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Waiheke Island resource recovery park

Background | Upgrade and benefit | Concept design

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Background

Reuse and recycle

Every community has to deal with its waste. Some communities send most of their waste to landfill, but an increasing number of people aim to reuse and recycle as much of their waste as possible.

We need to recycle and reuse because our resources are finite and it is getting harder and more expensive to find landfill space. To become more sustainable we need to find ways to conserve our resources and 'close the loop'.

Resource recovery park

A resource recovery park is a purpose-built facility for recovery of material from the waste stream for reuse or recycling.

Resource recovery parks aim to:

• reduce waste sent to landfill
• develop uses for recovered materials
• create local employment and business opportunities
• provide a focus for environmental education.

Many New Zealand communities have built resource recovery centres and parks. Few have had the opportunity to have one designed from the ground up, with resource recovery as its core function. Waiheke islanders will have one of the best-planned resource recovery parks in New Zealand.

Building work on Waiheke Island's new resource recovery park is likely to start in mid-2006.