Welcome to the Whanganui Resource Recovery Centre

The WRRC is a one-stop shop for resource recovery and waste minimisation in the Whanganui District. The Centre retains a 24/7 facility for dropping off glass, plastics, cans, clothing, paper and cardboard. During normal opening hours, the Centre is also open for dropping off tyres, waste oil, e-waste, whiteware and green waste. 

There is a small charge to recycle some materials.  Check out the price list on the right (click to enlarge).

This project is a partnership between Tupoho Whanau Trust, Whanganui District Council, and Sustainable Whanganui. The Centre opened in August 2013, replacing the Peat Street Recycling Centre. 

OPERATING HOURS

Monday to Saturday - 8.30am to 4.30pm
Sunday - 10.00am to 4.00pm

Open every day except these statutory holidays:

• New Year's Day
• 2nd January
• Good Friday
• Christmas Day
• Boxing Day

Open Anzac Afteroon only - 1.00pm to 4.30pm 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

We want to acknowledge the good people of our community and give them a pat on the back for being great participants in our recycling world. While we are grateful to occasionally receive cakes and muffins from happy citizens for our efforts – the accolades must go to our community who learned fast and well how to separate recyclable product.

Great support has also been received from Sustainable Whanganui Trust, IDEA services (whose members come and maintain the gardens), Downer Whanganui and Corrections.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE WRRC?

Over the past four years the WRRC has increased the number of waste streams collected and has gradually increased tonnages in glass, plastics and fibre (cardboard & paper).  The total quantity of recyclable waste through the Centre in the 2014/15 period was 2400 tonne, compared with 2150 tonne for the 2013/14 period. This represents an overall increase of approximately 11%. 

Waste streams – where does it all go?

• Steel and aluminium cans are sent to a local scrap metal operator.
• Car and truck batteries are sent to a battery recycling operation in Wellington. Car tyres go to Wellington as well.
• Cardboard and Paper – is baled onsite by OJI Full Circle and freighted up to the Pulp and Paper Mills for reprocessing.
• E-waste is received for recycled through a local organisation which raises money for charity. e-waste items are refurbished if possible or dismantled for parts re-use or scrap.
• Glass gets freighted up to O-I in Auckland where it is reproessed into new bottles. O-I is New Zealand’s only glass recycling manufacturer.
• Greenwaste recycling is gaining in popularity. We are looking inverstigating local options to turn this into compost.
• Plastics Grades 2 and 5 (which include milk bottles) are sent to a company in Palmerston North which manufactures rubbish bags and anti-slip mats for dairy companies. Grade 1 Clear plastic is sent to Auckland for sorting and rebaling before being exported to China where it is turned into things polar fleece materials and blankets.
• Waste oil is reprocessed and re-used by a company in New Zealand.

 

NEW COMMUNITY SERVICES

Community recycling runs

There are two runs which WRRC is currently servicing:

• The first is through a Council contract to pick up recycling from the elderly/infirm and from Enviro Schools which are registered with the Council. This run is done monthly with recyclable product being brought back to WRRC for sorting and processing.
• The second is a weekly commercial run targeted at the hospitality industry in the CBD, mostly uplifting glass from businesses. Our aim is to offer a service which helps businesses make a responsible, positive choice to separate and recycle rather than send their waste glass to landfill. This is a work in progress and we acknowledge Buisnesses like Mint who are leading the way in this area.

Events waste/recycling

A gazebo, signage and specific colour-coded bins can be easily arranged at any event site to create a pop-up recycling station to help manage waste and recycling. Hadi Gurton, a local Zero Waste educator and coordinator, can assist with your event. 

Mobile recycling trailer

The trailer is available from the WRRC for any community member or group to book for events.  The trailer includes bins and signage and can be customised for the collection of cans, paper, plastic bottles, other plastics and glass bottles as required. There is a $50 deposit payable for the trailer to encourage correct sorting of product at the event. It is very popular and booked out most weekends. Email enviro.educator@wrrc.co.nz if you would like to book the trailer for your event.

