2 Apr 2012

User pays planned for Auckland rubbish

9:09 am on 2 April 2012

Auckland Council says its plan to raise rubbish collection charges will be effective in the long term.

Households are likely to be charged $2.50 each time the rubbish standard bin is collected, while recycling and compost will be free, from 2015.

But some residents say the fees will be too high and people will put rubbish into others' bins, or dump it illegally.

Avondale resident Gavin Logan owns 10 properties in Manukau and says his tenants cannot afford the fee.

He says it is unfair for those who own their homes to pay the fees on top of rates.

However, deputy mayor Penny Hulse says the fees will save Aucklanders money in the long term.

"We simply can't go on building more and more landfills, that's very, very expensive," she says.

She says the council is trying to keep the cost down.