EPA backflip puts red bin rubbish back in landfill

“All Alternate Waste Treatment plants in NSW are similarly affected, which means approximately 500,000 tonnes of mixed waste compost produced annually across NSW (mostly in the Sydney Metro area) must now go to landfill for the foreseeable future,” Mr Raby said.

“The Coffs Coast Waste Services is approximately two per cent of the total NSW figure.

“At this stage the EPA has recommended all AWT’s continue to operate as they have. The immediate change is not to stop producing the mixed waste compost, rather to keep producing it but then send it to landfill, as it is a more stable product to landfill than the untreated Red Bin contents.

“The EPA’s intent is to not disrupt the ongoing and existing contractual obligations between all AWT’s and their councils for at least the next 12 months.

“To facilitate this the EPA has agreed to pay all additional costs incurred by the parties (eg landfill handling costs, transport costs, etc) and have gazetted (last week) to remove the $80 per tonne landfill “levy” from the mixed waste compost product.

“This means that neither Biomass nor the three Councils (or ratepayers) will incur any additional costs for the next 12 months.”

He said that window of time would be used to work with the EPA to identify what the longer term solution was … the EPA has similarly committed to providing support and assistance to the parties in that process.

“A primary objective of the councils in finding a long term solution will involve ensuring the communities continue to receive value for money.

“I would suggest that a test of whether that objective has been met in the future would obviously be that the community is not paying for something they are not receiving.”

He said while there was no warning about the ban for the councils, he understood the EPA had been conducting confidential consultations with the AWTs over the recent past leading up to the revocation of the exemption.

“I understand that no NSW councils were included and that was certainly the case for NSC, BSC and CHCC. I understand why the consultations with industry were confidential – it is a very big call for the EPA to remove a waste treatment process that was advocated and supported by the EPA for more than a decade.

“However no AWT knew the actual timing of the exemption revocation and there was some shock apparent in that group when it happened.”

Gauging the collective reaction of the councils, Mr Raby said that experience had shown that all things change over time.

“We will do what we always do – we will respond, adapt and overcome. We will continue to find ways through, over, and around whatever barriers exist between our goal of 100 per cent diversion from landfill and our current position.

“That doesn’t change.”

He said the scientific report that was the basis for the EPA move had not yet been made available.

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