Niue PacWastePlus Project

Niue sought to support the implementation of an effective Sustainable Financing system for recoverable and recyclable items and e-waste management.

Project Description

Situation in 2018

Items are imported into Niue but there are limited viable options for their end-of-life management and/or export. As such, most items imported are disposed of at landfills or stockpiled on vacant land. End-of-life electronic items are building up in unmanaged stockpiles – causing environmental pollution and health risks.

What was the Niue's Project About?

The Department of Environment Niue sought to develop and implement a “Plan for the Sustainable Management of Waste in Niue” – which includes the design and implementation of a Sustainable Financing system such as an Advance Recovery Fee and Deposit (ARFD).

Activities included:

• development and approval of ARFD legislation of a self-financing system to provide a long-term self-funding ability for the Niue DOE to collect and process targeted recyclable bulky and electronic items
• tools and training to allow for the collection, dismantling, and export of e-waste from Niue
  awareness programme designed to raise awareness of the ARFD and change household and community waste practices

Future Situation

Have an effective and self-funding solution for the collection and recycling of waste items and also to expand the new recycling facility to enable the collection, dismantling, and export of electronic waste.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

1.  Legislative environment for the long-term operation of Sustainable Financing system 
2.  E-waste dismantling system in operation 
3.  Communities effectively contribute to effective management of recyclable, bulky, and electronic items

Key Outcomes from Project Implementation

Key Outcomes & Impacts

Confirmed the Department of Environments approach to waste management by developing and implementing the national strategy for waste management, and strengthened the capacity of staff to proactively manage individual waste types.  

The development of a new legislative framework including waste legislation, sustainable financing regulation, and operating procedures, coupled with the provision of small- and large-scale equipment, and training, built the capacity of government staff to collect, process, and value add to waste commodities. 

The consolidation of waste commodities has facilitated access to global recycling markets and reduced reliance on landfilling.  

Key Project Achievements

• 4 new/drafted legal instruments / strategy (Waste Strategy, Solid and Hazardous, Waste Bill, and Advanced Recovery Fee and Deposit Regulation)
• 2 waste collection facilities established or enhanced (Niue Recycling Facility, E-waste Centre)
• Approximately 30m³/20 tonnes of legacy e-waste processed and packaged export during the hands- on e-waste training
• 1,733m2 legacy asbestos removed from Niue
• 10 training courses delivered increasing capacity of Niue to safely manage asbestos, e-waste, healthcare waste, hazardous waste and hazmat, schools curriculum, education and awareness, and waste auditing

Supporting Doucuments

The following table provides a complete list of all documents developed during the project, including technical guidelines, training materials, reports, and communication resources. Where possible, links to the documents hosted on the SPREP website have been included to enable direct access.