It’s time to get your applications together to get a share of Hamilton City Council’s Waste Minimisation Fund, before it closes on 19 April 2024.

The annual $50,000 fund is for waste minimisation projects that involve or benefit the Hamilton community, and lead to long-term waste reduction and behaviour change – in line with the vision of Council’s Waste Management and Minimisation Strategy.

The fund is available for community groups, businesses, Iwi/Maaori organisations, and educational institutions. Groups can apply for standard funding of $1000 - $5000, or special projects funding of $5000 - $15,000.

Tania Hermann, Council’s Sustainable Resource Recovery Unit Director, said the organisation will prioritise projects that reduce, reuse, and recycle – in that order.

“The aim of the Waste Minimisation Fund is to encourage solutions within our community that will reduce the waste we send to landfill, and extend the lifespan of the products we use. Projects that promote minimising waste and reusing the products we’ve bought, are what we're looking for”.

Successful recipients of last year’s fund included businesses who educated the community on long-term, low-waste solutions:

• The Patterson Street Playcentre eliminated food packaging by teaching families how to prepare their own food, as well as how to compost foods scraps.
• The ReCreators delivered woodworking and upcycling workshops to the Hamilton community, giving new life to construction items that were heading to landfill.
• The Waikato School of Potters increased their capacity for clay recycling and now recycle 40kg of clay per week, up from the 40 - 60kg of clay previously recycled per month.

The fund was budgeted for in the 2021-31 Long Term Plan, and is fully funded by the waste disposal levy, which Hamilton City Council receives from the Ministry for the Environment.

For more information, please contact wasteminimisation@hcc.govt.nz.

Apply online today at fightthelandfill.co.nz/waste-minimisation/funding.

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