Residents looking to drop off bulky cardboard and co-mingled recyclables outside of their usual domestic yellow bin service will now need to do so at Council’s Waste Management Centres following last week’s Council meeting.
Council agreed to a contract variation requested by Endeavour Industries to remove the requirement to provide a drop off point for residents to dispose of their recycling. This was removed due to the limited area available on the Endeavour site for the construction of a purpose built, safe drop off point for residents away from the machinery and truck movements that are ongoing in the Endeavour Yard. There have also been ongoing issues with continued dumping of waste received with recycling left at Endeavour Industries.
These waste streams are accepted at all of Council’s Waste Management Centres on an ongoing basis. The current cost for residents to dispose of cardboard or co-mingled recyclables only at Council’s waste centres is the nominal fee of $6 for a trailer load. The recycling fee does not cover the costs of providing appropriate waste collection receptacles, the cost of staff who assist with sorting of recycling, or the transfer of this waste to Endeavour however there are no immediate plans for the fee to rise.
Residents are encouraged to sort their rubbish, as a trailer load of recycling ($6) costs significantly less than the $35 charge for a load of sorted, mixed waste. Residents with a rural waste card are also able to dispose of recyclables and cardboard as part of their weekly disposal allowance. Furthermore, during the annual bulky waste free weekend, Council accepts recyclables free of charge.
Council works closely in a positive manner with Endeavour Industries which will continue, as they will still process recycling collected during the domestic waste collections.