WHO ELSE IS ON SITE WITH THE WRRC?

Sustainable Whanganui Trust and the Wheb

WRCC is home to Sustainable Whanganui Trust which has its office, the Whanganui Environment Base (WhEB for short) within the Enviro Building located inside our compound.

Sustainable Whanganui runs a number of community-oriented projects and workshops. It aims to offer practical advice and help to the community to become more self-sufficient and resilient.  The Base is run by volunteers, and is open Monday to Friday 10am–4pm and Saturdays 10am–12pm.  Click here to visit the SW website

There is a resource library at the WhEB with many great books available to be borrowed. Tiger worms and worm farms, Bokashi composting systems can be purchased at the WhEB office.

Re-Use Academy (RUA)

The Re-Use Academy is located in the Enviro Building and accepts clean items for re-use, repurposing and up-cycling. The cells store paper/magazines/cards, plant pots and gardening things, textiles, ceramics, jars, art and craft materials, cardboard/cardboard tubes/egg cartons. 

Materials are available for a Koha (donation). Proceeds go toward the upkeep of the service.

 

Green Bikes

Green Bikes is a part of  Sustainable Whanganui Trust. It promotes cycling as a cheap, healthy and environmentally friendly transport option. Green Bikes staff provide a great service receiving donated and discarded bikes reconditioning them and making them roadworthy for sale or dismantling. Members of the public can buy bikes cheaply and learn how to do some basic bike maintenance at the Green Bikes workshop.

Open Fridays from 10am to 4pm. 

Education Room

The Education Room is located within the Enviro Building. It's a well-resourced meeting/workshop/event room which is available for hire. Bookings can be made through our Enviro Educator. The contact email is enviro.educator@wrrc.co.nz

Resources include tables and chairs, data projector (ceiling-mounted), large TV, small sound system, heat pump, kitchenette with Zip hot water. Patrons are welcome to bring their own catering supplies.

The Room has hosted a number of activities including holiday programmes, educational workshops, art and craft workshops. Some of the events include Feijoabulous Festival, Home Resilience Basics course, Permaculture Hui, Morsbags (cloth bag making), Christmas decoration-making, Banner-making and puppet-making for street marches, High school video-making workshop, Sarjeant Gallery art workshops. In September we hosted Te Runanga o Tamaupoko's engagement with the Hon. Alfred Ngaro, Minister of Community & Volunteers.

 

 

Cancer Society – Furniture Restoration Workshop

The idea behind the Cancer Society Furniture Shop is to raise money for the Cancer Society by refurbishing and selling good quality hardwood furniture. Keeping this beautifully made furniture in circulation for at least another generation will also help to protect natural resources. Too much of this old handmade furniture is being lost because of the amount of work involved in restoring it. A lot of people lack the time or skills needed to undertake such a project or just the vision to see the potential hidden within these battered old pieces of furniture.

The Cancer Society is extremely lucky to have some very talented volunteers with upholstery, design and cabinet-making skills to work on these restoration projects.

There is a three-tier pricing structure for upholstered pieces of furniture:

1. Furniture is made ready for upholstering – a client buys an item and takes it away for upholstering (this works well for interior designers who have their own teams to finish projects to clients’ specifications).
2. Furniture is made ready for upholstering – a client buys an item and provides the fabric of his/her choice for the workshop to use and finish the piece.
3. Furniture is fully restored using fabric from the shop’s selection, and is made available for sale.

In the showroom/workshop there are armchairs and lounge suites, coffee tables, dining buffets/sideboards, cabinets, dining tables – the stock changes constantly. There are also a number of small items offered for a donation only.

Visit the Furniture Shop and be inspired to donate your unwanted furniture and purchase beautiful new pieces from the selection.

All the money raised goes to the Cancer Society and back into the Whanganui community.

For donations and queries, call Sue Cox on 022 659 6006.

 

SaveMart clothing bins

There are two clothing bins on site for recycling textiles and other items to SaveMart.