Waste Management Institute of New Zealand · The Guide includes numerous references to other useful...

September 2008

Waste Management Institute of New Zealand

the new zealand resource recovery park

design guide september 2008

ISBN 978-0-473-13713-7

Acknowledgment

This document has been prepared with financial support from the Minister for the Environment’s Sustainable Management Fund, which is administered by the Ministry for the Environment.

Disclaimer

The Ministry for the Environment does not necessarily endorse or support the content of the publication in any way.

Copyright

Reproduction, adaptation, or issuing of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorised without prior permission of the copyright holder(s). Reproduction, adaptation, or issuing of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without the prior permission of the copyright holder(s).

Printed using vege oil based petroleum-free ecolith inks on ecoStar : 100% recycled, post consumer waste, PCF, FSC certified : cover 300gsm text 140gsm

Contents

1 Introduction 11.2 Facilities to which this Guide applies 21.3 Purpose and scope of the Guide 31.4 Who should use this Guide? 3

2 Why establish a Resource Recovery Park? 42.1 General principles 42.2 New Zealand waste policy and statutory framework 4

2.2.1 The New Zealand Waste Strategy 2002 52.2.2 The Waste Minimisation Act 2008 52.2.3 Local Government Act 1974 and 2002 (LGA) 62.2.4 Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) 62.2.5 Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 (HSNO) 72.2.6 Building Act 2004 72.2.7 Health Act 1956 72.2.8 Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 (HSE) 72.2.9 Other considerations 7

2.3 Engaging the community 82.3.1 Levels of community engagement 82.3.2 Formal processes 92.3.3 Waste education and other information dissemination 92.3.4 The role of Resource Recovery Parks 9

3. Planning and Siting 113.1 Needs assessment 113.2 Economic considerations 13

3.2.1 Facility costs 133.2.2 Cost recovery 133.2.3 Selection of materials for resource recovery 153.2.4 Contractual arrangements 15

3.3 Site selection 173.3.1 Selection criteria 173.3.2 Selection methodology 20

3.4 Consultation 213.5 Consents and other approvals 23

3.5.1 Overview 233.5.2 Resource consents 233.5.3 Building consent 243.5.4 Other legal requirements 25

4 Design 264.1 Design principles 264.2 Site layout 264.3 Resource recovery activities 27

4.3.1 Recyclables - plastics, glass, cans, cardboard and paper 274.3.2 Scrap metal and appliances 294.3.3 Waste oil 294.3.4 Vehicle batteries 304.3.5 Gas bottles 314.3.6 Reusable goods 314.3.7 Green waste 314.3.8 C&D materials 324.3.9 Polystyrene 334.3.10 Commercial and industrial waste recovery 33

4.3.11 Tyres 334.3.12 Hazardous Waste 344.3.13 Product stewardship 354.3.14 Storage 364.3.15 Residual waste 36

4.4 Common design features 364.4.1 Health and safety 364.4.2 Environmental protection 374.4.3 Sustainability 394.4.4 Durability 404.4.5 Efficient materials handling 414.4.6 Flexibility and expansion 41

4.5 Site infrastructure 414.5.1 Gatehouse and weighbridge 414.5.2 Security 424.5.3 Community and education facilities 424.5.4 Staff facilities 424.5.5 Utilities 424.5.6 Signage 43

4.6 Site access and traffic flow 444.6.1 Site access 444.6.2 Internal traffic flow and control 44

5 Operation and Management 455.1 Introduction 455.2 Site management plans 455.3 Staff 46

5.3.1 Staffing levels 465.3.2 Staff training 46

5.4 Health and safety 475.5 Environmental protection 475.6 Emergency management 485.7 Materials acceptance and handling 49

5.7.1 Site access and operating hours 495.7.2 Materials acceptance 505.7.3 Resale of used items 505.7.4 Materials handling 515.7.5 Hazardous waste 52

5.8 Traffic management 535.9 User education and customer feedback 53

APPENDIX Typical Contents of a Resource Recovery Park Site Management Plan 55Glossary 57Index 59

Preface

This Guide has been produced specifically for New Zealand conditions, although some of the general aspects of the Guide draw on information presented in other design documents.

Key reference documents are:

EcoRecycle Victoria, July 2004:Guide to Best Practice at Resource Recovery and Waste Transfer Facilities

Department of Environment and Conservation NSW, August 2006:Handbook for Design and Operation of Rural and Regional Transfer Stations

The Guide includes numerous references to other useful documents. WasteMINZ will endeavour to update these links on a regular basis, but the reader should be aware that due to the rapidly changing nature of the information base on the internet, information relating to specific websites may not always be accurate.

Acknowledgements

This document has been prepared by Tonkin & Taylor Ltd on behalf of the Waste Management Institute New Zealand (WasteMINZ).

WasteMINZ wishes to thank the following individuals for their generous support and contribution:

Neal Absalom Opus International Consultants

Jo Cavanagh Landcare Research

Brian Gallagher Timaru District Council

Trudy Geoghegan Environment Canterbury

Kevin Graham Friendlypak

Nick Roozenburg Tauranga District Council

Rob Rouse Ashburton District Council

Marian Shore Waitaki Resource Recovery Trust

The Project Team:

Nathan Baker Tonkin & Taylor Ltd

Patricia Blütner Weitsicht Ltd

Tony Bryce Tonkin & Taylor Ltd

Nigel Clarke Waste Management Institute New Zealand Inc

Tony Kortegast Tonkin & Taylor Ltd

Leanne Lassman Electric Hedgehog Design

List of Abbreviations

C&D Construction & Demolition (waste)

CCTV Closed-circuit television

ERMA Environmental Risk Management Authority

E-waste Electronic waste

HSE Health & Safety in Employment (Act)

HSNO Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (Act)

LGA Local Government Act

LTCCP Long Term Council Community Plan

MfE Ministry for the Environment

MRF Materials Recovery Facility

NES National Environmental Standard

NZWS New Zealand Waste Strategy

PPE Personal Protective Equipment

RMA Resource Management Act

RRP Resource Recovery Park

RTS Refuse Transfer Station

SWAP Solid Waste Analysis Protocol

TA Territorial Authority

WMA Waste Minimisation Act

WMMP Waste Management and Minimisation Plan

one : 1the new zealand resource recovery park

1 Introduction1.1 Background

Resource Recovery Parks (RRPs) are established to collect, separate and transfer recyclable materials and residual waste. In many cases, they also include operations such as composting, the repair and sale of used goods, associated manufacturing and retail businesses, and other activities adding value to the resources that have been recovered. RRPs range from small community-based operations that concentrate on resource recovery while also managing residual waste, to large commercial or public facilities associated with an established or new refuse transfer station or landfill. Often, they serve as a focus for education initiatives to encourage the community to minimise the wastage of useful items and resources.

Resource Recovery Parks accept recoverable materials and residual waste direct from the public, and often from contractors and industrial customers. The materials are those not dealt with by conventional refuse collection or kerbside recycling operations and in this way RRPs complement other resource recovery activities that may be in place in a community. Resource Recovery Parks can become attractive locations for a range of businesses as they offer the opportunity to use or process the raw materials collected on the site and exchange by-products.

Throughout the world typical Resource Recovery Park activities include:

Collection, separation and off-site transfer of a wide range of recyclable materials.

Reprocessing of plastics, glass, timber, paper and cardboard (Kraft).

Collection, separation, composting and/or mulching of green waste.

Commercial-scale materials recovery.

Thermal treatment and recovery of energy from waste.

Ash reprocessing from waste-to-energy plants.

Reprocessing of electronic goods.

Concrete crushing for aggregate and recovery of reinforcing steel.

Tyre recovery and shredding or reprocessing.

Biofuel production.

Hazardous waste collection.

Contaminated soil treatment.

Business support activities.

Education.

Consolidation of residual waste for transfer to landfill.

In New Zealand, Resource Recovery Parks are developed for a variety of reasons ranging from economic objectives to implementing a community’s Zero Waste policy or providing an educational opportunity, or a combination of all of these. Whatever the drivers are for establishing a RRP in a particular community, it is important that each facility can adapt to changes in legislation and regulations, economic developments, social and environmental needs and the preferences of its host community.

This Guide therefore encourages a flexible approach to facility design and operation to ensure that RRPs remain viable in the long term and contribute to waste reduction and resource recovery in a sustainable manner. Although the size of Resource Recovery Parks may differ, there are some design and operational features that are common to most if not all facilities.

For the purpose of this

document, Resource

Recovery Parks are facilities

where wastes not dealt with

by conventional kerbside

recycling and refuse

collections are collected to

retrieve useful and valuable

materials before disposing

of the remainder as residual

waste.

Resource Recovery

Parks range from small

community-based

enterprises to large

commercial interests.

Although each site is

unique, there are some

features that are common

to all.

This Guide provides

detailed information on

how to assess whether

a community would

benefit from a Resource

Recovery Park, how to

plan, design and consent

such a facility, and how

to operate it safely. The

Guide aims to foster a

consistent approach

to this aspect of waste

managementthroughout

New Zealand.

key pointsfrom this section

To date, the most successful Resource Recovery Parks are those run by informed and enthusiastic staff and as a tidy, efficient and economically viable operation that is readily accessible to the public. The Guide provides the necessary information to allow prospective and existing RRP operators to achieve this.

1.2 Facilities to which this Guide applies

For the purpose of this document a Resource Recovery Park is defined as:

“A facility established for the recovery of resources from the waste stream for subsequent use as raw materials or for re-use, and for the consolidation of residual waste for transfer to landfill. The facility may be publicly or privately owned and operated and may include associated resource recovery and processing operations in addition to collection, separation and transfer activities.”

In New Zealand, a RRP may provide for the following activities:

Recyclables drop-off (plastics, glass, cans, paper, metals, etc.).

Green waste drop-off.

Green waste processing by composting or mulching, either co-located or remotely.

Construction and demolition (C&D) waste drop-off.

C&D waste processing.

Building and demolition materials resale.

Untreated scrap timber drop-off and sorting, typically for use as firewood, mulch or fuel.

Biofuel production.

Used goods collection, storage, repair and resale.

Electrical appliances, furniture and other bulk items drop-off and subsequent dismantling for recovery of components and/or materials.

Hazardous waste drop-off.

Co-located processing and manufacturing businesses that rely on recovered waste materials as their raw materials, or that otherwise have synergies with resource recovery, for example concrete crushing.

Co-located materials recovery facilities (MRFs), i.e. a combination of mechanical and manual sorting of recyclable materials, usually as part of a separate contract for the bulk of a community’s recyclables.

Educational facilities.

Residual waste consolidation for transfer to landfill.

The scale and size of a Resource Recovery Park and the extent of services offered will differ from community to community. A RRP can consist of an array of bins for recyclables at a small community transfer station, or be a large-scale recycling operation in a major municipality that offers used goods for resale, incorporates a refuse transfer station and is in close vicinity to a number of co-located waste recovery industries. There are examples around New Zealand that combine a number of the above activities, with a strong emphasis on meeting community needs and making usable goods available for resale and re-use.

1.3 Purpose and scope of the Guide

This Guide aims to provide a comprehensive set of guidelines for the design, consenting and operation of Resource Recovery Parks, to promote a consistent approach to this important aspect of resource management in New Zealand.

The document focuses on the resource recovery activities on such sites rather than on the residual waste transfer or subsequent processing of recovered materials, such as green waste composting. It describes key processes and criteria for the establishment, design and operation of a Resource Recovery Park and addresses:

Rationale and drivers for decision-making.

Regulatory requirements.

Facility planning and financial considerations.

Facility design.

Facility operation.

A Resource Recovery Park will be developed in one of the following ways:

By retrofitting an existing refuse transfer station to meet community resource recovery needs.

As a new development on an existing industrial or council site originally used for another purpose, and using some of the remaining infrastructure.

As a new development on a greenfield site.

The Guide applies to all of the scenarios listed above. It provides overall planning, design and operational principles and key requirements in a systematic manner, but is not intended to be a detailed design manual because each site is unique and requirements are very much location-specific.

Where applicable, references are made throughout the Guide to other documents that may offer more detailed information.

1.4 Who should use this Guide?

This document is intended for:

Local government staff involved with considering, planning or designing resource recovery facilities.

Local government staff, both at territorial authorities and regional councils, responsible for consenting Resource Recovery Parks, to foster a consistent approach to consent application processing and consent conditions.

Commercial waste businesses developing or operating RRPs.

Community groups developing or operating resource recovery facilities.

Funding agencies such as community trusts, the NZ Lotteries Commission and the Ministry for the Environment.

Government departments.

Audit New Zealand.

Potentially affected parties to a proposed Resource Recovery Park.

Key industrial and commercial waste generators.

two : 4the new zealand resource recovery park

2 WhyestablishaResourceRecoveryPark?

2.1 General principles

Resource Recovery Parks in New Zealand are typically developed to promote and practise waste minimisation in a community. They generally represent one element of a territorial authority’s Waste Management and Minimisation Plan (which reflects the New Zealand Waste Strategy’s objectives), or are part of a council’s Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP).

The drivers for establishing a Resource Recovery Park may include:

Reducing the amount of waste to be landfilled.

Conserving resources and promoting sustainable waste management.

Meeting community aspirations, values and expectations.

Providing overall environmental benefits.

Meeting a community’s social objectives, for example with respect to creating employment opportunities.

Reducing the costs of managing a community’s waste, for example to counter the effects of increasing fuel and disposal costs.

Maximising the value of recovered materials and associated commercial opportunities.

Encouraging a change in mindset from ‘rubbish’ to ‘resource’.

Contributing to meeting international obligations (for example the Kyoto Protocol).

Providing opportunities for research into resource recovery processes.

In developing a community’s approach to resource recovery, particularly the recovery of relatively low value materials from the waste stream, the aspirations, needs and preferences of individual communities need to be considered. In many respects these will differ from place to place and with time. In some parts of the country resource recovery efforts will be driven by cost, whereas in others the community may elect to practise resource recovery for different reasons. Regardless of the motivation, cost-benefit studies have an important part to play in project scoping, as outlined in Section 3.2 of this Guide.

2.2 New Zealand waste policy and statutory framework

Resource Recovery Parks and related waste management and minimisation activities in New Zealand are largely governed by the requirements of the Local Government Act 1974 and 2002, the Waste Minimisation Act 2008 and the Resource Management Act 1991. These Acts direct how councils and communities must plan for waste management and minimisation, and control the environmental effects of waste management. Some aspects of waste management are also subject to other Acts of Parliament as described below.

New Zealand’s policy approach to managing its waste is set out in the New Zealand Waste Strategy 2002.

This section of the Guide provides an overview of the legislation relevant to waste management and RRPs. Detailed information regarding the specific consents, licenses and other legal requirements necessary for establishing and operating a RRP is provided in Section 3.5.

Resource Recovery Parks

are developed for a variety

of reasons, ranging

from meeting councils’

long term planning

objectives, implementing

a community’s social and

environmental values,

and pursuing educational

goals to specific economic

reasons.

The legal framework for

comprises the Waste

Minimisation Act, the Local

Government Act and the

Resource Management

Act at its core. Other

relevant Acts are the

Hazardous Substances and

New Organisms Act, the

Building Act, the Health

& Safety in Employment

Act and the Health Act.

