Alexandra Reuse Shop & Alexandra Recycling Services to close on June 30th.
As a social enterprise, Wastebusters needs to ensure that we are financially viable for our people, our place and our impact, so we can continue to work for zero waste into the future.
Unfortunately, the site in Alexandra is not financially viable for Wastebusters to continue to operate. With the Alexandra Boundary Road site lease up for renewal, it was time to make some really really hard decisions.
We have announced that we will be closing our Alexandra reuse shop and Alexandra recycling services on June 30th 2023. With our Alexandra lease expiring on the 30th of June, it was time for us to face up to commercial realities.
We plan to hand over the community recycling drop-off to Central Otago District Council on June 30th. Our business recycling services will cease for our Alexandra, Cromwell and surrounding rural communities (e.g. Ranfurly and Roxburgh) on June 30 and the Alexandra reuse shop will also close on that date.
We fully appreciate the loyal support that the community and our business recycling customers have shown to Wastebusters through these tough years, and we know this will come as an unwelcome shock to many of you.
However, volatile commodity markets and intense competition in recycling markets has meant that we are one of the last social enterprises in the country to be doing recycling. With the Government delaying plans to bring in a Container Deposit Scheme, we just can’t hang on any longer in Alexandra.
We would like to say a massive thank you for all the hard work of the founders of Central Otago Wastebusters, and all of the staff who had worked for both organisations over the last 22 years. Your dedication has made a big difference to the amount of waste going to landfill and you have been leaders in reducing waste, reusing and recycling.
While withdrawing from the Alexandra Boundary Rd site is a very hard decision to make, Wastebusters is hopeful that we can now pass on the reuse and recycling torch to another social enterprise or business that can keep offering these services to the community.
Looking after our staff is our top focus at the moment. We will be prioritising the welfare of our Alexandra team and working hard to support them to transition into future employment. Our Wastebusters cats Buster and Sid are also part of the family and we will ensure they find new homes as part of the transition.
We appreciate this is such a hard time for all of our Wastebusters whānau, our loyal customers, supporters, community advocates and business recycling customers across Central Otago. We want to say a big thank you for all of your support, it has meant the world to us and has kept us going for the last eight years.
Our staff can all be so proud of what we have achieved over the years and the collective impact that we have all had. So, please if you visit the site or see any of our staff out and about, remind them of this and be extra kind to them through these tough times.
We will continue to update you on our plans for the closure as these continue to develop. If you have any questions or would like further information regarding this announcement please contact Wastebusters General Manager Tony Pfeiffer tony@wastebusters.co.nz
*Wastebusters services in Wānaka are not affected by today’s announcement. The Wānaka reuse shop, Wānaka business and events recycling, the public recycling drop-off at Wastebusters in Wānaka and Wastebusters waste reduction advice and community engagement will continue to operate as normal.
