Auckland’s food scraps have created enough energy to provide renewable gas to 300,000 homes monthly.
More than 30,000 tonnes of food scraps contributed by Aucklanders since the food scrap collections began in April last year have been used to produce renewable energy and fertiliser.
As of this month, this renewable energy is now being fed into the national gas pipeline for the first time in New Zealand, with Auckland’s food scraps generating enough renewable gas to supply 18,000 homes regularly.
Councillor Richard Hills, chair of the Policy and Planning Committee, said Aucklanders can be proud of reaching the 30,000-tonne milestone.
“Thank you to every Aucklander who is helping to keep food scraps out of landfills so they can be transformed into resources,” said Hills.
“In participating in the food scraps service, you are reducing our environmental impact and contributing to a sustainable future.”
Auckland’s diverted food scraps have also created enough liquid fertiliser to be spread on nearly 100 km2 of productive land; that’s the equivalent land size of 13,500 rugby fields.
By participating in the food scraps service, Aucklanders have saved 19,600 tonnes of harmful greenhouse gas emissions from landfills. This is equivalent to taking approximately 6,000 cars off Auckland’s roads or planting half a million trees.
The food scraps have been processed at New Zealand’s only anaerobic digestion facility, run by locally owned company Ecogas, which has converted the food scraps into biogas, electricity, heat and liquid fertiliser used by farmers and growers in the North Island.
Over 465,000 food scrap bins were delivered to Auckland homes, Australasia's largest rollout of a collection service.
With summer fast approaching, warmer temperatures can increase pests and odours in the home. Separating food scraps to put out for kerbside collection or home composting can seem more challenging, but the council has suggested some easy ways to beat the summer heat and keep pests and odours at bay.