National Environmental

Standards, local bylaws and

international obligations

may also be relevant.

Involvement with the

community served by a

Resource Recovery Park

occurs at three levels – by

integrating the RRP and

its activities into a waste

minimisation programme,

by consulting with the

community during the

planning and design

stages, and by providing

specific user information

once the facility is

operational.

two : �the new zealand resource recovery park

2.2.1 The New Zealand Waste Strategy 2002

The New Zealand Waste Strategy (NZWS) 2002 is a long-term strategy aimed at reducing waste, recovering resources and better managing residual waste in New Zealand. It is a national strategy document that focuses on minimising waste and improving the management of residual waste. It guides work on waste issues towards three core goals:

Lowering the social costs and risks of waste.

Reducing damage to the environment from waste generation and disposal.

Increasing economic benefit through more efficient use of materials.

The NZWS identifies principles, policies and targets to achieve the vision of Zero Waste and a sustainable New Zealand. The implementation of the Strategy involves the co-operation of a range of stakeholders. Primarily it is a partnership between central and local government, but others such as industry, community groups and households all have important roles to play, for example through consultation and their participation in resource recovery activities.

Government intends to review and update the NZWS targets from time to time to ensure that current developments in resource and waste management are taken into account.

Download the New Zealand Waste Strategy from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/waste/waste-strategy-mar02/

2.2.2 The Waste Minimisation Act 2008 (WMA)

This Act aims to encourage waste minimisation and decrease the amount of waste that is disposed to landfill. It seeks to increase the efficient use of materials and a reduction in waste to protect the environment from harm, and provide environmental, social, cultural, and economic benefits. The Act introduces a levy on waste disposal, fosters the development of product stewardship schemes, provides for regulations on waste data collection, establishes a Waste Advisory Board and places more emphasis on waste minimisation in territorial authority planning for waste management.

The waste disposal levy will create a fund to be used for waste minimisation programmes. Fifty percent of the waste levy fund will be paid to territorial authorities on a population basis, while the remaining funds, minus administration costs, will be distributed to projects to minimise waste. This will be done through a contestable fund, with the criteria for funding yet to be determined.

A Waste Advisory Board will be established to advise the Minister and the Ministry for the Environment on waste minimisation. The Board also has specific functions under the Act, including providing advice on criteria for funding projects through the waste levy and which products should be prioritised for product stewardship schemes. Territorial authorities will be required to align their funding of waste minimisation initiatives using their portion of the levy with their Waste Management and Minimisation Plans.

This legislation effectively consolidates all waste legislation into one Act, replacing the waste management provisions in Part 31 of the Local Government Act 1974. It sets out specific requirements for territorial authorities to adopt Waste Management and Minimisation Plans, and details of what these plans must provide for. The Waste Minimisation Act also proposes that such plans must have regard to the New Zealand Waste Strategy.

two : �the new zealand resource recovery park

The Act allows for regulations to be made for obtaining data on waste from operators of disposal and other waste receiving facilities (such as recycling facilities) and territorial authorities. The greater emphasis on waste minimisation it creates may increase the role of Resource Recovery Parks.

2.2.3 Local Government Act 1974 and 2002 (LGA)

The LGA directs how councils and communities plan for waste management and requires every territorial authority (TA) to provide efficient and effective management of waste within its district. In particular, the LGA requires territorial authorities to have a long-term plan for waste management.

Long Term Council Community Plans (LTCCP)

The LGA 2002 requires every territorial authority to have an LTCCP. This is a strategic plan to consider and allocate funding over the long term, including resources for waste management. In regards to Resource Recovery Parks, the LTCCP must identify and plan for all waste management and minimisation activities. Spending from the waste disposal levy fund will need to be included in the LTCCP.

Waste Management and Minimisation Plans

Waste Management Plans, previously required under the LGA 1974 and 2002, are now required under Part 4 of the Waste Minimisation Act and have been renamed Waste Management and Minimisation Plans. Territorial authorities are required to prepare a Waste Management and Minimisation Plan to promote effective and efficient waste management and encourage and promote waste minimisation within their district. When preparing a plan territorial authorities must consider, among other things, the following hierarchy of methods for managing waste:

Reduction. Reuse.Recycling. Recovery. Treatment. Disposal.

Methods higher up in the hierarchy are given priority because they use fewer resources. Resource Recovery Parks provide a means to facilitate reuse, recycling and recovery of resources.

2.2.4 Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA)

The purpose of the RMA is to promote the sustainable management of natural and physical resources. One of the key mechanisms for doing so is the avoidance, remediation and mitigation of adverse effects on the environment. In the context of managing waste, this means that the RMA sets controls for any discharges (emissions) arising from waste activities. This aspect is managed by regional councils through policies in Regional Policy Statements, rules in regional plans and conditions of resource consents.

The RMA also controls the use of land. This function is the responsibility of territorial authorities, i.e. city and district councils and is largely achieved through rules and other methods in district plans, which address issues such as zoning and the siting and design of buildings.

2.2.� Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 199� (HSNO)

The HSNO Act, administered by the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA), is the principal legislation addressing the use of hazardous substances in New Zealand. Its purpose (Section 4) is “to protect the environment, and the health and safety of people and communities, by preventing or managing the adverse effects of hazardous substances and new organisms.” It does so through controls placed on imported or manufactured hazardous substances throughout their life cycle, for example with regard to the identification of substances, tracking, packaging, qualifications for persons handling hazardous substances, and disposal. At present, the disposal regulations apply to ‘pure’ substances that have become a waste, but the Ministry for the Environment is currently developing Group Standards for hazardous wastes, which are expected to extend the coverage of these Regulations. The storage, disposal and handling provisions in particular are important in the context of operating Resource Recovery Parks, and relevant certification may be required for these activities.

2.2.� Building Act 2004

The Building Act 2004 controls the building of structures, and applies not only to the construction of new buildings but also to the alteration, demolition and maintenance of existing buildings. Structures associated with a Resource Recovery Park are likely to require a building consent under this Act.

2.2.7 Health Act 19��

The Health Act seeks to ensure that activities are not offensive or injurious to public health. In the context of Resource Recovery Parks, Clauses 29 to 35 of this Act (Nuisances) and 54 to 55 (Offensive Trades) apply as action may be taken by the Act’s enforcement agents if nuisances (for example, harbouring rats or other vermin) are created during the operation of the facility. It should also be noted that refuse collection and disposal are included in the definition of an ‘offensive trade’ in Schedule 3 of this Act.

2.2.8 Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 (HSE)

The purpose of the HSE Act is to promote the prevention of harm to all persons at work and other persons in, or in the vicinity of, a place of work. With regard to Resource Recovery Parks, the Act seeks to ensure that employees, volunteers and users of the site can undertake activities in a healthy and safe environment, and that all practicable steps are taken to achieve this. The development and implementation of a Health and Safety Plan is an essential requirement of this legislation and hence a key requirement for any Resource Recovery Park.

Download New Zealand Acts of Parliament from: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/

2.2.9 Other considerations

National Environmental Standards and Guidelines

Section 43 of the RMA allows the Ministry for the Environment to develop National Environmental Standards (NES) and Guidelines. An example is the National Environmental Standard for Air Quality 2004. Other Standards or Guidelines relevant to waste management may be prepared in the future.

International treaties and obligations

New Zealand is signatory to a range of international treaties that have a potential impact on the sustainable management of resources, waste and the protection of the environment. Of potential relevance to the design and operation of RRPs, at least during strategic planning, are the Kyoto Protocol and its implications for climate change policy, and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.

Local Bylaws

The Waste Minimisation Act sets out a specific bylaw making power by territorial authorities for waste management. Such bylaws may cover a range of issues, including but not limited to regulating the collection, transport and deposit of waste and prescribing charges for facilities owned or operated by the TA.

Trade waste bylaws exist in almost all areas of New Zealand. These control what is discharged into the sewerage system and, depending on the nature and quantity of wastewater generated on the site, a trade waste permit may be required.

Waste management tools

The recently introduced waste tracking system WasteTRACK is an internet-based tracking system that consolidates manifest, facility and carrier data to track liquid and hazardous wastes from generation, through transport, to treatment or disposal. The system is administered under contract to the Ministry for the Environment and is available to those businesses that are operating in accordance with the Liquid and Hazardous Waste Code of Practice or are required to use it to meet council requirements. At present, WasteTRACK is mainly applied to septic tank and grease trap wastes, but its tracking potential may also be applied to other material streams in the future and thus become relevant to Resource Recovery Parks.

Another management tool for a particular type of waste is Tyre Track, a national online database system which links disposers of old tyres with transporters and end users. The system is operated by the Motor Trade Association and supported by the Ministry for the Environment.

Download up-to-date waste management information from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/waste/

2.3 Engaging the community

2.3.1 Levels of community engagement

Effectively engaging the community is an important consideration when establishing and operating a Resource Recovery Park. In this context engaging the community falls into three general categories:

Providing information to the community and raising general community awareness of waste issues, with the ultimate objective of changing attitudes and behaviours to promote waste minimisation and encourage a change in buying habits. Resource Recovery Parks often serve as a focal point for waste minimisation activities, and their place in a community awareness programme is discussed below.

Consultation with the community in relation to identifying the need for a Resource Recovery Park, determining community objectives and aspirations, planning for the facility and determining any specific concerns that may need to be addressed as part of the planning process. This process is detailed in Section 3.4.

Providing specific information to the users or potential users of the Resource Recovery Park to optimise the use of the facility and enhance resource recovery. Community engagement at this level is required for the successful operation of the facility and is described in Section 5.9.

2.3.2 Formal processes

Waste management planning is principally the domain of territorial authorities, although regional councils are also involved in some areas. The formal processes available to local government for engaging with their community are through Long Term Council Community Plans (LTCCPs), Annual Plans and Waste Management and Minimisation Plans. Preparation of these plans involves prescribed consultation procedures through which the community can participate in the planning process. The establishment and/or ongoing operation of a Resource Recovery Park would be part of this process. Waste Management and Minimisation Plans are required under the Waste Minimisation Act. They must specify methods for achieving effective and efficient waste management and minimisation in the district, including any educational or public awareness activities that may centre on a Resource Recovery Park.

2.3.3 Waste education and other information dissemination

Information about managing resources and wastes sustainably can be provided through channels such as council newsletters, websites and other media. These may range from high-level, concept-orientated features to specific announcements about the Resource Recovery Park’s operational details. Waste education initiatives can be directed at the community in general, the business sector or identified interest groups.

Waste education in schools, as part of a structured programme, is also an important component in any community awareness programme. This provides an opportunity to influence more than one generation, as children will often encourage their parents to take action based on what they have learned in school. Such programmes could range from addressing consumption and reduction aspects of waste management, to identifying what materials are recyclable and how to sort them. Resource Recovery Parks are likely to feature prominently in these programmes as they are an integral part of a community’s waste minimisation efforts. A visit to the RRP can be a suitable ‘education outside the classroom’ opportunity to reinforce the lessons learned in the classroom.

School education is an activity that could be undertaken by council waste minimisation officers, staff from waste contractors, or staff from another agency contracted to either of the above.

2.3.4 The role of Resource Recovery Parks

Resource Recovery Parks provide an excellent focus for community education programmes on all levels. RRPs are ‘living’ and working examples of resource recovery and waste minimisation. Open days for the general public as well as specific visits by school and/or community groups therefore provide valuable opportunities for practical learning. These learning experiences can be enriched by providing a resource and/or lecture room, exhibits of materials and products made from recyclable materials, posters and diagrams explaining what happens to the collected materials, and similar information. Talks and guided tours by enthusiastic and knowledgeable staff may further enhance these experiences.

A successful community awareness and education programme is integral to the success of a Resource Recovery Park. Community awareness programmes should be carefully designed with measurable objectives about behaviour change and the role of the RRP, to provide feedback for continual improvement of the programme.

three : 11the new zealand resource recovery park

3. PlanningandSiting

3.1 Needs assessment

The need for a Resource Recovery Park is determined during the course of overall waste management and minimisation planning in a district, or as part of business planning in the case of a proposed private development. The needs assessment would consider whether the facility will:

Sustainably increase resource recovery and reduce the amount of residual waste going to landfill.

Reduce the wastage of valued materials, commodities or items.

Reduce or increase the overall waste system cost.

Be compatible with other local and national resource recovery initiatives.

The key factors to be considered when undertaking a needs assessment and planning for a Resource Recovery Park are:

Community issues Identification of the community to be served and the location of its waste catchment boundaries (which may extend beyond the territorial authority boundary).

Quantification of community demographics, particularly population size and number of households.

Identification of specific social and environmental goals; these may have been signalled through formal council processes such as Annual Plan consultation or raised by elected representatives.

Consideration of community acceptance of similar initiatives in the past.

Resource availability

The number of resource recovery facilities already serving the community and/or located in neighbouring districts.

The extent of kerbside recycling collections in the area, and other council or private recycling initiatives.

Quantification of other resources remaining in the community that could be potentially collected at a Resource Recovery Park. This would be determined through:

Carrying out a Solid Waste Analysis Protocol (SWAP) to analyse the household refuse collection and the refuse being deposited at the transfer station.

Surveying residents to determine existing resource recovery behaviours and willingness to change.

Surveying industrial and commercial premises about existing resource recovery practices and their potential use of a RRP.

Estimating potential future waste and resource growth.

Finding out whether a

community would benefit

from a Resource Recovery

Park is the first step in

the planning process.

This process includes

activities ranging from

appraising the community

itself, assessing whether

sufficient resources would

be available for recovery

and identifying possible

markets for recovered

materials to addressing

economic, social and

environmental issues.

When the decision to

establish a Resource

Recovery Park has been

made, the ‘groundwork’

must include addressing

financial matters (all

costs and how they will

be recovered, and what

contracts will be involved),

finding a suitable site and

consulting with the host

community and other

interested parties.

The final step in the

planning phase is obtaining

all necessary consents

and other approvals to

build and operate the

Resource Recovery Park in

accordance with the law.

Market analysis The presence of industries or contractors already established in the area to collect and process materials, or that could be encouraged to locate in the area if this was shown to be economically viable.

The markets available for recovered resources, and their ongoing viability.

The economics of collection, processing and transport of collected materials to markets and/or processors.

Business opportunities

The possibility of joint ventures or other arrangements with industry, neighbouring or other local authorities or community-based organisations.

Economic issues The expected cost to develop and operate the Resource Recovery Park.

The likely commercial, organisational and technical sustainability of the proposed facility, and the ability to deliver what is promised on a long-term basis.

Cross-boundary issues such as cost differentials for the disposal of residual waste.

Environmental considerations

Confirmation that the establishment of a Resource Recovery Park would generate an overall environmental benefit.

The result of this analysis will provide the information required to help decide whether a Resource Recovery Park is needed, the type of facility required, and the scope of services to be provided. The analysis will determine:

The range of materials to be targeted for resource recovery. A list of materials typically collected by New Zealand Resource Recovery Parks at present is shown in the side bar. It may be appropriate to prioritise targeted materials into A and B lists for progressive implementation as cost and other considerations allow.

