The new Snowy Monaro Regional Council Waste Management Strategy passed by a majority vote at Council's ordinary meeting on Thursday 22 October 2021, marking the start of a more economically and environmentally sustainable future for our region.
Council's adoption of the new strategy will be rolled out step-by-step in coming years, with community feedback sought and listened to throughout. The strategy will see major savings made to the cost of providing waste services in the region, modernise ageing and inefficient waste facilities, and improve the region's access to waste disposal.
The recently launched Michelago Bank of Bins, a type of facility that forms a major part of the new strategy, has in a few short months seen an increase in both the number of residents using the waste facility and the volume of waste being transported - when compared to the older model.
A major component of the adopted strategy is the inclusion of targets from the NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041. This is a serious commitment by Council to take action to address our contribution to climate change and in protecting the environment.
These commitments include that by 2030 Council would reduce total waste generated by 10% per person; achieve an 80% average recovery rate from all waste streams; halve the amount of organic waste sent to landfill; be at net zero emissions from organic waste; and increase the use of recycled content.
Following community consultation meetings and public feedback opportunities, the extensive community consultation period on Council's Draft Resource and Waste Management Strategy concluded in May 2021.
Nine community meetings were held across the region, from Bredbo to Delegate, as part of the wider community engagement process. The community made their voices heard with a significant number of submissions made through Council's Your Say page.
In their feedback on the strategy, the community spoke about the addition of a food organics and garden organics (FOGO) bin to areas with kerbside collection, transition of certain areas from transfer stations to a bank of bins, and changes to landfill facilities.
Following amalgamation of the three former Councils that make up the Snowy Monaro, addressing ageing and inefficient waste infrastructure and improving the Council budget bottom line have been major priorities. This new strategy is a major achievement towards each of these goals.
