Rubbish disposal costs too high: Gizzy Waste owner

Business owner feeling the pinch of some of the highest rates in the  North Island

The owner of a Gisborne waste business believes locals are getting a raw deal when it comes to disposing of rubbish in the city.

Gizzy Waste owner Jason Bagnall has run a skip bin hire, waste removal and cleaning business since April 2021.

But he says the lack of a council-owned landfill or transfer station in Gisborne has created an unfair playing field for users, including himself.

As it stands, the only landfill in Tairāwhiti is located two hours north of Gisborne in Ruatōria, running on a consent which will expire in 2025.

The council owns and operates eight transfer stations within the region, but none in Gisborne.

That means city dwellers are restricted to the use of Waste Management’s transfer station for waste disposal — a site which charges some of the highest rates in the North Island.

Gizzy Waste conducted its own research on how much people were paying to dispose of rubbish per tonne compared to surrounding areas.

It found Gisborne residents were paying $484 per tonne, and Mr Bagnall understood the city has the second highest rate in the North Island behind only the North Shore.

The closest rival to Gisborne’s pricing in areas near the East Coast was Hastings at $391 per tonne, followed by Tauranga and Wairoa at $370 per tonne each.

Gisborne was $148 per tonne more expensive on average than its nearest counterparts and a lack of competition meant Waste Management had complete control over the Tairāwhiti market, Mr Bagnall said.

“They own it outright. They own the station, they operate it. They basically have Gisborne held to ransom.

“When you have a look at neighbouring regions, everybody else owns their main transfer station. We’re the only one that’s privately owned and operated.”

Mr Bagnall said the skip bin hire section of his business was being squeezed out of the market because of Waste Management’s refusal to give him a discounted rate.

Gizzy Waste charges $700 for a skip bin, but has to pay the same weighbridge price as everyday customers, meaning it only makes money on the service it offers.

By the time it had made two round trips for drop off and collection, paid the ever-increasing weighbridge cost, and remunerated staff, Mr Bagnall said he’d be lucky if there was $130 left over.

Meanwhile, Waste Management offered its own skip bin service and has been steadily increasing the weighbridge cost without raising its bin rate, he said.

“If we raise our prices, we lose customers. If we don’t, we’re going to lose margin which makes our service become unsustainable.”

Mr Bagnall estimates his company has paid between $350,000 and $400,000 a year on weighbridge fees without a discount.

Earlier this month, he presented behind closed doors at Gisborne District Council, laying out his concerns and calling on the authority to create other options for those needing to dispose of waste.

Rubbish wasn’t an issue that was going away any time soon, he said, pointing to an increase in illegal dumping along with the spike in residential waste being dumped in business bins.

Mr Bagnall has taken the issue to the Commerce Commission,  on grounds of pricing and market manipulation, and is awaiting an outcome.

In response to questions from Local Democracy Reporting, Waste Management NZ executive general manager lower North Island David Howie said prices varied from region to region depending on a range of factors.

“We operate in competitive environments all around Aotearoa New Zealand and are focused on bringing good value to our customers.

“We treat all customers to the Gisborne transfer station equally.”

Mr Howie said prices had increased over the past three years due to the Government’s Waste Disposal Levy, and would do so again in 2024.

Waste Management tried to meet the market while running a sustainable and profitable business, he said.