The expected quantity of different materials - daily, weekly and monthly - to provide information for sizing the facility.

Storage requirements, based on the expected removal frequency of materials from the site compared with the expected inflow of materials.

Requirements for any materials processing on site, for example:

Green waste mulching or composting (in-vessel or open windrow composting).

Sorting and/or processing of C&D waste, including removing steel from concrete and crushing concrete to aggregate.

Baling of polystyrene, plastics, cardboard, paper etc.

Whether there is a demand or desire for the resale of used goods.

The extent of hazardous waste collection that is required.

Whether special wastes such as expired LPG bottles and electronic waste (e-waste) should be accepted.

Residual waste handling requirements.

The potential for associated industries to establish in the area.

Contracts may ultimately be let for the operation of the Resource Recovery Park and/or the removal and processing of materials from the site. Consultation with prospective contractors should be undertaken at the planning stage to determine their capabilities and hence the contracting model that may be viable, and the range of materials that could be collected initially as well as further down the track.

Product stewardship schemes are expected to grow in the future following the introduction of new waste minimisation legislation. Where possible, facilities should accommodate and enhance product stewardship schemes rather than competing with them, to ensure maximum environmental benefit.

Download information on existing product stewardship schemes from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/sustainable-industry/initiatives/product-stewardship/index.html

Homogeneous resources (those that have already been separated, or have been collected separately) should not be handled through a Resource Recovery Park but should go directly to a suitable processing plant or end use.

3.2 Economic considerations

Before a Resource Recovery Park development can proceed, those involved with the project such as the territorial authority, community group or private developer need to know what it will cost, how costs will be recovered, what other benefits may arise from having a RRP, whether there will be any cost to ratepayers, the financial risk of the project and what contractual arrangements may need to be made.

3.2.1 Facility costs

Costs associated with the establishment and operation of a Resource Recovery Park include:

Pre-development costs arising from consultation, planning, consenting and design of the facility.

Land purchase costs where an existing site is not available for retrofitting or expansion.

Capital costs for establishing the facility, including the purchase of plant and machinery.

Ongoing capital development costs for growth and operational changes.

Maintenance and replacement of site infrastructure, plant, machinery and buildings.

Salaries and wages for management and operations staff and training.

Administration, including overheads, insurances, site security, waste data collection and processing, and levy collection and processing.

Consumables and utilities such as fuel, electricity, telecommunications, water and sewerage charges, trade waste charges and similar expenses.

Resource consent fees and charges required by regional councils and territorial authorities and the cost of monitoring and reporting associated with resource consents.

Materials handling costs including transport of recyclable materials and residual waste from the site and charges applied by third parties for receiving recovered materials, and landfill gate charges for the disposal of residual waste.

3.2.2 Cost recovery

Costs can be recovered from a combination of some or all of the following:

Gate charges for the disposal of materials, including residual waste.

Sale of collected recyclable materials.

Materials and products

commonly collected at

New Zealand Resource

Recovery Parks

Aluminium & steel cans

C&D waste

Car bodies

Cooking oil

Engine oil

E-waste

Glass bottles & jars

Green waste

Household batteries

Paper & cardboard

Plastics

Polystyrene

Scrap metals

Vehicle batteries

Whiteware

Sale of processed materials and products.

Sale of reusable goods.

Territorial authority rates.

Product stewardship scheme providers.

Waste levy funds.

Pricing structures at a Resource Recovery Park should support the facility’s objectives. The extent to which the community and/or the council wish to promote recycling and the willingness of RRP customers to pay will determine whether any materials are accepted without charge, and the differential charge between various materials.

Experience throughout New Zealand and elsewhere indicates that establishing a significant cost differential between recyclable materials and residual waste is an important aspect of a Resource Recovery Park’s charging regime. A typical model used throughout New Zealand is:

Acceptance of targeted recyclable materials free of charge.

Acceptance of green waste at a reduced rate, typically 50 – 80% of the full residual waste charge.

Acceptance of residual waste charged on a full user-pays basis.

Where costs to operate the Resource Recovery Park are greater than the costs recovered, the shortfall is typically made up from territorial authority rates.

Apart from the direct cost recovery detailed above there are a number of ‘avoided’ costs that need to be considered as part of the overall economic assessment of the project. These include:

Savings in landfill gate charges (including waste levy) for the materials diverted.

Savings in transport costs to the landfill for the materials diverted.

Savings in landfill airspace for the materials diverted, and hence deferment of developing future landfill stages.

The development and operation of a Resource Recovery Park may also have a number of social and environmental benefits, such as:

Promoting waste minimisation attitudes and practices, particularly through any associated public education and awareness programmes.

Creating employment opportunities.

Removing potentially harmful products from the environment.

Reducing the wastage of resources and decreasing the need to source virgin materials.

Decreasing the carbon footprint of the waste system.

These and other benefits can be difficult to quantify in financial terms but need to be considered as part of a cost-benefit analysis.

Overall, the Resource Recovery Park’s financial viability will depend on the services offered and the number of other sites operated by the same organisation. Profitable activities or sites may be able to support other less profitable activities to achieve specific environmental and social objectives.

example

Te Maunga Resource Recovery Park

The Te Maunga Resource

Recovery Park in Tauranga was

previously a refuse transfer

station. The site now accepts:

Plastics, cans, glass and

paper.

Green waste, on a split level

with bins.

C&D waste, including

concrete.

Car bodies, appliances and

other bulk items.

Some years ago the

Tauranga City Council set

aside surrounding land to

encourage resource recovery

activities to locate in this area.

Businesses currently operating

on the site that source

materials from the Resource

Recovery Park are:

A MRF set up to process

recyclable materials

predominantly from

kerbside collections.

A C&D waste processing

operation undertaking

concrete crushing and

related activities.

A composting facility

utilising open windrow

composting.

A solvent recovery business.

three : 1�the new zealand resource recovery park

3.2.3 Selection of materials for resource recovery

When deciding which resources should be collected by the RRP, a basic cost-benefit analysis should be undertaken to determine the resource streams that have the highest potential for financial return. The following parameters should be considered:

Costs Staff time required to handle the resource.

Cost of bins and any specific plant required for the collection and handling of the resource.

Costs associated with any additional land needed to accommodate the handling and/or storage of the material.

Transport costs.

Signage and promotional material.

Benefits Value of the resources when sold to a third party.

Value of the landfill airspace saved.

Value of the residual waste transfer costs saved.

Value of the landfill gate charges and waste levy saved.

Value of the reduced carbon footprint.

Social and environmental benefits.

Such an analysis assumes that the material is delivered to the Resource Recovery Park as residual waste. The difference between the cost of disposing of it as residual waste to landfill and the cost (or financial return) of diverting it from landfill represents the net saving achieved by recovering the material.

Depending on the objectives of the Resource Recovery Park, the decision to recover a particular resource may not be made solely on a financial basis; for instance, a resource may be targeted because of its potential environmental harm. This also applies to choices made about handling and processing materials; for example, a New Zealand-based reprocessor may be selected despite the lower financial return because of the potential social and environmental benefits of such an arrangement.

3.2.4 Contractual arrangements

Resource Recovery Parks around New Zealand are typically operated by:

Council staff.

Private contractors under contract to the territorial authority.

Community trusts.

Private companies that own or lease the facility.

The most common arrangement is for all or significant parts of a facility to be operated by one or more contractors under contract to the territorial authority that owns the RRP. In some cases this contractor may be a community-based organisation, and the nature of the contract may differ from that used in a strictly commercial arrangement.

A contract defines the overall scope of work, the standard of work required, the costs and how the various risks associated with the contract works are shared between the contractor and the principal. Contracts for the operation of a Resource Recovery Park may cover some or all of the following:

Full operation of the Resource Recovery Park (and refuse transfer station where it exists) including fee collection, weighbridge and pit operation and transfer of residual waste to final disposal.

Operation of the RRP, including removal of materials from site.

Operation of the RRP only, with separate contracts for the removal of specific materials from site.

Fee collection only.

Operation of various resource recovery processing facilities on site.

Leasing of land for the processing of recovered resources or associated activities in close proximity to the RRP.

The following key issues need to be considered when determining the risks and hence costs and structure of a contract:

Ownership of materials and at what point ownership changes. In some instances the principal may retain ownership throughout the process, until materials are sold either for processing or as a final product after processing on site. In this case the principal carries the risk of fluctuating market conditions. Alternatively, the contractor may have ownership from the time the materials arrive at the Resource Recovery Park, in which case the contractor carries the risks associated with their sale and/or disposal.

Waste quantities. This aspect will be influenced by the age of the facility. For a new Resource Recovery Park, the quantity and types of materials likely to be collected will have a high level of uncertainty. In this instance the principal may wish to carry the risk associated with material quantities by specifying a cost reimbursement¹ arrangement. Alternatively, for an established facility with a good record of materials being received at the site, it may be more appropriate for the risk to be carried by the contractor. This provides an incentive for the contractor to maximise the recovery of materials from the waste stream, particularly those with a higher value. Where certain materials have low market value, but there are other reasons for their removal from the waste stream, the contract could provide for paying a premium for such materials to provide an incentive for their recovery.

Stability of recycling markets. Where there is significant fluctuation in markets for materials that the principal wants removed from the waste stream, the principal may consider carrying this risk by paying for such materials on a cost reimbursement basis.

Gate fees. The contract must establish whether fees are set and collected by the principal or the contractor. Where this task is the responsibility of the contractor, there should be limitations placed on the amount of fees that may be charged. Alternatively, the contract could specify a method for determining fees.

The duration of the contract. This becomes important where the contractor is required to supply plant and equipment. The contract period needs to be of sufficient length to provide a reasonable pay-back period for the investment in plant and equipment.

Data collection. This aspect of operating a Resource Recovery Park will gain increasing importance under the new waste minimisation legislation. The contract must establish which party is responsible for data collection, the type and quantity of data required and the method of collecting it. Reporting specifications must also be addressed.

In a cost reimbursement contract the contractor provides evidence of actual costs for handling the agreed

items and adds an agreed margin to cover overheads and profit.

The contract should address the issue of payments to the contractor from general rates or other funding sources in addition to the revenue earned at the Resource Recovery Park itself where it is expected that the resource recovery activities are unlikely to be self-funding.

In general terms, contracts that specify the outcome(s) required by the facility owner and allow the contractor to determine how to deliver that outcome provide the best overall result.

Download information on recycling and waste management contracts from: http://www.wasteminz.org.nz/resources/Guidance%20Report%20final%20workshop%20051216.pdf

3.3 Site selection

3.3.1 Selection criteria

Land use The optimal location for a Resource Recovery Park is one where the existing land use is already associated with waste and materials handling. An existing refuse transfer station or a landfill – closed or operational - near the population centre would be a logical location for a Resource Recovery Park. However, construction on closed landfills poses technical challenges due to ground settlement and landfill gas generation.

For other sites, it will be necessary to determine whether the zoning in the district plan allows for the development of a Resource Recovery Park.

Areas zoned for industrial land use are often compatible with RRP activities, and many such facilities have been established in industrial areas.

Community served It is essential to clearly identify the communities to be served by the Resource Recovery Park and to find a location convenient for most people. For example, many districts in New Zealand comprise a number of small rural towns in relatively close proximity and a large rural population, which may significantly influence the type, location and number of facilities to be provided. In such areas, it may be appropriate to offer a number of small drop-off centres to supplement one large RRP rather than establishing a single facility in a more central location.

Transport distances Transport distances are critical to the viability and community acceptance of a Resource Recovery Park. It may be useful to conduct a survey in the target community, or investigate trends in comparable communities, to find out what distance the prospective RRP users would be willing to travel to dispose of their recyclables and other unwanted materials.

The distance from the facility to resource processing plants and the landfill accepting residual waste should be optimised. For many rural areas, these distances can be considerable and the mode of transport (road, rail or ship) takes on particular significance. Locating the facility close to main arterial roads, the rail network or a port will improve transport efficiencies and minimise the effect of traffic on the community.

Environmental considerations

Resource Recovery Park siting should avoid:

Natural hazard zones such as geothermal areas, coastal erosion zones, and flood zones.

Any adverse effects on the local terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem, including significant flora and fauna.

Areas of historical or cultural significance such as waahi tapu.

Regional and/or district plans are valuable sources of information for locating potentially unsuitable areas including those listed above.

Impacts on the local community

The operation of a Resource Recovery Park has the potential to adversely affect neighbouring areas. Potential effects include:

An increase in traffic.

Litter generation.

Odour emissions.

Noise effects.

Dust generation.

Aesthetic impacts.

Mitigation measures that may be employed during design and construction and as part of operational procedures are discussed in Sections 4.4.2 and 5.5 respectively.

The availability of appropriate buffer distances between the facility and its neighbours can greatly increase the suitability of a site. Buffer zones have the potential to minimise the adverse effects associated with litter, odour, noise and dust, and can provide a visual barrier for aesthetic purposes. Required buffer distances may be specified in the district plan. Where this is not the case, appropriate separation should be determined based on the potential effects of the operation on adjacent land uses.

example

The Waitaki Resource Recovery Park

The Waitaki Resource

Recovery Park in Oamaru

services a population

of around 12,000 and is

managed by the Waitaki

Resource Recovery Trust,

a non-profit community

enterprise.

The facility was established

on a disused council works

site and uses existing

buildings and facilities.

The Park is open 7 days a

week for the drop-off of

materials, and the ‘Get

Sorted’ resale shop is open 4

days a week.

Up to 500 people pass

through the Park on any one

day, and 83% of the materials

entering the Park are recycled

by the 23 staff (14.8 full time

equivalents) and 6 part-time

volunteers.

Local infrastructure Depending on the extent of the services offered, Resource Recovery Parks will require some or all of the following:

Electricity – three-phase power is likely to be required.

Telecommunications.

Water supply for fire fighting and general potable use.

Sewerage.

Access roading of a suitable standard for the traffic likely to be generated.

Stormwater disposal (either through a trade waste connection or on-site treatment).

The availability and cost of providing such infrastructure is an important component of the site selection process.

Site characteristics A gently sloping site is best suited to assist drainage. A steeper portion of the site may facilitate split-level design for a residual waste transfer, green waste drop-off or similar.

The direction of the prevailing winds is important in relation to neighbouring land uses and potential odour generated by the Resource Recovery Park. Site features that funnel wind onto the facility may create litter problems and other difficulties for partially open structures.

Areas of ground instability may affect the ability to develop the entire site and will increase the cost of site development.

Old landfills will impact on the foundations of buildings on site. Special protection measures to prevent landfill gas collecting within the structures will be required.

Large upstream catchments may require significant diversion works and should be avoided.

Site area A conceptual site layout should be prepared to identify the area of land required. The plan should be based on the:

Extent of services and facilities to be provided, as identified in the needs assessment (refer Section 4).

Estimate of additional area for future-proofing the site and supplementary or emergency storage areas for stockpiling resources during times of severe market fluctuations.

Size of appropriate buffer distances.

3.3.2 Selection methodology

As noted previously, Resource Recovery Parks are often co-located with existing waste management activities such as a refuse transfer station or landfills, whether operational or closed. Consideration should also be given to adapting other council-owned sites not previously used for solid waste activities and utilising some of the existing infrastructure on the site. Provided that these sites are zoned appropriately and are conveniently located to serve their host community, the selection process is likely to be straightforward.

