 Clean Stream manager Bill Whall explains how used cooking oil is converted to biodiesel while being filmed for TV One News. The Tahi Road plant was officially opened by Auckland mayor Dick Hubbard who poured some of the biofuel into the trust’s van in which he was to return to the ferry. “It smells like fish and chips, creates jobs, saves money and reduces the carbon footprint,” said trust spokesman John Stansfield. The process was effectively “harnessing the waste left by the huge number of visitors to the island”, he said. Clean Stream Ltd, the community-owned company which runs the transfer station is a subsidiary of the trust, and disposing of used cooking oil was “a real headache for us, now it’s an asset”, said Mr Stansfield. “This plant will eventually process up to 30,000 litres of oil a year. This will reduce the amount of fuel imported by the island. It will save money and create jobs.”
People had the idea that “being green is all about sacrifice and hardship” whereas “we think about it’s about being innovative and creative”. The plant was just one example of the type of projects the trust undertakes. Last month it won an award from the NZ Packaging Council for plans to turn a growing mountain of waste glass into roading materials. The trust worked with Auckland University engineering students through the engineering projects in the community scheme and the project is part of a long-term strategy to become the centre for island and remote communities working on sustainable developments. The trust is in discussion with several Pacific islands about the biofuel technology. |
