Waste Feasibility Study

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Less Waste, More Resources: The future of waste management in our region

The Shire of Augusta Margaret River has commissioned an independent Feasibility Study to look at the future of waste management and resource recovery for the region. In the next few years, our landfill is reaching its capacity. Before it gets to that point, we are looking at how we currently manage waste in the region and how we can do it better.

The scope of the Study is wide ranging and over the next six months the Shire will be engaging with the local community, industry and experts in waste management to develop a suitable system to process our waste. This model will form the Waste Master Plan and will enable us to transition from landfill to resource recovery.

As a community member, this is a unique opportunity to tell us your ideas, to have input into how we manage our waste, to rethink its use as a resource and discover the options for doing it better. As the study progresses, the community will be invited to provide input at various stages of the project. Engagement will be primarily through on-line surveys, individual stakeholder interviews with key industry, business and community representatives, and community workshops.

At the end of the process, the Shire will consider two proposed models which will then be presented to the community.

Work on the study has commenced and will be completed by September 2018. We look forward to engaging with you in the near future.

Less Waste, More Resources: The future of waste management in our region

The Shire of Augusta Margaret River has commissioned an independent Feasibility Study to look at the future of waste management and resource recovery for the region. In the next few years, our landfill is reaching its capacity. Before it gets to that point, we are looking at how we currently manage waste in the region and how we can do it better.

The scope of the Study is wide ranging and over the next six months the Shire will be engaging with the local community, industry and experts in waste management to develop a suitable system to process our waste. This model will form the Waste Master Plan and will enable us to transition from landfill to resource recovery.

As a community member, this is a unique opportunity to tell us your ideas, to have input into how we manage our waste, to rethink its use as a resource and discover the options for doing it better. As the study progresses, the community will be invited to provide input at various stages of the project. Engagement will be primarily through on-line surveys, individual stakeholder interviews with key industry, business and community representatives, and community workshops.

At the end of the process, the Shire will consider two proposed models which will then be presented to the community.

Work on the study has commenced and will be completed by September 2018. We look forward to engaging with you in the near future.

Q&A

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    Could we look at the feasibility of investing in a plastic recycling plant with a view to establishing a local industry by recycling plastics for the creation of low cost housing? See nevhouse.com. Solve waste problems, create jobs and alleviate the affordable housing issue.

    AndyE asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Andy E, 

    Thanks for the suggestion I've passed it on to our consultants for review.

    It's pretty amazing how many ways we can turn old products in new these days, waste innovation is really exciting!

    Jackie 

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    Could we extend the opening hours for the Cowaramup transfer station? Saturdays don't work for me! Also Is there any chance of putting a waste oil facility some where else in town or put the waste oil drop off out side the gate. It makes it very hard to dispose of waste oil when it means stockpiling it and then driving a 40km round trip to Witchy. Cheers

    1970lacy asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi 1970lacy, 

    We have reviewed our waste transfer station hours after the changes we made last year and Cowaramup is our busiest transfer station so will be getting a second day again through the summer months.

    It is very unlikely that we would put waste oil drop off outside the gates or in unmanned locations. We have tried to have unmanned transfer stations and waste facilities in the past but unfortunately some people took advantage of these and they became illegal dumping sites, costing ratepayers far too much to clean-up.

    Thanks for responsibly disposing of your waste oil and hopefully the additional day at Cowaramup Bay Road transfer station will be more convenient for you.

    Jackie 

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    One great program that i saw online is https://garbagetogarden.org/ where all organic material is collected and composted , that accounts for 40% of all waste generated. Could we introduce something similar in the region?

    Andre asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Andre, 

    Thanks for the suggestion, that looks like an awesome program. I'm not sure if it is too small scale to capture all the organic waste in the Shire but looks like a great business small business start-up.

    I've passed the information on to our consultants to explore further.

    Jackie


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    Hi, I’d like to know why more items of furniture, homewares etc aren’t saved and sold in your tip shop? I’ve been to some fantastic tip shops in other shires (Harvey, Armadale, Wanneroo etc). Especially with no salvage yard in Margaret River anymore it would be a very popular.

    Zoe asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Zoe, 

    What is available in our Tip Shop is dependent on what people bring in to us to sell. If we are not receiving those particular types of items we can't sell them unfortunately. 

    Our tip shop currently does not have dedicated staff to manage it which makes a big difference in how it is presented.

    All that being said, the tip shop is a project that will receive a lot more attention once the feasibility study is complete and we know what direction we are taking with our waste facilities.

    Jackie


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    Hello, my question is in regards to plastic and the potential for commencing the actual recycling process here. Would it be possible to separate say plastic and aluminium from paper, cardboard, soft plastics etc. and shred and reduce the mass of this resource. It could then be compacted, bailed up and shipped direct to resource recovery factories (hopefully in Aust. some day). Considering polymer beads fetch the staggering price of $30 per kilo, it must be worth considering recovering money from what is the toxic nightmare we have now immersed ourselves in.

    Byod asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Byod, 

    Thanks for the question.