However, if there is no suitable existing site available and a greenfield site needs to be found, a robust site selection process will be required. Typically such a process is based on desk and field studies as described below.

Depending on the circumstances and size of the proposed Resource Recovery Park, it may be sufficient to carry out a map-based search for suitably zoned and sized sites. However, it may be necessary to undertake a more rigorous constraint mapping approach to identify and rank possible locations.

A simple map-based approach includes:

Preparing a conceptual layout of the proposed Resource Recovery Park and determining overall land area requirements.

Locating available land areas of suitable size within appropriate land use zones.

Determining who owns the land (council-owned land may be preferable).

Confirming the availability of the required land or, in the case of existing refuse transfer stations, the availability of sufficient land on the site itself or on adjacent property.

Identifying any issues that could impact on obtaining resource consents for the identified sites.

Checking that the key factors identified in Section 3.3.1 can be adequately addressed.

Key steps in a more rigorous constraint mapping procedure include:

Desk Top Exercise Preparing a conceptual layout of the proposed Resource Recovery Park and determining overall land area requirements, including allowance for buffer zones, access and screening.

Identifying the community to be served (the waste catchment for the facility) and acceptable travel distances (refer Section 3.3.1). A map showing those distances should be prepared. Where more than one community will be served the overlapping areas are likely to contain the preferred locations.

Marking suitable land use zones within the identified area(s).

Highlighting known waahi tapu, historical sites, areas with significant fauna and flora and natural hazard zones as ‘no-go areas’.

Identifying main arterial routes and other transport networks into the area, as well as residential streets that cannot be used for Resource Recovery Park traffic.

Showing the location of resource processing and residual waste disposal sites to calculate transport distances to these locations.

Identifying any site-specific issues such as areas of known instability, landfill gas generation and similar.

The map and associated documentation resulting from this process will highlight suitable sites in the area that are zoned appropriately and take account of the key factors outlined in Section 3.3. The next step involves the fieldwork outlined below, which may be undertaken in parallel with the consultation process described in Section 3.4.

Fieldwork Identifying actual sites that are available within the selected area(s) and close to key transport routes.

Listing any issues that could impact on obtaining resource consents.

Ranking sites based on the field investigations undertaken, and their likely availability.

Determining whether the conceptual site layout fits the preferred sites, or how the site layout could be adapted if the site is suitable in all other respects.

Considering further constraints or additional cost implications.

Evaluating the potential for future expansion.

Preparing a multi-criteria assessment matrix for the shortlisted sites that includes costs and the key criteria listed in Section 3.3. Scoring each of the sites against these criteria will determine the preferred location for the proposed Resource Recovery Park.

3.4 Consultation

Resource Recovery Parks are generally developed to serve the local community and it is essential to consult this community as early as possible so that expectations and concerns can be identified and addressed. This may initially be done through the preparation of LTCCPs and Waste Management and Minimisation Plans and, for a specific proposal, in accordance with the Resource Management Act. The RMA sets out requirements for public notification, and therefore the public’s ability to make submissions on resource consent applications. However, when a proposal is a Permitted Activity or meets certain non-notification criteria - for instance, where the adverse effects of an activity are expected to be minor and written approval has been obtained from every affected person – the involvement of the public in the planning process is limited.

For a Resource Recovery Park, which can only become a successful undertaking if it is supported by the host community, it is generally not appropriate to rely solely on the minimum consultation required by legislation. It is considered to be best practice to undertake effective and meaningful consultation specific to the project. In practice, this involves consulting with the community prior to formally lodging resource consent applications with the territorial authority and regional council. The costs of this consultation process can be significant and must be factored into the overall budget for the proposed Resource Recovery Park.

It is possible that the consultation process will involve two distinct groupings, namely the wider community who are likely to support the Resource Recovery Park, and the immediate neighbours of the site who may be more inclined to oppose the project.

The extent of consultation will vary depending on the type, size and location of the planned facility. It is important to ensure that a basic level of understanding regarding the project is achieved during pre-application consultation, rather than overwhelming the target audience with technical details (although these should be made available upon request). A consultation plan is likely to be useful in most cases and should address the following:

Target audience The local community.

Owners and occupiers of neighbouring properties.

Local community enterprises and groups involved in job creation, environmental issues and fund raising.

Local recycling and waste contractors.

Local businesses that may be affected by the proposal, such as demolition or scrap metal yards and second hand stores.

Local iwi.

The territorial authority to discuss waste and hazardous substances, planning issues, environmental health matters, traffic and parking requirements.

The regional council to discuss discharges and resource consent requirements.

Transit New Zealand, if state highways will be affected.

The Department of Labour with regard to hazardous substances and health & safety issues.

The Fire Service to discuss emergency management concerns.

Government agencies such as Work and Income NZ and the Ministry for the Environment.

Staff at the territorial authority and regional council may be able to assist with identifying affected and interested parties.

Communication methods

Neighbour and community consultation may involve a letter drop with an information pack outlining the basics of the project and inviting those interested to a public meeting to discuss the project further.

‘Cottage meetings’ (talking directly with small groups of residents near the proposed Resource Recovery Park) are likely to be the most effective.

Meetings can also be arranged with specific groups, for example business groups, waste contractors, environmental groups and others.

Information to be provided

An overview explaining the community issues regarding waste management and the need for a Resource Recovery Park.

The results of previous consultation and current mandates, for example in relation to the Waste Management and Minimisation Plan.

The options that have been considered and investigated.

Specific project information such as the proposed location plan, concept plan, resource recovery process and complaint procedures during operation.

Likely environmental effects and mitigation measures.

Details about the consultation process, statutory framework and how comment can be submitted.

The duration of the consultation period.

Documentation of consultation outcomes

The consultation process and feedback should be documented as a matter of course. A summary of all comments, submitters and responses should be made available to all who have participated in the process and other interested parties.

3.� Consents and other approvals

3.�.1 Overview

All consent requirements should be identified and confirmed at the start of the planning process. Territorial authorities and regional councils are responsible for the majority of consents required and should be the first point of call.

Unless identified as a Permitted Activity in a district plan, the construction and operation of a Resource Recovery Park will require a land use consent from the territorial authority or a designation². Similarly, consents for the discharge of contaminants to air and water will be required from the regional council if these are not provided for as a Permitted Activity in a regional plan. Where the proposed facility falls within the definition of a Permitted Activity, the conditions set in the respective plans must be complied with. There may also be a number of other approvals required, primarily a building consent from the territorial authority.

Consenting and approval requirements must be well understood by the project manager and factored into the project management timeline and budget. Where discretionary or non-complying resource consents are required, there is no guarantee of success and a timeframe of two years is not uncommon if the process is publicly notified. Appeals to the Environment Court are also possible, which could cause further delays in the development process.

3.�.2 Resource consents

A resource consent application requires an assessment of the environmental effects of the project. Territorial authorities and regional councils should be contacted during the early planning stages of the project to:

2 Designations allow a ‘requiring authority’, usually a Minister of the Crown or a territorial authority, to plan

for public works and network utilities by setting aside an area of land outside the provisions of the district

plan. This approach is an alternative to the resource consent process but it is only available when the

proposed Resource Recovery Park is owned by a ‘requiring authority’. The procedure for designating land is

described in Part VIII of the RMA.

Confirm their information requirements.

Discuss alternative consenting strategies (a plan change or designation may be appropriate).

Determine which consents may be required.

Obtain assistance with identifying affected parties.

Address the likelihood of public notification of the consent application.

Discuss the possibility of a joint hearing.

Where a land use consent is required, the environmental effects to be addressed include:

Visual effects such as the scale and siting of buildings in relation to neighbouring properties.

Noise effects, for example those generated by vehicle movements and the various activities undertaken on the site such as sorting and glass crushing.

Environmental health concerns such as the risk to public health caused by the presence of vermin.

Operating hours.

Effects on traffic safety associated with the use and servicing of the facility.

Consideration of natural hazards such as floods and land slides.

Zoning, especially with regard to the interaction between neighbouring zones and the potential for reverse sensitivity effects.

For discharge consents from the regional council, the following must be addressed:

Emissions to air, including dust and odour discharges.

Discharges to land and water, including stormwater discharges.

The ease and duration of the resource consent process will largely depend on the accurate presentation of project information, the outcome of the consultation process, demonstrating a robust site selection process and the mitigation measures employed to control environmental effects.

Download district plans and regional plans from the website of the relevant territorial authority and regional council.

3.�.3 Building consent

A building consent is an approval from the territorial authority to carry out building works at a specific site. Obtaining this consent ensures that building, plumbing, drainage and fire safety requirements are in compliance with the New Zealand Building Code.

Information requirements should be discussed with the territorial authority’s building inspector as early as possible, particularly given that a Resource Recovery Park may have a number of complex structures on site. Key information to be provided includes an accurate and detailed set of building plans, engineering drawings of stormwater and drainage networks, and possibly geotechnical information regarding land stability.

The legal timeframe for obtaining a building consent is 20 working days, although delays can be expected if the proposal is large, complex and/or unusual. A building inspection is part of this process.

Download the NZ Building Code from: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/building-code-compliance-documents

3.�.4 Other legal requirements

A number of other consents and approvals may be required, such as:

A trade waste permit from the territorial local authority or local sewerage network operator, if the activities on the site generate a substantial amount or highly contaminated waste water.

A Location Test Certificate for the storage of certain hazardous substances. These are issued by independent Test Certifiers approved by the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA).

A Sale of Second Hand Goods License if goods are being resold on site. This license is issued under the Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers Act 2004 by the Licensing Authority appointed (and administered) by the Ministry of Justice.

All electrical appliances in New Zealand must comply with basic safety requirements, in accordance with the Electricity Regulations 1997 (specifically Regulations 69 and 76 which relate to general safety). A qualified electrician should be consulted to ensure compliance.

Transit New Zealand approval for access onto and off state highways.

Download a List of Test Certifiers from: http://www.ermanz.govt.nz/search/tc.html

four : 2�the new zealand resource recovery park

4 Design

4.1 Design principles

There are a number of key principles that govern the design of a Resource Recovery Park:

Safety and security – a safe environment must be provided for staff and customers and they, as well as the materials handled and stored on the site, must be secure from unauthorised interference.

User-friendliness – a successful Resource Recovery Park is one that readily attracts customers because it is a pleasant place to visit and easy to move around in.

Efficiency – the different parts of the site must be well integrated to maximise the ease with which resources can be handled and cross-contamination reduced.

Staff focus – enthusiastic staff are a major factor in the success of a Resource Recovery Park, and striving to provide a comfortable work environment will assist with generating staff commitment and retention.

Sustainability – resource recovery is often undertaken as part of a wider environmental agenda, and by incorporating sustainable design features the facility can support this objective.

Education – Resource Recovery Parks have the potential to be an important element in the community’s waste education programme, and allowance for this should be made at the design stage.

This Section provides detailed information about how these principles can be reflected in Resource Recovery Park design.

4.2 Site layout

The layout of the site should maximise the potential for resource recovery and allow flexibility for future changes. Each site will have a different shape and topography and these factors will influence the layout.

The key considerations for deciding on the most suitable layout include:

Placing the recyclables drop-off area upstream of the residual waste disposal area to maximise the diversion of materials. Depending on the facility’s pricing policy, the recyclables drop-off area should also be located before the weighbridge.

Separating drop-off areas from baling, storage and processing areas.

Locating a weighbridge prior to the residual waste disposal area to allow charging for residual waste disposal.

Determining whether traffic volume is such that two weighbridges are required (weigh-in and weigh-out).

Placing resale activities downstream from all drop-off areas. This maximises resale opportunities by ensuring that all traffic passes through this area.

Separating drop-off areas (where people want to deposit their materials and move on quickly) from resale areas (where people want to park and spend time inspecting goods).

Providing safe, logical and efficient traffic flow through the site to minimise congestion.

Resource recovery processes

can be significantly

enhanced through

adopting safety, user-

friendliness, sustainability,

efficiency and work place

quality as guiding design

principles.

Each Resource Recovery

Park is unique, but there are

some design features that

are common to all – health

& safety, environmental

protection, sustainability,

durability, maximising

efficiency and allowing

for the adaptability of site

layout and infrastructure.

By treating the activities

that may take place at a

Resource Recovery Park as

separate modules within

the resource recovery

flow, it is possible to apply

relevant design features

only where needed.

four : 27the new zealand resource recovery park

Where practicable, separating access for service vehicles from the public drop-off areas (which may not be possible on smaller sites) and avoiding other heavy vehicle/public vehicle interfaces.

Large openings and doors in buildings should not open into the prevailing wind.

Prevailing winds should be in the same direction as material flow wherever possible to prevent materials such as green or residual waste being blown away from skips or waste pits and scattering around the site.

A schematic representation of typical material flows in a Resource Recovery Park is shown on page 28 to demonstrate the relationship between the various activities on site.

4.3 Resource recovery activities

This Section addresses design features for the different resource recovery activities that are typically undertaken at a Resource Recovery Park. Because each operation is unique, the approach taken is modular but flow-orientated, meaning that the different modules (or activities) are described in terms of the most commonly occurring flow (or spatial arrangement) found at RRPs. It is recognised that not all Resource Recovery Parks will incorporate all modules (activities) and that the order set out below may differ for each site. The operation may also change over time; for example, for a newly established Resource Recovery Park it may be appropriate to select the modules that provide the greatest gains in terms of waste minimisation, or that can be most cost-effective to install. Other modules can then be added progressively at a later time as circumstances change.

4.3.1 Recyclables - plastics, glass, cans, cardboard and paper

These materials are typically collected in bins, cages or bags (bales). The type and size of the container will generally depend on the equipment operated by the contractor removing the materials from site.

The two most common arrangements are:

An open bin system where bins are arranged around a yard or beside a through lane. Collection vehicle access may be from the public area or from a separate service area.

A ’recycling wall’ where the bins are hidden behind a wall featuring slots or holes for depositing materials. In the ‘recycling wall’ arrangement collection vehicles remove or empty the bins from areas that are not accessible to the public.In the ‘recycling wall’ arrangement collection vehicles remove or empty the bins from areas that are not accessible to the public. For the open bin arrangement collection vehicle access could be from the public area or from a separate service area.

In both cases, ‘bin clusters’ (i.e. repeating groups of separate bins for each recyclable material) should be provided in close proximity to each other to maximise public convenience and hence the quantity of recyclables collected. This will also reduce inappropriate dumping of materials on site and minimise pedestrian traffic across the drop-off area.

The size of this area will be determined by:

Expected peak vehicle numbers for the Resource Recovery Park. The size of the drop-off zone can be set to accommodate a selected number of vehicles, which may be fewer than the peak number, provided the resulting queue length is acceptable.

