10,630 not out! Saxton Oval blasts waste for six

Co-operation between event organisers, food/drink vendors, ticket holders and volunteers during the Black Caps vs Bangladesh One Day International at Saxton Oval has resulted in the diversion of 10,630L of waste away from landfill, 88% of the waste created on the day.

Ahead of the match in December 2023, Nelson City Council, Sports Tasman and Nelson Cricket agreed to a Waste Minimisation Plan. The plan outlined the approach to reduce the amount of materials they send to landfill.  

Martin Croft, Acting Group Manager Community Services says the plan involved a united effort. 

“The amount of waste generated by a group of people at an event can vary significantly depending on the event itself and the number of attendees. Bringing over 3,000 people together, in one place, for several hours was bound to create a substantial volume of waste. For us to reduce waste we needed our vendors, event team and attendees to all work towards the same goal. I’m really proud of what we achieved.”  

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was sent to all vendors requesting that they only serve food in specific compostable packaging. All vendors agreed to this ahead of the match. An email to all ticket holders was sent prior to the event asking them to follow a pack in/pack out policy. 

“A lot of attendees to these kinds of events bring picnics for the day. They were encouraged to bring non-packaged foods, or to take their waste home with them” says Martin. 

Food stalls were 95% compliant with the agreement. A couple of vendors did have compostable packaging, but they were from brands that did not meet the standards set by our local processor.  

“There is only one industrial processor of compostables in Nelson and they are only able to accept specific products, so it’s really important that we get it right,” explains Karen Lee, Waste Minimisation Adviser.  

If vendors use compostable products that are not the approved brands, we run the risk of them ending up in landfill. All Council-run events request that either specific compostable products are used, or the Wash Against Waste trailer to minimise waste.” 

To ensure waste and recycling were put in the right bins, there were eight stations across the venue. The stations were staffed by Waste No More and volunteers and could receive cans, landfill, compostable containers, food waste, paper, cardboard and plastics 1, 2 and 5. Food vendors/kitchens were provided with buckets to collect food waste, bars had bins for glass and piles of cardboard were collected.  

In total, 1,450L of waste was sent to landfill with 10,630L being recycled or composted.