Update from Friends of the Farm Māngere Bridge
Living through this pandemic has made our lives different. Lockdown has meant that some of us have spent more time outside walking, cycling, and running around our local area and maybe we have a newfound appreciation for our beautiful surroundings at Māngere Bridge. Keeping this environment in top condition is a focus for Friends of the Farm who has partnered with Auckland Council for ten years to deliver education and waste reduction services.
The latest project for Friends of the Farm has been an upgrade of the recycling collection boxes in Māngere Bridge Library. Next time you visit the Library look inside the door on the right hand side and you’ll see a set of stylish boxes.
One contains a supply of reusable Tote All Recall shopping bags and one is for small oral waste products such as empty toothpaste tubes, dental floss containers and toothbrushes.
Collection boxes for batteries and used razor blades are kept behind the service desk for safety reasons. Local resident and Friends of the Farm member Rachel Kitchens took on the project of upgrading the collection boxes and providing new signage. “We hope these new boxes and signage will make it easier for locals to recycle these waste products,” said Rachel.
As well as acting as a local disposal hub for small waste products the Library regularly hosts a ‘popup’ education stand where Friends of the Farm members aim to educate and empower the community to be waste-wise.
While providing disposal services and reusable alternatives like tote bags is important, education accompanying these is the key to changing habits, says Friends of the Farm member and Ambury Farm educator Caroline Walmsley. “We aim to educate and empower the community to be waste-wise, so we provide the basic training, knowledge, and support, and then hand over, so they can do the work themselves”
In your own home, recycling soft plastic is a great place to start recycling and reducing waste – many product wrappings have the soft plastic symbol on them, telling you that you can recycle these in the soft plastic bins at Countdown Māngere or Countdown Māngere East, Pak’n Save, the Warehouse or Huckleberry Farms in Royal Oak. Recycling soft plastic waste enables a sustainable circular economy, here waste materials are reprocessed into new valuable products and commodities by New Zealand companies like Future Post in Waiuku and Second Life Plastics in Levin.
Story by Robyn Martin for Friends of the Farm
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