City budget encourages recycling

Recycling has been a hot topic in the community for some time and the City of Greater Geraldton is introducing new ways for the community to recycle their waste.

After the 2015/16 budget was released last night, changes will be made in the City’s waste management operations to promote an increase in Recycling.

City of Greater Geraldton Mayor, Ian Carpenter, is encouraging people to gain a better understanding of how they can recycle their waste.

“Many residents think that because they don’t have traditional, 240Lt yellow top recycling bins that they can’t recycle, this isn’t the case at all,” he said.

“Even if we did have the bulk verge side collection, most of the waste ends up in landfill or transported to Perth.

“Additionally, the costs and carbon emissions in transporting it to Perth don’t stack up environmentally or financially.”

The City encourages residents to utilise other local places for recycling including Cogman Recycling and other not-for-profit organisations.

The newspaper recycling unit at Jack’s Shed, located at the Aquarena car park, reinjects money from its proceeds of sale straight back into the Aquarena.

A tender will be released in the near future for the design of a joint Animal Management Facility and CRRC Resource Recovery Centre which will be an integrated recycling facility for the Greater Geraldton community.

As part of the new budget, new fees have been introduced at Meru Waste Disposal Facility.

Residents using the facility will be charged $10 per trailer which can weigh up to 300kg of mixed and general household waste.

Residents who choose to sort their waste into three separate streams will enjoy a $5 discount.

These three streams include clean green waste, scrap metal and general waste.

These charges won’t be introduced until October 1 so the City is encouraging residents to utilise the free service before the charges are introduced.

There will also be two free dumping weeks every year.

Funds for waste management have also extended to Mullewa with the City looking to re-design the Mullewa Landfill facility and turn it into a fully compliant Waste Transfer Station.

In the 15/16 Budget, $100,000 has been allocated for the construction of such a facility to transport general waste back to Meru, the Midwest region’s only Class III facility.

The City has also announced that the annual bulk verge side collection has been discontinued in Geraldton.

“We are mindful that not everyone has the ability to get their rubbish to the waste facility and we have put a strategy in place to address that,” Mayor Carpenter said.

Whilst stopping the verge side collection, the City will be providing an alternate service for pensioners which will entail one free bulk bin dropped to their property. This will be subject to an application to the City and the service will commence in October.