A third bin is the way of the future for Narromine Shire residents after council approved the food and organics ‘green’ bin at Monday’s extraordinary meeting.
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The council made the decision after extensive deliberation.
The councillors and executive council staff believe now is the best time to approve and implement the green bin that will come to town on July 1, 2018.
Cr Mark Munro believes this is the way most councils are heading.
"History is a great thing, remember the yellow bin was such a fiasco when it was implemented and now you don’t think anything of it,” he said.
The meeting started with a member of the public, Dawn Brydon, speaking against the green bin. She has concerns about the price of the bin which she believes many won’t use.
“I live on small acreage, I have no organic waste, scraps and grass clippings go to chooks,” she said.
“I spoke to a lot of people who didn’t want it. I’ve heard a variety of costs. I have no use for the service, I don’t need it.”
History is a great thing, remember the yellow bin was such a fiasco when it was implemented and now you don’t think anything of it.
- Cr Mark Munro.
The councillors did talk about the cost of the bin during their debate with the view of making the organics bin “cost neutral” in the coming years.
“Irrespective of the decision tonight there will be a green waste charge implemented in 2018/2019,” general manager Jane Redden said.
“The cost of the third bin would be offset by other services.
“Our intention is to make it cost neutral, we will continue to model that.”
The offset cost is a goal for council over the coming years. There will be an initial cost for ratepayers.
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Cr James Craft said he has spoken to a lot of people who wanted the green bin.
“We gave indication of going down this path in 2015. There are people out there who want to do it. And there are people who are happy to have it and not use it,” he said.
“This is a step in a positive direction.”
Mayor Craig Davies said it was time for the council to transition.
“A lot of other councils have done it already, Parkes, Forbes, Moree and Narrabri,” he said.
“These shires were surveyed 12 months after the bin was implemented and 94 per cent were in favour of it.”
Cr Craft said the cost is not as extravagant as people are fearing.
“As a ratepayer how do I get the message out there that it won’t cost me $170 per year? It might cost me $50 the first year,” he said.
Mark Munro and Dawn Collins moved the motion and Cr Collins added to it.
They moved: “That council expand the current waste collection services to include food and garden organics from July 1, 2018.”
They added that negotiations are entered to add a fortnightly recycling service to Tomingley from the same date as an alteration to the current contract.
The motion was approved.