Submission on proposed amendments to NZ's waste legislation
The Commissioner has made a submission to the Ministry for the Environment on proposed changes to New Zealand’s waste legislation.
He supports the consultation’s proposal to allow councils to spend their waste levy funds on three of the four suggested additional activities:
- managing emergency waste
- compliance, monitoring and enforcement of mismanaged waste
- activities that provide for the remediation of contaminated sites and vulnerable landfills – but only when those responsible can no longer be held accountable.
However, he opposes the suggestion that waste funds should be available to councils for general activities outside the waste sphere that reduce environmental harm or increase environmental benefits. He explains that this change would risk undermining public confidence in the scheme which was set up specifically to address waste issues.
He states: “Broadening the category of eligible uses risks making the levy look like a slush fund for whatever environmental activity a government is not prepared to fund.”
The Commissioner also agrees that the waste levy should be collected from waste to energy facilities. He further expresses his support for the proposed ‘Green-farms’ regulated product stewardship scheme and suggested it be expanded in the future to include a wider range of agricultural products.