Hutt City requires EVs in waste contract

Hutt City wants an incoming successful waste collection contractor to have only EVs.

That’s impressed one tender applicant – Civic Contractors, which thinks this could be a New Zealand first.

Civic says it can start now with 97% EVs.

It says the Hutt City Council’s move is “a step in the right direction of making environmental outcomes a high priority in the waste game”.

”Without this type of move from councils to require (and fund) electric vehicles and other environmental options, we’ll never achieve the Government’s intention for New Zealand to achieve net zero emissions by 2050,” the company says.

“As a New Zealand business investing a huge amount of time and money into environmentally friendly and sustainable business practices, we’re impressed with the council’s forward thinking when it comes to this tender.”

Civic Contractors reckons its EVs would save 82.3 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions in a year.

“But there need to be incentives for all New Zealand businesses to reduce their impact on the environment and greater collaboration across all industries, not just ours.

“We want to see more public education around climate issues, greater leadership from councils in terms of investment in this space, commitment to environmentally friendly equipment, methodologies and innovations, and more accountability when it comes to reporting of carbon emissions.

“That way, environmental solutions will become a key factor in all procurement tenders and the outcome, eventually, will be a carbon-zero and climate-resilient Aotearoa.”

EVs and Beyond

is asking the Hutt City Council for more information about its EV push.

The council is understood to be deciding on its waste collection plans on September 15 and to have a new system in place by July next year.