Five steps to managing your waste with WasteHub

In an earlier column, we introduced WasteHub, a free online portal designed to help New Zealand’s construction industry tackle waste. Accessible and easy to use, WasteHub provides builders with actionable advice and resources to reduce waste
on-site.

This month, we’re diving into the practical side of things: how to use WasteHub to enable sustainable waste management, where to start, and how to set up on site.

Start by categorizing your waste into distinct streams—plastics, timber, metal, and more. For this guide, we'll focus on plastics, though the same principles apply to other materials. So, why begin with plastics?

• Plastics are high volume and low mass - they take up valuable skip space and landfill space despite being lightweight.

• It’s relatively cheap to throw plastic in the skip, but the long-term environmental costs are massive because they take a lot of energy to produce, and they don't breakdown in landfills

• Lightweight plastics like polystyrene are especially problematic—they break up easily and often escape into waterways.

• Plastic use is on the rise, especially in packaging and construction components.

The good news? Plastics are recyclable and sometimes reusable, but they must be sorted correctly.

Here are five simple steps to effectively manage and recycle plastic waste on your site.

 Step One:  Identify the types of plastics

What main types of plastics are piling up on-site? Correctly identifying plastic type ensures it can be recycled. To get started, visit WasteHub and check out the Waste Catalogue. This comprehensive resource lists plastic waste commonly found on New Zealand construction sites, what it's made of and whether it can be recycled. Some plastics have recycling numbers clearly visible, but for others, use the Catalogue to match the product with its plastic type. Taking the time to sort and identify your plastics is a crucial step in ensuring they are handled correctly and ready for recycling. Remember, different build stages produce different types of plastic waste. For example, during the fitout stage you’ll likely deal with soft plastics (#4 LDPE) and polystyrene packaging, which can often be recycled locally. 

 Step Two: Will the supplier take it back?

If you have a significant volume of plastic waste from one supplier, why not give them a call to ask about a take-back scheme? See a list of suppliers who take back their construction products on the WasteHub - NZ Waste Map. See a list of suppliers who take back their construction products on the WasteHub - NZ Waste Map. Some companies, like ShrinkWrap Supplies, will collect their used product free of charge (provided it’s in the right condition) and recycle it into useful products, such as GoodWrap timber wrap. A supplier take-back scheme can save you time and hassle, but it does require coordination and careful checking that the product is in the right condition. Be proactive— talk to your suppliers early to set up a return system.  If you have a significant amount of one type of plastic and there is no supplier, take-back scheme, find a local recycler. 

 Step Three: Is There a Local Recycler?

Check the WasteHub, NZ Waste Map - simply type in your location to find recyclers in your area. Remember to check transport options, how and where the plastic should be delivered, and condition requirements.

 Step Four: Site-set up: order bins and signs

Now that you know what plastics you can recycle and have a recycler in mind, you will need to set up your site for easy waste separation and recycling.  WasteHub can help, there are free downloadable signs and links to bag suppliers. Mitre 10 also has free

signage available on their website.  The aim is to optimise your construction site with effective waste separation - proper waste management lowers landfill fees and environmental impact.  

Naylor Love, Dunedin bin set-up - for a new commercial build.

Benton Ltd close-up of on-site recycling - for a residential build.

Step Five: Get your team onboard!

Educate your team on why we are sorting, how to sort the waste and ensure it is in the right condition. If possible, assign someone to oversee the site’s waste separation to ensure the area is tidy and sorting is done correctly. If possible, have the domestic council bins available for food and drink waste.

It's important to regularly review and improve your waste management system to optimize your efforts and reduce your environmental footprint. So go and get started - do your bit for the environment!  Remember to Sort It, Check It, Bin It! Everything you need is available on the WasteHub website.

WasteHub video

The WasteHub was co-created with WasteXpert and co-funded by the MfE’s Plastic Innovation Fund, Marley, Mitre 10, WMNZ and of course, Environmental Innovation Centre!

Your feedback is important, so let us know if you have any other questions or if there’s any other helpful information, you’d like to see added to the WasteHub. We would love to hear from you!

If you have any questions for the team that you would like answered in this column, please contact us.