoing: Service delivery, monitoring, advocacy for national action

WasteNet Southland is funding the WMMP development.

The plan focuses on directing our efforts to where they’re needed most, not necessarily spending more. Many actions involve the use of existing resources, education, and advocacy, with funding typically coming from:

Waste Levy Funding:

• Each individual council receives funding from the national waste disposal levy (paid on waste going to landfill). This is currently used by each council to subsidise the cost of delivering recycling services to their local communities.
• The levy is paid by waste generators when disposing to landfill, not directly by ratepayers

Existing Resources:

• Regional coordination through WasteNet creates efficiencies and shared costs. Generally, WasteNet Southland will lead and deliver community education, support for community initiatives, and WMMP projects.
• Many actions are aimed at using current staff time and resources, and instead refining where these resources are focused
• Better data and monitoring help target efforts where they'll be most effective

External Funding:

• Product stewardship schemes shift costs from ratepayers to producers and users of products
• National funding sources may be available for infrastructure and innovation projects
• Community initiatives often involve volunteer time and external partnerships

Future Decisions: Any major new services or infrastructure (like food waste collection or new transfer stations) would require separate funding decisions and public consultation, with clear information about costs and funding sources.

The bottom line: This plan is designed to achieve better waste outcomes primarily through targeted use of existing resources, rather than increased rates.

If you want to raise a concern about waste services in your district, you can log a request for service via your Council’s Customer Services Team. You can do this through:

Gore District Council Residents:

In person at Gore District Council office – 29 Bowler Avenue, Gore 

Via phone by calling (03) 209 0330

Online at info@goredc.govt.nz

Invercargill City Council Residents: 

In person at Te Hīnaki – Council Administration Building or Bluff Service Centres, 

Via phone by calling (03) 21 11777

Online at My Invercargill (icc.govt.nz)

Southland District Council Residents:

In person at Southland District Council office – 15 Forth Street, Invercargill or the Lumsden, Otautau, Riverton, Stewart Island Rakiura, Te Anau, Winton or Wyndham Service Centres, 

Via phone by calling 0800 732 732

Online at Do it online | Southland District Council

If you have any questions regarding this consultation or solid waste services, you can contact us via email: Policy@icc.govt.nz

Accessible versions of all of our documentation are available on request to policy@icc.govt.nz or via phone, 03 2111777, or in person at 101 Esk Street, Invercargill

The easiest way to submit is online, using the form on this page. Alternatively, you can pick up a submission form and drop one off at 

• Te Hīnaki – Civic Building 101 Esk St, Invercargill
• Bluff Service Centre 98 Gore St, Bluff
• Invercargill Public Library 50 Dee St, Invercargill
• Murihiku Marae 408 Tramway Rd, Invercargill
• Gore District Council 29 Bowler Ave, Gore
• Gore District Library 10C Ardwick St, Gore
• Mataura Library 1 Bridge St, Mataura
• Southland District Council 15 Forth Street, Invercargill
• Lumsden office and library 18 Diana St, Lumsden
• Otautau office and library 176 Main St, Otautau
• Riverton Aparima office and library 117 Palmerston St, Riverton Aparima
• Te Anau library and office 24 Milford Crescent, Te Anau
• Wyndham office 41 Balaclava St, Wyndham
• Winton office and library 1 Wemyss Street, Winton

Or you can also email the WasteNet Southland Team at Policy@icc.govt.nz