Councillors reject rubbish plan

Press, 6 February 1986, Page 7

Councillors reject rubbish plan

A bid to have the metropolitan skips rubbish scheme put on the Christchurch City Council’s 1986-87 budget failed yesterday. The scheme was dropped this year after the council’s budget sub-committee decided it was too expensive. Cr Alistair James tried at a works and traffic committee meeting yesterday to have it reintroduced. There had been much criticism by residents since it was dropped, he said.

Cr Matthew Glubb said the scheme had been dropped because it was too costly, and was used only by residents near collection points and outside the City. It was logical to drop it, he said.

Other areas had a better rubbish collection service, Cr James said. Waimairi, for instance, had newspapers and bottles collected regularly. The only such collection the City had offered was through the now-defunct skips

scheme. People missed the opportunity to get rid of such rubbish, he said. “People in Waimairi,” said Cr Maurice Carter. Sir Hamish Hay felt the only thing the City should look at was the collection of properly bundled newspapers. He could not support the reintroduction of the skips scheme because of the cost. Cr James’s motion to have provision for the scheme made in the next budget was defeated by

four votes to three. Cr Carter queried the continued free delivery of packs of rubbish bags to houses. It was a wasteful use of staff, he said. The time might not be far off when people would have to collect their bags from the council. If that happened the price of the bags could be dropped. The wholesale price of City bags was 41c —14 c for the bag and 27c for collection and disposal. Buying 10 from a supermarket would cost about

$5, he said. Some neighbouring authorities had bags available at $1.60 for 10. That was the cost of the bag. only. The City had opted to provide the first bags free, from rates, and to include the cost of bag supply and collection in additional supplies. Sir Hamish Hay said the bags should be available from the council offices in Tuam Street. A report on sales venues will be made to next month’s meeting.