What's the problem
with rubbish?
How much do
we produce?
What's being done
about it?

What's the problem with rubbish?

In New Zealand, all of our rubbish is buried in landfill sites. The problem is that we don't have enough existing landfills to cope with the increasing amount of rubbish we're throwing away and there is increasing resistance to developing new, high-standard landfills.

While we need landfills to manage some of our rubbish, over half of the rubbish we put in our rubbish bags can be recycled or composted - the more recycling and composting we all do, the less we will need landfills to provide a 'final' solution to rubbish.

In the end it's our actions that will decide the issue. We can each make a difference by taking some easy steps to reduce our rubbish.

Why aren't landfills a good way of dealing with our rubbish?


		Burning rubbish isn't a solution - it pollutes the air and may release toxic substances. Composting and recycling are healthier options for you, your neighbours and the environment.

If there is no other option for dealing with our rubbish then a modern, well-designed and operated landfill is a reasonable option for managing our rubbish.

While landfills effectively contain our rubbish, did you know that:

Rubbish doesn't break down very well in a landfill. Plastic, steel, aluminium and even paper and cardboard take tens or hundreds of years to break down.
While modern landfills don't tend to cause dust or odour problems, nobody wants to live near one.
As garden rubbish and kitchen scraps break down in a landfill they produce methane. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas (20 times worse than carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas) and can reach explosive concentrations in enclosed spaces such as basements.
Rainwater percolating through the landfill and the break down of garden rubbish and kitchen scraps contribute to a liquid called leachate. In old landfills, leachate can escape and contaminate surface and groundwater. In modern, well-managed landfills it costs a lot of money to collect and treat the leachate.

Rubbish doesn't break down in a landfill

There are currently over a hundred landfill sites operating in New Zealand, taking a total of over 3 million tonnes of our rubbish each year. We've got to face up to the fact that we can't just keep burying our rubbish and hoping it will go away. It won't.

NEXT: How much do we produce?