MfE update on waste in New Zealand
Aotearoa New Zealand faces significant waste challenges. There is increasing public concern about waste and its harmful effects on our environment. New Zealanders care deeply and are demanding change so we can better live within the finite resources of the planet and minimise our greenhouse gas emissions.
MfE has now shared two key publications that set out their plans to reduce waste, rethink plastics and help New Zealand transition to a low carbon circular economy.
- Waste Reduction Work Programme: The government’s work programme until 2023 to reduce waste.
- National Plastics Action Plan: The action plan until 2024 to rethink the way New Zealand uses plastics, including work underway such as banning single-use plastic shopping bags, phasing out single-use problem plastics, introducing regulated product stewardship for six waste streams and investing approximately $100 million in resource recovery infrastructure.
In addition, work is underway to launch the $50 million Plastics Innovation Fund to support projects that reimagine how we make, use and dispose of plastics. The fund will invest in projects that design out waste, keep products and materials in use and protect the environment from harm. Keep an eye out for more information.
For any further questions, please email the Waste and Resource Efficiency Directive at WRED@mfe.govt.nz.