Auckland Council’s plan to trial fortnightly rubbish collection in some suburbs has drawn criticism from residents who fear it will worsen illegal dumping in their neighbourhoods.
Parts of Te Atatū Peninsula, Panmure/Tāmaki and Clendon Park/Weymouth have been selected for the proposed six-month trial, impacting around 10,000 households.
The council’s goal was to reduce the amount of waste ending up in landfills. The city currently sent 1.5 million tonnes of rubbish to landfill each year — enough to fill Eden Park every week.
Officials said moving from a weekly to fortnightly rubbish collection could help cut waste by thousands of tonnes per year, but a trial was needed to help understand how.
However, some South Auckland locals worried the move would backfire.
“Just imagine the rubbish. It’s going to be piled up,” one resident said.
Others were concerned the trial will increase illegal dumping, which they say is already a huge problem.
“It piles up within the first week,” another resident said. “Then people dump it in the reserves just across the road from where I live. It’s disgusting.”
Manurewa-Papakura Ward councillor Daniel Newman said he had spoken to families who were “white-hot” with anger.
“When you put your bin out on rubbish day in South Auckland, you can see every bin is out there — many of them overfull. People already struggle. This will make their lives even harder,” he said.
“It will probably increase the amount of the illegally dumped fly tipping in our streets, in our parks, in our waterways, on our beaches.”
Justine Haves, Auckland Council’s general manager of waste solutions, said other cities like Christchurch, Hamilton, and Tauranga had successfully adopted fortnightly collections.
“They’ve all seen a reduction in landfill waste and an increase in recycling and food scraps,” she said.
Illegal dumping had not increased because of fortnightly collections, she added.
“We will be monitoring it closely if the trial does go ahead and that will be part of what we seek to understand as part of the trial.”
Illegal dumping was increasing across Auckland, with council costs rising to $2.7 million in 2024 — up $200,000 annually since 2022.
Consultation on the trial would open from 13 to 31 October, giving Aucklanders the chance to provide feedback.
It would be presented to a council committee in December, which would decide if the trial goes ahead from February 2026.
By Ed O’Driscoll, 1News Reporter