    We are hoping to process and sort as much as we can locally, but because we are only a small Shire with a small population we may not have the volume of recyclable material or resource capabilities to complete the whole process on our own. However, anything is possible and it is certainly an avenue that we are exploring.

    Jackie 

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    I have been interested in the Swedish method of waste recycling of plastics to energy plants,there is lots of information on the net about their efforts to minimize their waste down to 1%.Following their efforts we could have a third waste bin for plastics both soft and hard together with bottles and small batteries only,a sorting machine and baled plastic stored until a plant is built somewhere to burn it to energy.Plastic is the worst polluter and can be used as a fuel for a energy plant not as land fill they are very low air polluters,Governments have to start somewhere and build a plant.Have a look at the Swedish waste methods Jackie you will be surprised! At your local mini market in Gothenburg Sweden ,I was most impressed in the empty glass bottle and hard plastic bottle recycling systems available,put your bottle in and out comes a few Kroner!Paid for a beer and a packet of chips!

    Graham Smith asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Graham, 

    Thanks for the suggestions I've forwarded them to our consultants for review.

    How great is that? Swap your waste for beer and chips, sounds like a perfect solution to me!

    Jackie

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    I think its likely in the future that waste incineration with the sequestering of emissions into products or inert stable matter is likely to occur and help us clean up a lot of the world's petro chemically based plastics. It will probably only make sense commercially to have a regional facility or even one for WA, especially if we move to plant based plastics that breakdown, I suppose a very small scale incinerator could be considered once the sequestration issues are dealt with . Here is an example of CO2 being used to create a cement/cement board https://inhabitat.com/brilliant-cement-making-technology-mimics-coral-while-removing-co2-from-the-atmosphere/ The future is so up in the air (haha) that I wouldn't invest in too much new infrastructure - however processing waste before transport could create jobs - this could be integrated with work for dole, juvenile justice, community service to help fund minimum wage casual employment that low income people can come and go from. So you get a highly processed waste stream - so while you push to have residents do what they can you also value add the waste stream further - cleaning, sorting into different plastics and even shredding it so its ready for an industrial process. Have you been thinking about these possibilities? The council should consider all issues from a community economy perspective and look at ways in which resources can be brought together to create not for profit activity that is able to create work and spur economic growth - this tends to be a blind spot in our culture and doesn't make sense for a regional community to ignore it - while its helping people it should also be seen as maximising growth opportunities.

    Evan Coumbe asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Evan, 

    Thank you for the suggestions they have been sent to our consultants for review.

    We would love to process as much as we can within the Shire, thus creating employment and industry locally so it is certainly something that is being considered. 


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    I have a query regarding wasted food on a larger scale - food grown in people's back yards, hobby farms, and larger farms that currently often goes to waste as there is no one available to collect it and redistribute it to those in need. When will I be able to talk to someone/input ideas on this theme to the Shire? The above survey is regarding residential waste so may not be appropriate. Regards, Terri Sharpe (Garden Specialist, Margaret River Primary School Kitchen Garden Program).

    Terri asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Terri, 

    Great question! Agriculture waste is a stream that we are keen to capture in our waste master plan, along with other types of commercial or industrial waste that is specific to this region.

    We will be launching the next survey for commercial waste (producers) next week. There will also be formal consultation sessions in the near future to discuss issues and ideas. Please send your contact details to jdickson@amrshire.wa.gov.au so I can include you in the industry correspondence. 


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    It is essential that as little waste as possible goes to landfill. Instead of yellow recycling bins with the inherent problem of contamination, perhaps there could be more recycling depots with separate bins for each type of recyclable items. People committed to recycling would undoubtedly use such facilities if they were no too far from home. Money saved by not issuing/collecting yellow bins could go towards this. Can this idea be considered? Would it be possible to provide compost bins for those prepared to use them to save on food waste going into green bins? Perhaps fortnightly green bin collection would cut costs/ encourage people to minimise the rubbish they put in the green bins?

    AnneParker asked almost 6 years ago

    Hi Anne, 

    These are all great ideas and models that we are considering for the waste master plan. 

    Part of the feasibility study is to understand how willing people are to take more responsibility for the waste they generate and have ownership over it's disposal / recovery. The last thing we want to do is see more waste end up in landfill because people are too busy or can't be bothered to take recoverable items to disposal sites or compost at home. 

    With regards to a fortnightly 'waste bin' collection, the Waste Avoidance and Recovery (WAAR) act requires local government to service any bins containing putrescible (organic) waste at least weekly. So without the introduction of an organics service we unfortunately can't change the frequency of the 'general waste' bin.

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    Why is it not compulsory for every household to buy a recycling bin to encourage recycling?

    granglad asked almost 6 years ago

    We don't actually know the specific reason why recycling was not made compulsory when it was introduced, but believe it had something to do with imposing additional service charges on ratepayers. 

    We have not implemented compulsory recycling yet, because we are waiting for the results of the feasibility study to advise us on the best collection options for the region.

    If kerbside recycling continues in the same way we are doing it now, there will no longer be an option to opt out of the service.

Page published: 04 May 2018, 10:54 AM