Enthusiastic staff members of businesses in the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) Building on Armagh Street recently did a two-month trial of a building-wide recycling system — a first for Christchurch.

The trial diverted 3.2 tonnes of material from the landfill to recycling operators and produced savings estimated to be worth $900 a year.

The project started with staff members from several of the firms within the PWC building forming the PWC Centre Sustainability Group. Their aim was to look at sustainability issues within their workplaces and building-wide. The group decided first to set up a recycling system for the main recyclables in their offices.

A waste sort was done with help from the Council’s Target Zero team to find out what material was being dumped that potentially could be diverted from the landfill. Target Zero works with business to help them save money and reduce environmental impacts. It offers a number of services, including free site visits to help show businesses how they can benefit from building sustainability into their work practices.

The system now in operation in the PWC building is simple to use. Paper is collected in trays, and emptied by staff into larger bins in the staff rooms. Also in the staff rooms are bins for mixed recyclables such as soft-drink and milk bottles and cans. This material is transferred by the cleaners to wheelie bins in the basement, and emptied by recycling operators.

A second waste sort was done after the trial had been running for two months. While it showed that over a year more than 20 tonnes of material would be diverted from landfill, the group also found there was more material which could be taken out of the waste stream, including cardboard.

The building’s sustainability group is now challenging other city office buildings to follow its example. To help them, the Council’s Target Zero team is starting a project to work with other buildings in the central business district.