RESIDUAL WASTETIPPING AREA

WHITEWARECAR BODIES

GREENWASTEDROP-OFF(IF FREE) GOODS

RESALE

RECYCLABLEDROP-OFF

EDUCATIONCENTRE

WEIGHBRIDGE

PARKINGMRF

ON-SITE FACILITIESOFF-SITE ORON-SITE FACILITIES

TYPICAL MATERIAL FLOWS AT A RESOURCE RECOVERY PARK

SITE ENTRANCE

SERVICE/TRANSFER VEHICLES

PUBLIC/CUSTOMER VEHICLES

C&DPROCESSING

C&DDROP-OFF

GREEN WASTECOMPOSTING

GREEN WASTEDROP-OFF

Traffic flow patterns for vehicles moving through this part of the site. There should be adequate space for vehicles to stop and unload, and sufficient drive-through lanes for vehicles entering and exiting this area.

Access requirements for service vehicles of varying sizes, including consideration of appropriate turning circles and manoeuvring for emptying and/or removing bins.

General requirements for this part of the site include:

The recyclables drop-off should be the first activity accessed by customers.

This area must be accessible directly from the main thoroughfare leading to the weighbridge, preferably by means of a loop road that returns to the main thoroughfare after the drop-off zone. Where the site layout does not permit this, it is essential that adequate through lanes are provided beside the drop-off area.

Sufficient vehicle lanes for entering and exiting this area.

Adequate stopping lanes, typically parallel to the drive-through lanes, for dropping off materials. Stopping lanes and drop-off areas could be located to either side of the through lanes, but should avoid the need for pedestrians to cross traffic flow.

Shelter where appropriate. Although dropping off recyclables is typically an open-air activity, some climatic conditions may make shelter from wind and rain desirable. This is often provided by means of a large overhang extending out from conveniently located buildings.

A hardstand area with adequate drainage to manage run-off.

Adequate wind screening or litter fences to control wind-blown litter.

Screening on stormwater outlets to control waterborne litter.

Clear labelling of bins and other drop-off containers and/or areas.

Clear directional and waste acceptance signage at the entrance of the area and throughout the area.

4.3.2 Scrap metal and appliances

A separate hardstand area is required for the acceptance and storage of scrap metal and appliances. This area should be located adjacent to the recyclables drop-off area unless a fee is charged for these materials, in which case it needs to be located beyond the weighbridge.

Bins should be available for smaller scrap metal items. Bays confined by concrete barriers or similar are appropriate for large items to prevent the spread of deposited materials into other areas.

4.3.3 Waste oil

Although waste oil is classified as a hazardous waste (NZ Waste List, Code 13), it is often collected as part of a resource recovery operation. The collection facility is often located close to the recyclables drop-off area, although other places on the site may be used.

Waste oil storage facilities must be designed and managed in accordance with the Guidelines for the Management and Handling of Used Oil in New Zealand (MfE and OSH, 2000). These guidelines distinguish between ‘controlled’ sites (those that are protected from receiving unwanted or contaminated oil and that comply with the minimum storage specifications set out in the guidelines) and ‘general’ sites (those that cannot be classified as controlled). Essentially, where the public can

access the used oil storage container, it would almost always be categorised as a general facility, and a Location Test Certificate for the storage of Class 3 substances (flammable liquids) will be required.

All of the specifications set out in the above guidelines must be met. Some of the key design features that relate specifically to a Resource Recovery Park are:

Positioning that allows supervision or observation by RRP staff responsible for this area.

Signage that clearly lists unacceptable products (such as petrol, diesel, antifreeze, paints and solvents) to prevent contamination.

Placement on an impermeable surface such as concrete or asphalt.

Bunding made from impermeable materials and capable of containing at least 110% of the capacity of the storage tank. Relevant planning documents such as Regional Plans should be consulted to confirm local requirements.

Roofing to exclude accumulation of contaminated stormwater in the bunded area, or alternatively adequate provision for its safe disposal.

Protection by bollards or similar structures if the storage tank is located near vehicular traffic.

Safe and adequate access for tankers emptying the storage tank.

Ideally, storage tanks should not exceed 1,000 litres and may be constructed from plastic, metal or glass-reinforced plastic, depending on whether the facility is ‘controlled’ or ‘general’. Tanks should be limited to one per site. Other features include a lockable opening at the top of the tank, a permanent mesh at the fill point, and a discharge outlet fitted with a lockable valve and vent. Labelling of the tank must include:

The safe fill level.

The manufacturer and date of manufacture.

Content and prohibited substances labels.

‘No Smoking’ signage is essential, as is a Class 3 hazard label for ‘general’ facilities.

A spill kit must be available in the immediate vicinity, and staff should be aware of and be trained in appropriate spill response and clean-up measures.

Download the NZ Waste List from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/waste/content.php?id = 25

Download the Guidelines for the Management and Handling of Used Oil in New Zealand from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/waste/used-oil-guide-dec00.pdf

4.3.4 Vehicle batteries

Storage of lead-acid batteries used in cars, trucks, boats and other vehicles should be under cover and in a bunded area to contain potential acid leaks.

Batteries should be stacked on pallets no more than three layers high, with each layer being separated by sturdy cardboard or a similar material. Adequate vehicle access to the storage area is essential as the storage pallets are usually extracted by forklift to be placed on the collection vehicle.

Due to the hazardous nature of the acid and heavy metal contained in vehicle batteries, relevant planning documents such as regional plans should be consulted to confirm additional local storage requirements.

4.3.� Gas bottles

LPG is classed as a flammable gas and controlled under the HSNO Act, and the storage of more than 100 kg of LPG (gas weight only) in one place requires a Location Test Certificate. 4.5 kg and 9 kg LPG bottles commonly used for household applications should be stored outside (for sufficient ventilation) and upright in open wire cages, and some distance away from ignition sources, other materials and vehicle traffic. The Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) should be consulted for procedures regarding the dismantling of gas bottles.

Download a list of Test Certifiers from: http://www.ermanz.govt.nz/search/tc.html

4.3.� Reusable goods

The drop-off of reusable goods is often located in the vicinity of the recyclables drop-off area, from where they are retrieved by Resource Recovery Park staff for repair and resale. This work flow could be made more efficient by establishing the drop-off area for these items on one side of the building that houses the resale facility, provided that basic separation between drop-off and resale can be retained. To maximise the resale facility’s potential for generating revenue from the recovered goods and serve as a community focus, the following design features should be considered:

The facility should be roofed and enclosed to provide adequate protection for the resale goods.

The building should be lockable for security purposes.

Separate workshop areas for the repair of goods should be provided.

The building should be of sufficient size to serve the needs of its host community and the expected market, or be readily expandable. Consideration should be given to the size of storage areas and requirements for long-term storage. Storage times should be determined as part of operations planning and are further discussed in Section 5.7.2.

The building and layout should be aesthetically pleasing to attract customers.

There should be separate access for pedestrians and vehicles, away from drop-off areas.

Adequate parking on the resale side of the building is required to avoid traffic congestion and to help with generating customer satisfaction.

4.3.7 Green waste

Layouts that are commonly used for handling green waste are:

A single-level, open yard drop-off area from which green waste is mechanically loaded into trucks or bins.

A grade-separated (split-level) layout where customers off-load green waste directly into bins which are located on the lower part, with the top of the bins level with the public area. Separate access is provided to the lower level for removing the bins.

A grade-separated layout where customers off-load green waste to a lower level, from where it is pushed by a loader into bins or trucks.

A designated part of the residual waste handling facility where the green waste can be handled separately without contamination.

Collection areas should incorporate the following design features:

Hardstand areas and adequate containment; for example, for a single level arrangement walls on two or three sides and/or moveable concrete barriers.

Surfaces on which loaders operate should be concrete with a hardened surface, not asphalt. Where the off-loading area is a single strip adjacent to a pit or bins located at a lower level, the concrete strip should be a minimum of five metres wide and slope towards the pit or bins.

Easy access to drop-off areas with adequate space for turning and reversing trailers into the disposal area, with sufficient tipping face for expected peak vehicle numbers.

Adequate areas for queuing and drop-off so that vehicles using this part of the site do not impede main through traffic.

Provision for separating materials that require shredding from those that do not, such as grass clippings.

Sufficient space for stockpiling green waste, based on expected throughput and planned removal frequency.

Adequate signage and infrastructure to ensure optimal separation of green waste and other materials to avoid cross-contamination issues.

Measures to control wind-blown litter, for example wind shelters and litter fences.

Diversion of stormwater to appropriate treatment devices.

Sufficient space for vehicles removing the collected green waste. For a single level operation, this would typically be by front-end loader into trucks.

Green waste processing, i.e. composting and/or mulching may take place on site or elsewhere. It is beyond the scope of this Guide to set out the requirements for composting and mulching operations other than to note that the processing area should be separate from the green waste drop-off area. The design of the site needs to allow for the proposed location of the processing area and transfer of the green waste from drop-off to processing.

Download further information on composting from: http://www.wasteminz.org.nz/sectorgroups/compost/composting-nz/index.htm

4.3.8 C&D materials

This waste stream may include the following materials:

Timber, both treated and untreated.

Gib board (plaster board).

Building components such as doors, windows and staircases.

Bricks, cobbles and concrete pavers.

Reinforced or un-reinforced concrete.

Structural steel.

Roofing, including concrete tiles and sheet metal.

Designing an area for the acceptance and handling of C&D materials should take account of the following matters:

Collection, sorting and stockpiling of this material should be undertaken on a hardstand area with adequate drainage to divert and manage run-off.

Dust control measures such as sprinkler systems may be required.

Storage areas should be contained to prevent the spread of materials over the site.

Sufficient space should be allowed for the following separation and sorting tasks:

Separating usable building components so that they can be offered for resale.

Sorting steel and metal components for diversion as scrap metal.

Sorting treated timber from untreated timber. Treated timber should be disposed of as residual waste due to its contamination issues, while untreated timber may be stockpiled for removal by the public or for sale as firewood, mulch or boiler fuel. The storage area for firewood should be of sufficient size to allow for its seasonal demand, and be located near the resale area.

Sorting gib board for further processing if a suitable market is available, for composting³ or disposal as residual waste.

Sorting concrete for further processing or crushing either on-site or off-site, including the removal of reinforcing steel.

The extent of collection and subsequent processing of C&D materials will be determined as part of the original needs assessment and/or opportunities offered by the local market. The full range of activities described above will require large processing and stockpiling areas and good access for heavy vehicles for both the delivery and removal of products.

4.3.9 Polystyrene

If polystyrene is to be collected, consideration could be given to installing a polystyrene baler to increase storage capacity and improve the economics of transport off-site. This should be installed away from public access areas. Special attention needs to be given to the control of wind-blown litter from this activity.

4.3.10 Commercial and industrial waste recovery

The opportunity often exists for specialist products to become available from local industry. Such products may be offered free of charge for reuse by the public, or may require storage until a suitable reuse project is available. Appropriate hardstand areas may need to be set aside for such products.

Where possible, industry should be encouraged to use waste exchange programmes to match surplus materials with other end users and avoid routing such materials through the Resource Recovery Park.

4.3.11 Tyres

End-of-life tyres are a potentially difficult resource stream that is usually subject to a disposal charge. For this reason, the tyre drop-off area is generally located beyond the weighbridge in the residual waste area. The tyre area should be fitted with a hardstand of sufficient size and have adequate drainage. Depending on the proposed end use, it may be appropriate to sort and stockpile tyres into different types.

Gib board can be ground and used as an additive in large-scale composting operations.

4.3.12 Hazardous Waste

The Resource Recovery Park’s policy with regard to accepting hazardous waste should be established as part of the needs assessment or during the planning stage. It may be affected by the availability (or otherwise) of alternative collection methods such as HazMobile-style collections. If hazardous wastes are accepted, this should be limited to materials of domestic origin and be confined to household quantities. In rural areas, it must be decided whether agricultural chemicals will be accepted.

Acceptance may be restricted to the types of hazardous waste that are most suited for resource recovery and subject to the least complex controls, specifically:

Waste oil (refer Section 4.3.3)

Vehicle batteries (refer Section 4.3.4)

Unwanted paint (refer Section 4.3.13)

Generally, household and garden chemicals are the most difficult to manage because of the range of products and hazard classes (flammability, toxicity, chemically reactive or oxidising, corrosive and eco-toxic). Because of the low potential for resource recovery, their acceptance should be considered carefully.

However, even where household and agricultural hazardous wastes are not officially accepted, hazardous materials will be received as part of other waste and resource streams and provision must be made to store them safely. Removal of these materials from the Resource Recovery Park should occur on a regular basis. Storage should be commensurate to the scale and size of the RRP, the nature of its host community and the quantities of hazardous material that can reasonably be expected, while complying with all relevant legislative requirements and ensuring the health and safety of staff and customers.

The storage of hazardous materials is governed by regulations under the HSNO Act and parts of the New Zealand Building Code, specifically sections F3 (Hazardous substances and processes), F6 (Lighting for emergency), F7 (Warning systems) and F8 (Signs). Depending on the quantity and type of materials, certification under the HSNO Act may be required and a Test Certifier and/or the Environmental Risk Management Authority should be consulted.

Download the NZ Building Code from: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/building-code-compliance-documents

Depending on the nature of the hazardous substances to be stored, the following criteria should be met:

Providing for adequate separation of hazard classes.

Ensuring that the storage area is at least 15 metres from any source of ignition, for example open fire, workshops, electrical installations or furnaces.

Locating the storage facility at least five metres from any other building, boundary or road.

Placing the area so that fumes are not carried into sensitive environments, taking into account prevailing wind direction.

Ensuring easy access for vehicles and emergency services.

Siting the area away from vehicle thoroughfares and protected with bollards or similar structures.

Providing a waste reception area close to the storage facility to minimise transport of the material if an official household hazardous waste drop-off point is established.

The storage facility should be constructed with non-combustible materials such as concrete or brick, without windows but with adequate alternative ventilation, and include the following features:

A bunded perimeter, with provisions for the disposal of contaminated stormwater, and enclosed by security fencing, including a lockable gate.

An emergency shower, eye wash facility, emergency spill kit and fire extinguishers within the perimeter.

Appropriate signage and hazard labels on the door(s) or walls of each storage area, and on the perimeter fence.

Storage structures inside the perimeter should have:

Internal bunding to hold 110% of the contents of the largest container.

Painted or sealed surfaces to avoid contamination.

Flooring that is impermeable to the materials stored.

Doors that open to the outside and are lockable.

No electrical fittings. Where these are necessary, special installation techniques for hazardous areas are required and subsequent testing must be undertaken in accordance with the Electricity Regulations 1997, AS/NZS 3000:2000 and AS/NZS 2381.1.

4.3.13 Product stewardship

Product stewardship schemes for priority products will be become mandatory under the Waste Minimisation Act. An increasing number of these programmes may impact on the operation of Resource Recovery Parks. Often, the collection of products covered by such schemes requires space that may not be available at retail outlets and the product stewardship programme owners may wish to establish a collection facility on the Resource Recovery Park. An example is collection points for the Agrecovery Agrichemical Container Recovery Programme. Waste paint is also covered by product stewardship programmes, and any plans to collect this material may benefit from discussion with the relevant programme providers. Other goods that may be collected through future product stewardship schemes include electronic items such as computers and TVs.

Specific requirements for the collection and storage of goods covered by product stewardship schemes will need to be discussed with the owner or administrator of the scheme, but allocating space for such programmes should be considered during the design of the Resource Recovery Park.

