This year's kerbside bulk waste collection was cancelled in the interests of public safety and the health and safety of waste management contractors, JR Richards' employees conducting the pick-up, MidCoast Council liveable communities director, Paul De Szell explained.
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"It's unfortunate that our bulky waste collection had to be cancelled this year but we support JR Richards' decision and completely understand their reasons for doing so," he said.
However, ratepayers will be compensated for the cancellation, each receiving two waste disposal vouchers for use until June 30, 2021.
The 2020 annual collection was due to start on March 23, in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic.
"Collections of that size take 12 months to plan and run for six months of the year so it's not as simple as moving it to a later period because the staff and the resources simply aren't available."
Mr De Szell said there had been a strong push from the community for the free waste disposal vouchers to compensate for the cancellation of the service and after assessing the pros and cons of a number of options councillors resolved to provide this alternative.
"There are a number of benefits to the voucher system for residents.
"Not only can they be used at a time that is suitable to the resident, it is able to be used to dispose of a larger range of waste including green waste, tyres, batteries, mattresses and other materials that could not otherwise be collected from the kerbside collection."
It's unfortunate that our bulky waste collection had to be cancelled this year but we support JR Richards' decision and completely understand their reasons for doing so.
- Paul De Szell
The voucher system will allow waste to be sorted onsite leading to better diversion rates, ultimately saving landfill space and reducing environmental impacts.
"This system also reduces the large volume of waste on kerbsides leading to reduced scavenging and risk of injury and no abandoned waste on the road reserves for extended periods."
Council has committed to mailing the vouchers to residents by October 30.
The vouchers will be mailed to the ratepayer of the property who receives the domestic waste collection service and tenants will need to work with landlords to arrange how the voucher will be distributed within those arrangements.
"We've had to adapt a lot of our services this year, as have many businesses and organisations and this is another example of a service that is being delivered differently as a result of the conditions we find ourselves in.
"We were in the process of assessing the viability of the bulky waste pick-up moving forward so this is also a great chance to trial vouchers with our community."
To find waste facilities across the region visit the MidCoast Council Find a Waste Facility page.
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