Agrecovery Rural Recycling is returning to rural Canterbury to hold five free container recycling events following the success of previous collections.
Three events in Darfield and Fairlie in 2012 netted around 2,000kg of plastic, equivalent to approximately 4,000 containers that might otherwise have been burned or buried on local farms.
This year, events will be held in Darfield, Fairlie, Cheviot, Geraldine and Oxford.
“We have 12 permanent collections sites across Canterbury which provide year round access to recycling for farmers and growers, however with the ban on burning and dumping we want to widen that network as much as possible,” says Duncan Scotland of Agrecovery.
A number of retailers and contractors are supporting the events including Farmlands, PGG Wrightson and Whitestone Contracting.
Farmers and contractors can bring their empty, triple rinsed agrichemical and animal health plastic containers to the following events:
Darfield – 14 April at Farmlands, 40 South Terrace, 8am – 12pm or PGG Wrightson, 1 Ross Street 12:30pm – 4:30pm; Geraldine – 7 May at PGG Wrightson, 4 Talbot Street, 10am – 2pm (with BBQ); Fairlie – 9 May at Whitestone Contracting, Allandale Road, 10am – 2pm; Cheviot – 15 May at PGG Wrightson Open Day, Main Road, 11am – 3pm (with BBQ); and Oxford (details still to be confirmed).
“Our 56 participating manufacturers pay a levy to allow containers to be recycled for free. We really hope farmers will throw their triple rinsed empties into the ute and avoid illegally burning or dumping plastic,” says Mr Scotland.
The collected plastic will be recycled at Astron Plastics in Christchurch, with one of the common uses for the recycled plastic being an underground cable cover.
“Last financial year, we collected enough containers nationwide to make a 15cm wide cable cover reaching from Auckland to Invercargill and back,” says Mr Scotland.
To recycle through this event, containers must be 0-60 litres in size, free of chemical residue and organic contamination inside and out, and still have the label on to identify the brand. All containers will be inspected before being accepted. Only containers from participating brand owners are free to recycle. A list of these and full acceptance criteria are available here or by calling 0800 247 326.
Permanent Agrecovery container collection sites around Canterbury are located in Amberley, Ashburton, Culverden, Duntroon, Leeston, Mayfield, Methven, Rakaia, Rangiora, Rolleston, Temuka and Waimate. Click here for full details.