Download information on product stewardship from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/sustainable-industry/initiatives/product-stewardship/

Download the Ministry for the Environment’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Refurbishment and Recycling Good Practice Guidelines from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/waste/

4.3.14 Storage

Sufficient storage areas should be made available for the following:

Normal operational storage to allow for the time period between collection of materials and removal from site. In some instances, a low frequency of removal from site may make transfer operations more efficient, but this will require significant storage space.

Contingency storage areas for periods when certain materials are being collected but there is nowhere for this material to go due to fluctuations in the market.

Depending on the materials to be stored, this would typically be a hardstand area with adequate drainage. For some materials, it may be necessary to provide a covered area or ensure adequate protection from wind and rain, and to reduce the generation of litter. Other considerations such as fire risk should also be taken into account.

Generally, the long-term storage of material should be subject to strategic planning decisions to establish the maximum duration of storage, given the limitations of the site and availability of suitable markets.

4.3.1� Residual waste

The handling of residual waste should be the last activity or module undertaken on the Resource Recovery Park. It is usually carried out at a refuse transfer station or similar facility. The specific design of such facilities is not covered in this Guide, although many of the general design principles discussed above apply. Further information about the handling and transfer of residual waste may be obtained from other relevant publications.

Download the Guide to Best Practice at Resource Recovery and Waste Transfer Facilities (Sustainability Victoria, July 2004) from: http://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/www/html/1824-publications---g-h.asp

Download the Handbook for the Design and Operation of Rural and Regional Transfer Stations (Department of Environment and Conservation, NSW, August 2006) from: http://www.zerowaste.sa.gov.au/pdf/reports/NSW_transferstationhbk_part2.pdf

Download Waste Transfer Stations: A Manual for Decision Making (USEPA, June 2002) from: http://www.epa.gov/garbage/pubs/r02002.pdf

4.4 Common design features

4.4.1 Health and safety

The Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 has the principal objective of preventing harm to employees at work. The Act places duties on employers (as well as employees and self-employed people) to ensure that their work activities do not harm themselves or others. The New Zealand Building Code also prescribes specific safety measures that must be incorporated into the design of buildings and other facilities.

Safety considerations should be paramount in site design. The overriding approach is to eliminate risk wherever possible, minimise risks that cannot be eliminated and control those that cannot be minimised.

Specific health and safety hazards that are likely to be present at a Resource Recovery Park include but are not limited to:

Machinery and equipment.

Vehicle traffic.

Intrinsic hazards of materials handled on the site, such as glass and other sharp-edged items.

Trip hazards.

Steep drops into waste pits and bins.

Overhead or buried power lines.

Dust and other air-borne particles such as spores from green waste operations.

Exposure to hazardous substances.

Designers will need to fully assess all hazards that may be present at the proposed Resource Recovery Park and make adequate provision for health and safety.

Some specific measures to eliminate or minimise hazards on such sites include:

Eliminating or minimising the gap between a platform edge and skips, or covering the gap.

Installing robust wheel stops fixed to the ground to prevent vehicles reversing too close to a platform edge. These should be steel or bulky timber members, and be raised above ground level to allow for hosing down the area. Cast-in-place concrete nibs should be avoided as these will hinder cleaning of the area.

Minimising the height of platforms where possible, for example by using smaller skips or skips with adjustable or removable sides, or minimising the depth of the push pit.

Installing safety gates at the tipping area where platform heights are greater than one metre.

Placing guard rails along the edge of all vertical or steep drops.

Having the lip of the skip or bin higher than the edge of the platform.

Where skips and bins are at ground level, ensuring that the top of the bin is at a suitable height for unloading materials or providing a suitable platform for users to access the top of the bins at a comfortable lifting height.

Providing bins and containers designed to be moved by machines so that they do not require manual handling. Where bins, containers and other heavy items must be moved, ensuring that appropriate plant such as forklifts or loaders are available.

Designing all storage and unloading areas to accommodate containers and moving plant, so as not to require manual handling or double handling of materials.

Operational health and safety measures are discussed in Section 5.4.

4.4.2 Environmental protection

Avoiding and, where this is not possible, minimising the environmental impact of the activities undertaken in a Resource Recovery Park can be achieved by incorporating the following design features:

Stormwater All stormwater from a Resource Recovery Park needs to be considered as potentially contaminated to varying degrees and treatment requirements for runoff from all site surfaces need to be considered, with some (such as green and residual waste handling areas) requiring more attention and treatment than others. Specific considerations for design include:

Diverting off-site stormwater around the site.

Separating stormwater from different site areas for appropriate treatment prior to discharge.

Providing screening or other separation systems on stormwater outlets to control waterborne litter.

Installing oil separators where necessary.

Bunding hazardous waste storage facilities (refer Section 4.3.12).

Providing a roof over collection areas for certain types of material such as waste oil, liquid wastes and vehicle batteries to prevent the potential mixing of contaminants with stormwater.

Managing contaminated runoff (for example from green or residual waste areas) as trade waste to be disposed of to the local sewerage system, or treated by a consented (or otherwise approved4) wastewater treatment system prior to discharge to the natural environment.

Providing a roof over areas where residual waste is unloaded, stored, loaded into transport vehicles or processed to eliminate or minimise contaminated runoff.

Odour Potential odour sources include putrescible waste, contaminated stormwater, green waste and the residual waste pit. Odour may be minimised through:

Locating potential odour sources away from and downwind of sensitive receptors.

Paving and grading unloading, waste and skip storage areas to facilitate cleaning.

Avoiding ‘dead’ areas beside skips, bins and compactors that the loader or other equipment cannot access, as this is where putrescible and other odour-producing material can accumulate.

Providing a roof for unloading, waste and skip storage areas to stop ingress of water.

Making allowance for retrofitting odour control devices such as deodorant spray, should these prove to be necessary.

Ensuring that enclosed facilities are well ventilated.

4 For example, a treatment system specified as part of the Permitted Activity conditions in a regional plan.

Dust Paving all operating, unloading and loading areas subject to heavy traffic.

Paving access roads into the site.

Minimising areas of exposed earth through appropriate landscaping.

Using unsealed roads only where dust can be managed through operational practices such as applying water.

Litter Establishing trees and shrubs around the site as wind breaks.

Providing containers with small apertures for depositing materials.

Covering bins containing lightweight materials with lids, tarpaulins or similar.

Locating the entrances and exits of enclosed facilities away from the prevailing wind.

Erecting litter screens around the site to capture wind-blown litter.

Noise Locating noisy operations to minimise nuisance to neighbouring land users.

Designing access and internal roads to minimise noise.

Providing earthen embankments and vegetation at strategic locations.

Surrounding loud operations with noise screens; however, noise levels within the enclosure must be managed to meet occupational health and safety levels.

Aesthetics An aesthetically pleasing site is not only important with respect to environmental matters but also to enhance its general user-friendliness and attractiveness. This can be achieved through:

Screen planting.

Lawns.

An attractive site entrance and a sealed access road.

Clearly readable signage.

Sculptures and art created from recycled materials.

4.4.3 Sustainability

Resource Recovery Parks exist to promote and implement the sustainable management of resources and waste, which is not necessarily limited to the activities on the site but can be incorporated into design, construction and operation.

Basic sustainable design principles include:

The use of materials that:

Are natural, plentiful and renewable.

Can be recovered from waste, refurbished or remanufactured.

Are locally available, thus saving energy and resources in transportation.

Contain recycled content or that are reusable or recyclable.

Are durable.

Energy efficiency in buildings and site operations, including the possibility of generating electricity and/or fuel from on-site activities or resources.

Water efficiency, which may include roof water collection for various on-site uses.

Stormwater management using natural processes to treat and attenuate stormwater flows, such as rain gardens and artificial wetlands.

Download information about sustainable building in New Zealand from: http://www.sustainability.govt.nz/building http://www.branz.co.nz/main.php?page=Sustainable%20Construction http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/

4.4.4 Durability

Resource Recovery Parks are a harsh environment. In particular, the use of heavy vehicles and plant creates the risk of serious damage to buildings and structures.

Measures that can be taken to minimise the risk of impact damage to structures, and enhance durability include:

Ensuring that sufficient clear area is available for plant and equipment to undertake required tasks with ease.

Designing structures so columns are not in the way of heavy vehicle movements.

Ensuring that the available space in confined areas such as push pits is large enough for operation of plant.

Avoiding deviations in wall angles (i.e. constructing walls in a straight line) where loaders or similar plant push materials, for example in green waste or residual waste push pits leading to a skip or compactor.

Providing steel plate protection on the corners of reinforced concrete structures in traffic areas.

Designing for impact loads from plant and equipment, as well as potential maximum loads from stored materials.

Avoiding stormwater channels and other obstructions in areas where loaders are required to push materials on a concrete slab.

Carefully detailing construction joints in large slabs to minimise damage, or avoiding joints by using non-shrink or expansive additives with the concrete, for example Denka CSA.

Using additives in concrete slabs for abrasion resistance, such as steel fibres or micro silica.

Allowing for abrasion wear and tear where concrete slabs in working areas align with other surfaces.

Providing steel runners underneath bin wheels where repetitive movements are expected.

Designing roof overhangs and shelters high enough to accommodate the height of the largest vehicle accessing the site and the operating height of any equipment. To future-proof the site, some additional clearance should be provided to allow for future changes in vehicle and plant sizes and resulting operating heights. However, raising the roof height will increase the wind loads on the structure and may significantly affect the construction cost.

Designing structures so that drain pipes are located away from traffic areas.

Providing guard rails, bollards and similar mechanisms to protect structures where practicable.

Providing guards, guide rails, painted guiding lines or similar means to assist drivers to place skips, bins and trailers into the correct position.

4.4.� Efficient materials handling

A number of design features can be incorporated to facilitate materials handling at the Resource Recovery Park. These include:

Constructing walls in a straight line in areas where loaders or similar plant push materials; for example in green or residual waste push pits leading to a skip or compactor. Where walls have a change in angle it frequently takes two or more passes with the loader, or manual cleaning, to remove accumulated material.

Providing walls or barriers that funnel directly to skips, bins or compactors. Where the area leading to the bin is wider than the bin opening, a dead area is created where materials will accumulate beside the bin. Extra handling of this material will then be required.

Avoiding changes in elevation that would require a loader to lift materials rather than simply pushing them to their destination.

Installing scales or a weighbridge beneath bins so that they may be weighed during loading and allowing the bins to be filled to the maximum load permitted for the class of road they will travel on, and thus increase transport efficiency.

Placing materials directly onto pallets or into bins or other suitable receptacles so that they can be moved by mechanical equipment without further manual handling.

4.4.� Flexibility and expansion

The site design should provide sufficient flexibility to allow for changes in the type and quantities of materials accepted, handled and processed by the Resource Recovery Park in the future. This should include allowance for storage of materials when market conditions are not favourable or when markets are unavailable. A modular approach to providing for the different activities on the site is most likely to achieve such flexibility, as separate modules may be relocated, scaled up (or down) in size, or added to existing processes.

The design also needs to allow for potential expansion of buildings and other parts of the site by locating each ‘module’ to leave sufficient space for expansion.

4.� Site infrastructure

4.�.1 Gatehouse and weighbridge

The gatehouse should be located to enable staff to:

Collect gate charges.

Inspect incoming waste.

Record incoming (and outgoing) waste types and quantities.

Manage traffic.

Give directions to unloading areas.

The gatehouse structure should have:

Sufficient elevation for communication with drivers of vehicles using the site.

Facilities for viewing the waste load in incoming vehicles, such as an elevated mirror or platform.

Other control and supervision features, for example surveillance cameras.

Weighbridges, located at the gatehouse, will be required for all sites other than simple drop-off centres to charge customers for the waste delivered and to record the quantity of material removed from the site. The data collected in this manner is essential for statistical purposes and calculation of the waste levy. Incoming and outgoing weighbridges may be required for efficient traffic flow at larger sites.

4.�.2 Security

Site security measures are aimed at keeping intruders and animals out of the facility, preventing theft and vandalism as well as the illegal dumping of unacceptable waste. Specific security measures should include:

A wire mesh perimeter fence of at least two metres height.

Lockable gates.

Surveillance cameras (CCTV) where required.

Where after hours access is required for service or operational contractors, consideration needs to be given to how security will be maintained. A swipe card system and automatic weighing of inwards and outwards loads may be appropriate.

4.�.3 Community and education facilities

Such facilities, ideally located near the site entrance in the public areas of the site and adjacent to drop-off and resale areas, may include:

A presentation/lecture room for up to 60 people (two school classes).

Display areas for materials and products made from recycled items.

Display areas for posters, photos, process diagrams and other material related to waste minimisation.

A kitchen and/or tea and coffee making facilities.

Bathroom and toilet facilities.

Adequate parking, including coach parking.

4.�.4 Staff facilities

Adequate facilities must be provided for staff working at the various locations of the site. Such facilities should include shelter from the weather, a lunch room, toilets and washrooms, and possibly showers and locker areas.

4.�.� Utilities

Essential site utilities include:

Adequate water supply to meet requirements for fire fighting, drinking, washing, cleaning and dust suppression. Where reticulated municipal water supply is not available, the installation of an alternative water supply based on roof water, groundwater, or surface water abstraction will be required. In such cases, water storage in the form of a dammed reservoir or tanks may be required to provide adequate flow and quantity for fire fighting.

Sufficient fire fighting facilities, as established in discussion with the local Fire Service.

Wastewater/sewerage infrastructure to ensure compliance with consent conditions and bylaw requirements. Where connection to a local sewerage/trade waste system is not available, on-site treatment and disposal of the sewage generated by staff and public facilities, and the treatment and disposal of trade waste from process areas (leachate) generated on the site will be necessary.

Stormwater systems to ensure adequate control of stormwater on the site and compliance with consent conditions and bylaw requirements (refer Section 4.4.2).

Adequate power supply (3-phase) to support heavy equipment, balers, conveyors and other machinery.

Sufficient lighting to allow work to be performed safely on overcast days and during all expected hours of operation. Some areas, for example those housing equipment, may need additional lighting for servicing after hours.

Appropriate communication systems.

Adequate parking areas for staff vehicles.

Areas for machinery parking and servicing.

4.�.� Signage

Signage should always be clear and prominently displayed. Schematics and/or pictograms should be used where possible. If the site is to be open outside daylight hours, sign illumination is essential.

Signage at the site entrance should identify:

Opening hours.

Waste acceptance information, clearly describing the waste types that are accepted and those that are not.

Materials to be separated for the purpose of resource recovery.

Disposal costs and other charges.

Directions to unloading and recyclables drop-off areas.

Name and contact details of the site operator.

After hours contact details.

Identification of hazards on the site.

On-site signage should:

Provide directions to unloading areas.

Control traffic, for example through directional lines, arrows or speed limit indicators.

Promote the safety of workers and the general public, for example by indicating what personal protective equipment should be worn.

Identify fire control equipment and emergency exits.

Point out hazards at particular locations.

Identify emergency procedures and emergency assembly areas.

Signs directing customers and other users to the Resource Recovery Park should be located on the major approach roads to the facility.

