Reuse Fires Local Business

Back in the days when rubbish could be freely dumped in the local tip, Reefton man Davy Smith was pondering a problem. His uncle had gifted him a shed filled to the brim with stacked board timbers; what was he to do with it all? A solution presented itself when a woman approached him asking for a bag of dry kindling and, just like that, Davy’s kindling business began. 

Originally, the kindling was bagged or boxed up and delivered by pushbike, and the ‘business’ provided Davy a bit of pocket money. Then he went on to sell it through the local garages, the hardware store and market and, today, Davy has a hard time keeping up with demand.  TerraNova recently showed a sample of available bags to their Reefton contact Dawn Chandler, from the Healthy Inangahua Project, who immediately thought of Davy.

	Two hundred bags were sampled and proved a hit with Davy’s customers. Since then a further 400 bags have been collected from Talbot Plastics in Christchurch.  For presentation purposes the printed paper bags are turned inside-out to show a clean white plastic weave surface. They are strong enough to handle the weight of the block woods and to provide enough kindling for two weeks’ supply. To meet his customers’ requests, Davy is also now looking for smaller, clear, breathable plastic bags, which he is sure can also be sourced through the Waste Exchange.
Davy splits the wood	Davy’s business is a wonderful model of ‘the three Rs’ – reduce, reuse, recycle – in action. Because sourcing and delivery are local, ‘fuel miles’ are reduced. Volumes of material going to landfill are reduced through reuse, which also means that new resources are not being used up either. All packaging is reused; kindling is packaged in banana boxes sourced from local supermarkets and, more recently, the large, strong bags accessed via Waste Exchange. And of course, old timber is recycled by being are processed into kindling for fuel.
	Although the original shed of wood was used up long ago, there is no shortage of old timber. With the recent introduction of limited dump hours and associated fees, many locals contact Davy directly if they have timber to dispose of, often delivering it themselves. Only suitable timber is accepted (no lead paint or treated timbers) which is then split for kindling using an old splitting machine. Scrappier wood and blocks are sold as fuel for chippie heaters. Congratulations to Davy Smith and Talbot Plastics for using the Waste Exchange!
Davy with a full bag