Christchurch

Greenwaste is stuff like tree branches, leaves, grass, dead shrubs, weeds and flowers. They are the key ingredients that Living Earth composts at its sites in Auckland and Christchurch.

Foodwaste is fruit, vegetables meat, fish, etc bread, pastries and flours. Any of the above wrapped in paper, tissues, paper napkins, paper towels, food contaminated paper, pizza boxes.

I'm glad you asked, this link http://www.ccc.govt.nz/homeliving/rubbish/kerbsidecollection/organics/index.aspx will explain it all, or check out this fancy pants video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nc8ufeO984

Around 50,000 tonnes of foodscraps and greenwaste is collected from Christchurch homes which is converted into 50,000 cubic metres of compost.

Items such as glass, tin and plastic are removed starting at the beginning with a visual 'picking' on arrival and ending when the compost is passed through a fine screen before being sold.

Do not place plastic wrapped around food, ash from the fireplace timber products and sawdust in your organics bin.

The foodscraps and greenwaste collected from your gate is composted in an in-door tunnel system for up to 7-10 days, and subsequently aged in windrows outside for up to 30 days. Greenwaste dropped off at Metro Place is composted outside in windrows for around 90 days.

Currently all compost is sold to the Canterbury farming community. Canterbury soils suffer from years of intensive chemical fertilizer application and compost helps re-build healthy soil structure and increases moisture retention in the soil.

Living Earth sells the compost to the local farming community, so there are no supplies available to Christchurch residents. But watch this space...

Unfortunately it is sometimes the case with the Christchurch OPP compost. Residents should not place grass clippings in their green organics bin or drop them off for recycling, if they have previously sprayed their lawns with a selective weed-killer containing the active ingredient Clopyralid.

It can cause distortion of new growth in vegetables such as tomatoes, potatoes and beans

By placing all your organic waste - kitchen food scraps and garden cuttings and weeds - into your Christchurch City Council Organics green bin and placing it at your gate on your collection date.