4.� Site access and traffic flow

4.�.1 Site access

Design features to enhance the site entrance include:

Adequate width to accommodate two-way traffic for expected traffic flows.

Turning lanes and slip lanes on the access and/or main road so that the site can be entered safely without disrupting external traffic.

Sufficient space inside the site entrance for vehicles queuing at the weighbridge or the recyclables drop-off area to avoid disruption of external traffic flows.

4.�.2 Internal traffic flow and control

Effective on-site traffic circulation and control is essential to prevent vehicle accidents and increase operational efficiency. Appropriate design elements include:

Maximum vision across the site for supervisory staff.

One-way flow throughout the site with a minimum number of intersections.

Sufficient area for vehicles to manoeuvre and reverse safely into disposal areas without affecting traffic flow to other areas.

Well-defined separation of vehicles and pedestrians.

A drop-off area layout that does not require pedestrians to cross traffic routes.

Provision of a through lane past all drop-off areas.

Effective traffic control devices, for example directional lines and signage.

Speed limits.

Line markings on roads to guide traffic flow.

Roads of sufficient width for the expected traffic in various parts of the site.

Separation of cars and trucks as much as is practicable.

Restriction of service vehicles in public areas, for example through providing separate access for the removal of materials.

Access for emergency services vehicles to all areas on the site.

Depending on the site, it may be possible to install temporary traffic controls to determine patterns of public behaviour prior to installing permanent systems.

The effectiveness of judder bars for speed control should be evaluated in the context of their potentially adverse effects on the vehicles using the Resource Recovery Park.

five : 4�the new zealand resource recovery park

are dynamic operations

with many individual

components that may

change over time. A good

site management plan

is essential to provide

for effective operational

management while

allowing processes to adapt

to changing circumstances.

Well-trained, committed

and enthusiastic staff are

the most important asset of

a Resource Recovery Park,

and an essential element

in maximising resource

recovery and managing

the educational role of a

Resource Recovery Park.

The materials acceptance

policy is a crucial

component of a Resource

Recovery Park’s operating

procedures as the value of

different materials and the

rationale for recovering

specific material types

is subject to continual

fluctuation and change.

5 OperationandManagement

�.1 Introduction

The operation of a Resource Recovery Park involves a wide range of activities. These sites must be managed to ensure they are safe for staff and customers, that the operation does not adversely affect the environment or its neighbours, and that it runs effectively and efficiently to achieve its objectives.

�.2 Site management plans

Resource Recovery Parks are hazardous sites, involving moving machinery and traffic, changes in grade and elevation, manual handling and lifting, hazardous materials and other health and safety risks that need to be managed. Effective site operation is also required to maximise resource recovery, and control the drop-off and separation of resources and handling of residual waste. Other key aspects of site management include ensuring that effective environmental protection is maintained, managing public activity, the interaction of staff with customers and the public, and the management of traffic movements throughout the site.

Operational and management procedures must be formally documented in a site management plan. The scope and extent of this plan should be appropriate to the size of the Resource Recovery Park, the throughput of materials and the range of activities undertaken at the facility. Larger and more complex Resource Recovery Parks will require a more comprehensive site management plan. A typical site management plan should include:

A description of the processes and activities undertaken on the site.

An outline of management and staff responsibilities.

Health and safety procedures.

Emergency management and response procedures.

Environmental management and monitoring activities.

Staff management matters, including induction processes and training.

A materials acceptance policy to clearly identify what materials will be targeted for recovery and how these decisions are made.

Quality management procedures.

Customer service policy, including complaint procedures and customer feedback processes.

Record keeping and reporting systems.

Where different activities on a site are controlled by different parties, separate site management plans may be appropriate, although these must address the interaction between the parties.

Site management plans are effectively the ‘rule book’ governing all activities at the Resource Recovery Park. They are ‘living’ documents that are essential to ensure the safety of people and the environment, and the profitability of the operation (whether expressed in financial or other terms). They must be accessible and known to all staff, and be reviewed on a regular basis to ensure that they remain relevant and effective.

A Table of Contents for a typical Resource Recovery Park site management plan is provided as an appendix to this Guide.

five : 4�the new zealand resource recovery park

�.3 Staff

�.3.1 Staffing levels

Depending on the activities undertaken staff will be needed for the following:

Fee collection.

Materials acceptance - this includes providing assistance to the public and ensuring that their materials are placed into the correct receptacles or areas, and declining acceptance of prohibited materials.

Materials handling, sorting, packing and processing for transport off-site or other parts of the site.

Site maintenance.

Repair and resale of goods.

Green waste handling.

Residual waste transfer.

Materials processing activities.

Site security and supervision.

Administration and management.

Staff numbers will depend on the size of the facility and should be sufficient to cover peak periods.

�.3.2 Staff training

Training requirements, including frequency of initial and refresher training, for all staff should be identified in the site management plan and cover the following:

Health and safety, including hazard identification.

Emergency management.

Environmental management.

Special and hazardous waste handling.

Customer service, because helpful, knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff are a key component of a successful Resource Recovery Park.

Materials handling, including identification, acceptance, valuation, storage requirements and similar.

Repair and resale of used goods.

Data collection, record keeping and other administrative matters.

On-the-job training is an essential part of the learning processes for staff at Resource Recovery Parks. More formal training can be provided through applicable unit standards offered by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA).

EXITO, the Industry Training Organisation for extractive industries, also addresses the needs of the resource recovery industry and can assist with identifying and delivering training needs.

Download information about resource recovery training from: http://www.nzqa.govt.nz http://www.exito.org.nz/main/index.asp

five : 47the new zealand resource recovery park

�.4 Health and safety

Ensuring the health and safety of all people involved with a Resource Recovery Park – staff, contractors, customers and the general public – is one of the most important aspects of operational management.

As part of either a specific health & safety plan, or the site management plan, health and safety procedures need to be identified for the operation as a whole as well as for each specific work area where different or additional procedures are carried out.

The health & safety plan must cover the following:

Safety policy and responsibilities of employer and employees.

General health and safety procedures such as smoking policy, description of minimum personal protective equipment (PPE) to be worn by staff when on site and similar generic measures.

Hazard identification and mitigation measures for each.

Safe operating procedures for all aspects of the operation, including description of the specific PPE to be worn when undertaking different tasks.

Supervision requirements for public areas.

Emergency response procedures (refer to Section 5.6).

Hazardous waste management (refer Section 5.7.5).

Training requirements, frequency of training and record keeping.

Incident register.

Auditing of health and safety procedures.

Review period for the health & safety plan.

Where appropriate, health and safety procedures should be provided in writing or as pictograms in the area where they apply; for example, in areas where a hardhat must be worn relevant signage should be prominently displayed.

Further information is available from the Waste Management Institute of New Zealand and the Occupational Safety and Health office of the Department of Labour.

Download further health and safety information and access links to relevant websites from: http://www.wasteminz.org.nz/sectorgroups/safety/info2u.htm

Request Health and Safety in the Waste Industry (ACC, 2006) from: info@wasteminz.org.nz

�.� Environmental protection

Operational practices designed to minimise effects on the environment include:

General procedures Regular sweeping of waste reception areas.

Ensuring that all areas on the site are kept as tidy as possible given the nature of the operation..

Stormwater management

Regular de-silting of cesspits and drains.

Regular inspection and maintenance of interceptors from hardstand and bunded areas.

Maintenance of leachate and stormwater treatment plants and associated installations such as artificial wetlands.

Odour prevention Ensuring that putrescible waste is not stored for more than 24 hours.

Daily cleaning of any skips or surfaces that come into contact with putrescible and residual waste.

Vermin control Using bait traps in areas attractive to vermin, for example where putrescible waste is handled.

Dust suppression Regular spraying of water in dust-prone areas. ▸

Litter prevention Movement of relocatable litter screens to suit the wind direction.

Checking of lids, covers and tarpaulins to ensure that they are in place and adequately secured at the end of each day and when wind conditions change.

Litter inspections and cleaning of litter traps on stormwater drains at the end of each day.

Regular inspection and maintenance of fixed litter screens and other litter prevention fixtures.

Noise control Use of fixed or moveable noise barriers and walls between waste handling areas, public areas and site boundaries.

Aesthetics Regular maintenance of landscaping features, such as lawn mowing, hedge clipping or upkeep of wildflower areas.

�.� Emergency management

Planning for emergencies is an integral part of operating any Resource Recovery Park, and must cover the identification of potential emergencies, how to minimise the risk of an emergency occurring and how to act during an emergency.

Types of emergencies

Explosion.

Chemical (including fuel) spill.

Leachate spill.

Gas leak.

Natural disasters, including extreme weather events.

Medical emergencies resulting from accidents or illness (for example a heart attack).

Risk minimisation methods

Utilising appropriate site design (refer Section 4).

Providing and maintaining bunds around hazardous waste storage, for example waste oil tanks.

Ensuring that there are no ignition sources near flammable materials storage.

Providing an adequate water supply for fire fighting and maintaining adequate access for emergency services vehicles.

Providing and maintaining spill kits in areas where they are required.

example

The Waitaki Resource Recovery Park

The operation of the community enterprise-run Waitaki Resource Recovery Park involves a wide range of activities, including:

Greeting customers at the kiosk, directing them to the correct area and receiving the fee if applicable.

Assisting customers with their loads at the recyclables drop-off. This includes advice if materials need to be presented in a more appropriate manner, but staff do not sort mixed loads. Materials are loaded directly onto pallets destined for ‘Resale Outside’, ‘Resale Inside’, ‘Recycling’, ‘Metal’ or another category aimed at minimising handling.

Garden organics are delivered onto a concrete pad and turned into a green resource through shredding - the resulting mulch is sold within one week. The Park processes 1,200 tonne in 12 months.

All furniture is dismantled, usually by volunteer workers and sold as foam, firewood and metal.

Electrical appliances except computers, TVs and microwaves are also dismantled and sorted into metal and plastic parts.

The ‘Get Sorted’ shop is open 4 days a week to reduce overheads and allow staff to stock the shop without customers being present.

Recyclable materials are baled, weighed and transported off-site for further processing.

Emergency management operating procedures

The site management plan must document emergency management operating procedures.

All types of emergencies that may occur on the site must be identified.

Responsibilities of key staff before, during and after an emergency must be clearly described. This should include the appointment of an ‘emergency response officer’ with overall responsibility for emergency management and training, and wardens with specific duties during an emergency.

24 hour contact details for emergency services and key Resource Recovery Park staff must be included.

Actions to be taken before and during an emergency should be outlined.

Evacuation procedures are to be described in detail.

Staff training requirements for emergency management, including emergency response exercises, are an essential part of emergency procedures.

Follow-up procedures must be addressed to ensure that:

Used equipment such as spill absorbent and fire extinguishers are replaced at the earliest opportunity.

Debriefing occurs and lessons learned are incorporated into emergency management procedures as soon as possible.

Emergency response procedures must be ‘distilled’ into specific instructions to be followed during an emergency and be clearly displayed in all work areas of the Resource Recovery Park.

�.7 Materials acceptance and handling

�.7.1 Site access and operating hours

Access to the Resource Recovery Park should only be possible when the facility is staffed, for three key reasons:

Safety.

Ensuring appropriate management of materials, including any hazardous waste.

Controlling resource recovery activities and preventing contamination.

Operating hours should cater for the range of customers expected to use the facility and take site-specific factors into account. Where possible, a Resource Recovery Park should be open during weekdays and the weekend. Factors to consider when determining operating hours include:

The size of the facility and its host community. For example, a large community may warrant opening the Resource Recovery Park seven days a week, in others fewer opening days may suffice.

The nature of the community served. Areas with seasonal population growth such as tourist centres may need to increase their opening hours at certain times of the year to deal with peak customer numbers.

five : �0the new zealand resource recovery park

Constraints on volunteers available to staff facilities operated by the community.

Schedules of commercial vehicles using the site.

Operating hours of the landfill to which residual waste is transported. Travel distance to the landfill must also be taken into account.

Operating hours of other related businesses, for example an adjacent refuse transfer station.

Operating hours of neighbouring Resource Recovery Parks.

The operating hours of the site may extend beyond the time it is open to the public to allow for cleaning and maintenance activities. On some sites it may also be preferable for residual waste transfer and service vehicle operation to be undertaken outside of public access hours.

�.7.2 Materials acceptance

The approach to making decisions about the types of materials that are accepted at the Resource Recovery Park has been outlined in Section 3.2.4. However, the conditions governing this process are dynamic; for example, markets change over time and some materials may become more valuable with the introduction of new processing methods.

It is therefore important that regular reviews of the Resource Recovery Park’s material acceptance policy occur to ensure that:

Resource recovery continues to be appropriate and up-to-date.

The range of materials recovered is increased wherever practicable.

Innovations in processing methods or changing market demands for raw materials can be incorporated into operational procedures as soon as possible.

These reviews should also address the handling criteria applying to the resource streams handled on the site, to ensure that the specific requirements of the downstream receiver of the materials are met and the value of the recovered resources is maximised. For example, the following preparation of materials may be required:

Flattening cardboard.

Cleaning plastic bottles and removing their lids.

Separating different types of plastic for particular markets.

Separating glass by colour.

Rinsing steel and aluminium cans. Crushing may also be desirable, to minimise storage requirements.

�.7.3 Resale of used items

The repair and resale of used goods has the potential to be a valuable income stream for a Resource Recovery Park, provided that decisions about the items processed in this way are pragmatic and suited to the community it serves. As this may change over time, regular reviews (possibly in conjunction with reviewing the materials acceptance policy) should be undertaken. The following criteria should be considered:

Pricing levels for resale items need to be realistic. Competition by new, cheap mass imports is readily available in most areas and presents a considerable challenge to maximising the reuse of materials. Items offered for resale should be inexpensive to encourage throughput.

Accumulation of items that do not sell readily should be avoided because it may create a shortage of storage space and, where visible to customers, may have a negative effect – abundance is not necessarily a recommendation to the discerning shopper. This may be addressed through adopting a time restriction policy where an item that has not sold within a defined number of days is given away or treated as residual waste and disposed of. The time periods will differ for various materials in accordance with average demand.

Protection of goods and materials separated for resale from the elements in a shed or other structure should be considered as exposure to the weather may cause degradation of the product; for example, furniture containing Formica or particle board will degrade rapidly and become unfit for resale.

Supervision of resale areas at all times is essential.

On-going training and education of staff is essential to enable the realistic assessment of the value of items received at the Resource Recovery Park, whether they should be offered for resale, and determining the price.

�.7.4 Materials handling

Handling processes may change according to the materials accepted. However, there are some basic procedures that may be employed to increase the overall efficiency of resource recovery activities:

Checking loads entering the Resource Recovery Park to identify recyclable materials and potentially hazardous materials, and instructing the customer where materials should be taken. This applies to loads entering the recyclables drop-off area and to loads crossing the weighbridge to the residual waste disposal area.

Establishing how differential pricing will be managed, for example by:

Charging full residual waste fee for all mixed loads.

Inspecting mixed loads (i.e. those where materials are charged at different rates) to assess the percentage of the different waste types in the load prior to crossing the weighbridge, and to ensure that the recoverable material (for example green waste) accepted at the lower rate contains no residual waste and is deposited at the correct location.

