On Monday March 25, Thames-Coromandel District Council had to close the Whitianga Refuse Transfer Station rubbish pit at short notice yesterday afternoon after part of the concrete floor subsided.

A temporary arrangement using large open-top bins is in place at the RTS for rubbish disposal until the damage to the refuse pit is addressed.

General household and commercial rubbish in quantities such as a car load or small trailer load now be left at the Whitianga RTS. However, larger quantities of commercial rubbish must be taken to Tairua RTS or Tirohia landfill until the pit at Whitianga can be repaired.

In a statement from the Thames-Coromandel District Council, it says the Whitianga RTS is open as usual to leave recycling, green waste and scrap metal.

'Tairua RTS is now open to extended hours of 9am to 4pm from Monday to Friday. Its weekend hours remain 10am to 5.30pm.

'We're exploring options for a short-term fix to have the pit operational to all users as soon as possible while a long-term repair to the damage is investigated.

'In the meantime, we apologise for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience and support.”

See locations and hours of all the Refuse Transfer Stations on the council website at www.tcdc.govt.nz/rts