The Government is backing New Zealanders with innovative ideas to solve our waste crisis Associate Minister for the Environment Eugenie Sage said today as she opened a fresh round of Waste Minimisation Funding.
“I am excited to open this new round of Waste Minimisation Funding. The fund backs New Zealanders with innovative ideas for new projects that help tackle our mounting waste problem,” Eugenie Sage said.
“We’re inviting New Zealand businesses and community organisations to work with us to find new solutions to old problems. It’s a chance to speed up our transition to an economy where products are designed to be fixed or their materials recovered and re-used so they don’t end up in the landfill. Doing this will keep precious resources in use much longer.
“The Waste Minimisation Fund is only one part of the Government’s programme to help turn around New Zealand’s poor track record on waste.
“We also plan to expand the waste disposal levy to all landfills, improve our data on waste and resource recovery, have a greater focus on product stewardship for problematic waste streams such as vehicle tyres and e-waste, and are exploring investing more strategically in infrastructure and innovation.
“Plastic shopping bags are being phased out by 1 July 2019, and we are working to deliver on our global pledge to address the root causes of plastic pollution,” said Eugenie Sage.
The Waste Minimisation Fund varies each year based on money raised from the landfill levy. In 2017, $9.1 million was approved to fund 15 projects, and in 2018, $16.3 million was granted across 49 projects.
Funding is available for quality projects which will help achieve the Waste Minimisation Fund’s strategic outcomes. These are:
• Move towards a circular economy in New Zealand
• Encourage product stewardship
• Build a more resilient resource recovery sector in New Zealand
• Develop a sustainable plastics lifecycle.
All applications that are innovative and will have a positive impact on a variety of waste streams will be considered. Projects with secondary benefits, such as considering climate change impacts or economic, social, environmental and cultural benefits, will be given greater priority.
Applications to this funding round of the Waste Minimisation Fund open on today and close on 29 May 2019.