Supervising areas where materials are deposited to ensure they are correctly separated, to provide assistance to customers if necessary and to maintain control of traffic and pedestrian movements in the drop-off area.

Ensuring that signage is kept up-to-date, particularly in situations where bins are regularly relocated, to inform customers where materials are to be deposited and of any specific separation or other requirements.

Keeping the drop-off area clean and free of litter, dust, breakages and contaminants to encourage users to maintain a high standard.

Providing a ‘last chance bin’ in the residual waste disposal area to enable customers to remove remaining recyclable components from their load.

Beyond that, staff may be able to recover further resources from the residual waste stream. To encourage this, consideration could be given to providing incentives to staff in the form of rewards or a share in the profits from the recovered material. The health and safety implications of this approach must be carefully assessed and managed.

�.7.� Hazardous waste

Download information about hazardous waste from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/waste/hazardous/index.html

As noted in Section 4.3.12, a Resource Recovery Park should have suitable storage facilities for hazardous materials regardless of its acceptance policy as such materials will be found in the waste or resource streams delivered to the site, or as the result of unauthorised dumping.

Procedures for hazardous waste handling will differ according to the hazardous waste acceptance criteria adopted by the Resource Recovery Park, which may be one of the following:

No hazardous wastes are accepted on the site.

Specific waste types (for example waste oil) are accepted, as set out clearly on signage at the site entrance and any information material about the Resource Recovery Park.

The Resource Recovery Park provides a household hazardous waste drop-off facility for the community, accepting all types of household hazardous waste⁵.

However, some generic procedures apply and must be outlined in the site management plan. The issues that must be addressed are:

Staff training. Each staff member should receive basic training in hazardous waste handling to enable them to:

Recognise a hazardous material.

Determine its hazard class as much as is possible (some substances may be unidentifiable due to a lack of labelling).

Take appropriate action (i.e. safe storage in the appropriate storage area until the material can be removed by a qualified contractor).

Management responsibilities. The safe handling, storage and removal of any hazardous materials on site should be the responsibility of designated staff members to encourage a consistent approach and enable them to gain experience. Depending on the quantities and types of hazardous material stored on site, a Location Test Certificate and/or Approved Handler certification under the HSNO Act may be required. ERMA and/or a Test Certifier should be consulted to obtain expert advice.

Storage checks. The facilities used for storing the hazardous materials on site must be checked on a regular basis to detect and deal with potential leaks or spills.

Record keeping. Accurate records should be kept of the types and quantities of hazardous materials on site at any time.

Removal procedures. Arrangements should be made for the regular removal of accumulated hazardous materials. Depending on the degree of hazard of the materials stored and the quality of the storage facilities, this may have to occur at frequent intervals. A suitably qualified contractor should be engaged for this purpose, and a destruction certificate from the treatment and disposal facility that received the material should be obtained. Ideally, the treatment facility should be required to have a waste tracking system in place and/or be a certified Liquid and Hazardous Waste Contractor.

The Ministry for the

Environment defines

hazardous waste as

any waste that:

Contains hazardous

substances at sufficient

concentrations to exceed

the minimum degrees

of hazard specified by

Hazardous Substances

(Minimum Degrees of

Hazard) Regulations 2000

under the Hazardous

Substances and New

Organism Act 1996, or

Meets the definition for

infectious substances

included in the Land

Transport Rule: Dangerous

Goods 1999 and NZ

Standard 5433: 1999

- Transport of Dangerous

Goods on Land, or

Meets the definition for

radioactive material

included in the Radiation

Protection Act 1965 and

Regulations SR 1982/72.

Under the HSNO Act,

hazardous properties are

classified as follows:

Class 1 – Explosive substances

Class 2 – Flammable gases

Class 3 – Flammable liquids

Class 4 – Flammable solids

Class 5 – Oxidising substances

Class 6 – Toxic substances

Class 8 – Corrosive substances

Class 9 – Ecotoxic substances

Note that in the United

Nations international hazard

classification system, Class

7 includes radioactive

substances.

5 This usually excludes explosive materials (Class 1) such as flares, fire works, ammunition, gun powder and

similar items. These should always be handed to the Police.

Maintenance. Storage facilities for hazardous materials should be kept clean and tidy at all times and be inspected regularly for signs of deterioration. The spill equipment, fire extinguishers and other equipment such as emergency showers must be checked and tested at regular intervals and replaced where necessary.

Where either some or all types of household hazardous wastes are officially accepted by the Resource Recovery Park, handling procedures for each material must be set out in the site management plan and staff trained accordingly. This should include emergency management and response.

Download information about the Liquid and Hazardous Waste Code of Practice from: http://www.nzwwa.org.nz/liquidwastecontractors.html http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/waste/wastewater/

�.8 Traffic management

The rules and restrictions applying to traffic movements on the Resource Recovery Park, for example speed limits and areas prohibited to heavy traffic, must be outlined in the site management plan, and be known by all staff. Appropriate signage to alert customers and other site users to these requirements must be clearly visible.

Daily operational practices for managing traffic on the site should focus on ensuring that:

Signage and lane markings are in place.

Site traffic rules are complied with.

Safe practices are being adopted.

All staff moving around the facility are wearing high-visibility clothing.

Heavy vehicle operations should be monitored continuously and rules should be enforced consistently by the site supervisor. The site management plan should also include procedures for dealing with repeat offenders, both public and commercial, who do not comply with site rules.

�.9 User education and customer feedback

The role of a Resource Recovery Park in a community waste minimisation education programme was outlined in Section 2.3. Another important component in the successful operation of the Resource Recovery Park is targeted, well-presented and factual user information. This may be achieved through:

Information leaflets.

Information posted on a website or web page (if part of another organisation’s website).

Regular columns in the local newspaper.

Signage and ‘information stations’ at strategic points throughout the facility.

Personal (and friendly) interaction between staff and customers.

The information that should be conveyed includes but is not limited to the following:

Opening hours of the Resource Recovery Park and, where appropriate, other facilities on site such as the resale facility or associated businesses.

Fees and charges.

Any relevant site rules such as speed limits.

Clear and up-to-date information on what materials and items are accepted at the facility.

Any instructions for ‘pre-treatment’ of the materials, such as cleaning, washing, sorting (for example into different coloured glass) or other measures to support the efficient separation and processing of resource streams.

A site layout showing where the different materials should be deposited.

An overview of the processes on site and what happens to the materials.

Information about educational opportunities associated with the Resource Recovery Park such as open days and guided tours.

Complaint procedures and opportunity for customer feedback.

Address and contact details.

Methods for handling complaints and addressing customer feedback (regular customer surveys may be a useful method) should be set out in the site management plan. These are important components for improving the Resource Recovery Park’s overall operating procedures, increasing its efficiency and enhancing its standing in the community.

six : ��the new zealand resource recovery park

APPENDIX: TYPICAL CONTENTS OF A RESOURCE RECOVERY PARK SITE MANAGEMENT PLAN

Table of Contents

1 Introduction

1.1 Purpose and Objectives

1.2 Site Layout and Activities

1.3 Consents

2 Management

2.1 Site Owner and Operator

2.2 Management Structure

2.3 Responsibilities and Duties of Responsible Personnel

2.4 Contractual Arrangements

2.5 Staff Requirements

2.6 Staff Induction

2.7 Staff Training

2.8 Complaints Procedures

2.9 Customer Service and Feedback Procedures

2.10 Quality Management

3 Site Operations

3.1 Standard Operating Procedures

3.2 Operating Hours and Access Requirements

3.3 Materials Acceptance (Selection and Control)

3.4 Hazardous Waste

3.5 Materials Handling

3.6 Traffic Management

3.7 Site Security

3.8 Site Maintenance

4 Health and Safety

4.1 Responsibilities

4.2 Hazard Identification

4.3 Hazard Control Measures

4.4 Toolbox Safety Meetings

4.5 Procedures for Hazardous Work

4.6 Emergency Plan

4.7 Emergency Evacuation Procedure

4.8 Accident and Incident Reporting and Investigation

4.9 Safety Training and Investigation

5 Environmental Management

5.1 Standard Operating Procedures

5.2 Waste Management for Environmental Control

5.3 Stormwater Management

5.4 Odour Management

six : ��the new zealand resource recovery park

5.5 Dust Management

5.6 Spill Response Procedures

5.7 Environmental Monitoring

6 Emergency Management

6.1 Responsibilities

6.2 Emergency Management Policy

6.3 Emergency Response Procedures

6.4 Staff Training

7 Record Keeping and Reporting

7.1 Waste Data Collection and Reporting

7.2 Resource Consent Reporting

7.3 Waste Levy Procedures

8 Review

8.1 Auditing

8.2 Plan Review - Scope and Timing

Appendices

A Site Layout Plan and Relevant Site Drawings, including Drainage

B Resource Consents

C Health and Safety Policy

D Health and Safety Checklist and Forms

E Environmental Policy

F Operating Procedures

G Site Contingency Plan

six : �7the new zealand resource recovery park

Glossary

Buffer distance The distance between an activity and neighbouring land to minimise the effect of the activity on the neighbouring land use (e.g. residential).

Composting The controlled biological decomposition and stabilisation of organic material to produce a final product that is stable, free of pathogens and plant seeds, and can be beneficially applied to land.

Contamination Dissolved or suspended substances in water that may potentially cause an adverse environmental effect.Items introduced into a separated resource that reduce its value and/or ability to be recovered.

Cost reimbursement

In a cost reimbursement contract the contractor is paid for actual costs together with an agreed margin to cover overheads and profit.

Designation Designations allow a ‘requiring authority’, usually a Minister of the Crown or a territorial authority, to plan for public works and network utilities by setting aside an area of land outside the provisions of the district plan. This approach is an alternative to the resource consent process but it is only available when the proposed RRP is owned by the territorial authority. The procedure for designating land is described in Part VIII of the RMA.

Differential Pricing In the context of this document, setting different prices for particular activities so that the difference between the prices influences behaviour.

E-waste For the purpose of this document, e-waste includes electronic goods such as computers of all kinds and their accessories such as keyboards, mice, monitors and printers, desktop photocopiers (multi-purpose printers), consumer electronics such as game consoles, iPods and similar, and televisions.

Hazardous Waste Any waste that:

Contains hazardous substances at sufficient concentrations to exceed the minimum degrees of hazard specified by Hazardous Substances (Minimum Degrees of Hazard) Regulations 2000 under the Hazardous Substances and New Organism Act 1996, or

Meets the definition for infectious substances included in the Land Transport Rule: Dangerous Goods 1999 and NZ Standard 5433: 1999 - Transport of Dangerous Goods on Land, or

Meets the definition for radioactive material included in the Radiation Protection Act 1965 and Regulations SR 1982/72.

Landfill A site used for the disposal of residual waste to land.

Leachate Liquid that has drained from waste or has been produced by the action of water percolating through waste, and that contains dissolved or suspended material from the waste.

Processing Any activity undertaken to modify materials delivered to the Resource Recovery Park to make them suitable for reuse or increase value.

Refuse transfer station

The part of a Resource Recovery Park, or a separate facility, for accepting and consolidating residual waste for transfer to a landfill.

Residual waste Material delivered to the Resource Recovery Park that is unsuited for reuse or recycling and which will be taken to landfill.

Reverse sensitivity Situations where an incompatible land use is sited next to an established facility (in this case a Resource Recovery Park), resulting in conflict between property users.

Aaesthetics 18, 39, 48

Bbatteries 13, 30, 38biofuel 1, 2building consent 7, 23, 24bund, bunding 30, 35, 38, 47, 48Bylaw 8, 43

CC&D waste 2, 12, 13, 14cardboard 1, 12, 27, 30, 50composting 1, 2, 3, 12, 32, 33consultation 21contracts 11, 12, 15, 16cost differential 12, 14cost reimbursement 16, 57costs 4, 5, 13, 14, 15, 16

Ddesignation 23, 24, 57district plan 6, 17, 18, 23, 57dust 18, 24, 33, 37, 39, 42, 48, 51

Eeducation 1, 2, 9, 10, 14, 26, 42, 51, 53, 54electronic waste, e-waste 1, 12, 13, 57emergency management 22, 45, 46, 48, 49energy efficiency 40environment 5, 6, 7, 8, 26, 34, 38, 40, 45, 47

Ffuture-proofing 19

Ggatehouse 41glass 1, 2, 24, 27, 37, 50, 54greenfield 3, 20green waste 1, 2, 3, 12, 14, 19, 31, 32, 37, 38, 40, 46, 51

Hhazardous waste 1, 2, 7, 8, 12, 29, 34, 35, 38, 46, 47, 48, 49, 52, 53health and safety 7, 34, 36, 37, 39, 45, 46, 47, 51HSNO Act 7, 31, 34, 52

Llandfill, landfill gas 1, 2, 5, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 50landscaping 39, 48leachate 43, 48, 57legislation 1, 4, 5, 7, 13, 16, 21litter 18, 19, 29, 32, 33, 36, 38, 39, 48, 51Location Test Certificate 25, 30, 31, 52LPG bottles 12, 31

Mmarkets 12, 16, 36, 41, 50materials recovery 1, 2

Nnoise 18, 24, 39, 48

Oodour 18, 19, 24, 38, 48

Ppaper 1, 2, 12, 27personal protective equipment, PPE 43, 47plastics 1, 2, 12, 27polystyrene 12, 33product stewardship 5, 13, 14, 35

Rrecords 16, 41, 42, 45, 46, 47, 52recyclables 2, 18, 26, 27, 29, 31, 43, 44, 51refuse transfer station 1, 2, 3, 16, 17, 20, 36, 50regional plan 6, 23, 24, 30, 31, 38resale 2, 12, 26, 31, 33, 42, 46, 50, 51, 53residual waste 1, 2, 3, 5, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 26, 27, 32, 33, 36, 38, 40, 41, 45, 46, 48, 50, 51resource consent 6, 13, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24reverse sensitivity 24, 58

Sscrap metal 22, 29, 33security 13, 26, 31, 35, 42, 46service vehicles 27, 29, 44signage 15, 29, 30, 32, 35, 39, 43, 44, 47, 51, 52, 53site management plan 45, 46, 47, 49, 52, 53, 54Solid Waste Analysis Protocol 11spill, spill kit 30, 35, 48, 49, 52, 53staff 2, 9, 26, 42, 45, 46, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53storage 2, 7, 12, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 41, 50, 51, 52, 53stormwater 19, 24, 29, 30, 32, 35, 38, 40, 43, 47, 48sustainable design 26, 39

TTest Certifier 25, 31, 34, 52timber 1, 2, 32, 33, 37trade waste 8, 13, 19, 25, 38, 43traffic flow 26, 29, 42, 44training 13, 45, 46, 47, 49, 51, 52tyres 8, 13, 33

Uused goods 1, 2, 12, 46, 50utilities 13, 42

Vvehicle numbers 27, 32vermin 7, 24, 48

Wwaste levy 5, 14, 15, 42waste oil 29, 34, 38, 48, 52water efficiency 40weighbridge 16, 26, 29, 33, 41, 42, 44, 51

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