Lawn clippings, prunings and other greenwaste taken to the Ashburton Resource Recovery Park is now being transferred to Timaru to become compost sold in bags or bulk.

The resource recovery park is operated for the Ashburton District Council by EnviroNZ (previously Envirowaste) and greenwaste once shredded onsite is being taken to the Redruth Eco-Centre in Timaru, where it is chipped and turned into compost, alongside foodwaste.

EnviroNZ is also contracted by Council to do the kerbside rubbish and recycling collection in urban areas and from rural satellite transfer stations.

Infrastructure and Open Spaces Group Manager Neil McCann said greenwaste from the Ashburton Resource Recovery Park had previously been mulched at the park, but the contractors were now taking it to Timaru for processing.

“Timaru has a well-established composting facility, which sells the bags of compost to the public. In the future it may be an option to have bags for sale here.”

He said the Ashburton Resource Recovery Park also had a mountain of woodchips that it was offering to residents for free.

“These woodchips have been deposited by local arborists, but we currently have far more than we can use around the Range Street park, so people are welcome to come and collect some for their gardens.”

Council estimates that about half the 14,000 tonnes of waste it sends to landfill each year could actually be recycled or composted and a new kerbside collection for household foodwaste is among key actions in a Waste Management and Minimisation Plan for the district.

Government has also announced plans to get businesses ready to separate food scraps from general waste by 2027.

Mr McCann said any future kerbside foodwaste collection in Ashburton could also be transferred to the Timaru composting facility.

“There’s a lot of planning to happen yet in this space, but diverting food scraps out of landfill is a good thing, especially if the end result is a good quality compost.”