Waste is costly for business and for the environment.

The greatest volume of waste in the Auckland region comes from commercial sources not individual households. Waste from construction and demolition holds the greatest potential for waste minimisation partly because it is the biggest source of materials going to landfill.

It is more than double the total waste from all household collections in the region. Auckland produced at least 568,935 tonnes of construction and demolition waste in fiscal year 2018/2019. That is the equivalent of 23,155 shipping containers.

An average new house build produces 4.5 tonnes of waste, with materials worth more than $31,000 if they were saved rather than sent to landfill. To put it into perspective, you’d have to set your kerbside bin out weekly for more than 30 years to generate that much waste.

Construction and demolition waste is one of the three priority commercial waste streams in Auckland Council’s 2018 Waste Management and Minimisation Plan.

Reducing construction waste is a big challenge given Auckland’s rapid population growth and the level of construction activity needed to meet the demand.

Auckland Council is working together with the construction industry to reduce waste to landfill.