Golden Plains Shire Council’s Draft Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2020-2030 is now out for public exhibition, following endorsement by Council at last week’s Ordinary Meeting.
Following community engagement in 2018 and 2019, Council has prepared the Draft Strategy to guide the way waste is managed in the Shire over the next decade. The extensive document covers service areas from kerbside garbage, recycling and organic waste collections to litter and illegal dumping, all with a focus on reducing the amount of waste being sent to landfill.
The Draft Strategy has a range of achievable interim targets and goals to be met over the next five years, as well as aspirational goals to work towards by 2030. The actions that are presented in the Draft Strategy have been tailored through the results of the community engagement, analysis of waste data, Victorian Government reforms, and the state of current waste processing infrastructure.
In February 2020, the Victorian Government released its household recycling reform: Recycling Victoria – A New Economy. Among the key components of the policy is a consistent state-wide kerbside waste collection system, requiring all Victorian councils to implement a glass bin or access to glass recycling services by 2027 and a food and garden waste organics bin or access to service by 2030. The implementation of this reform is within the Draft Strategy's timeframe and has been considered in its development.
Residents are now able to provide feedback on the Draft Strategy from today until Wednesday 29 July, 2020. There are a number of ways Golden Plains Shire residents can have their say on the plan, including:
- Online at goldenplains.vic.gov.au/consultations
- Email to [email protected] – referencing Draft Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy
- Mail to PO Box 111, Bannockburn VIC 3331
The Draft Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2020-2030 is now available online at goldenplains.vic.gov.au/consultations. Residents requiring a hard copy of the Draft Strategy are encouraged to contact Council’s Customer Service team on 5220 7111. Submissions on the Draft Strategy will be considered in the development of the final Strategy, which will be presented to Council in August for adoption.
Mayor Cr Owen Sharkey encourages residents across the Shire to have their say on the Draft Strategy.
“Waste management is one of the most important and visible services Council provides to the community, and this Draft Strategy will assist Council meet the needs of our residents, as well as our commitment in the Council Plan to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill.”
“This Draft Strategy has been a long time in the making, and I want to thank all the residents who took part in the community engagement opportunities in 2018 and 2019.
“We were very pleased that 723 residents had their say on green and food waste collection in our waste survey last year and while the Victorian Government’s new four bins policy has tied Council’s hands to an extent, Council has long advocated for a state-wide waste solution. We look forward to partnering with the Government to work out how the new services can be implemented in our growing rural Shire, and helping us achieve the goals set out in this strategy.”