A Ballarat councillor is gauging public opinion on an idea to change the city’s garbage bin collection from week to fortnightly.
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Councillor Amy Johnson said she was compelled to start a Facebook poll about the issue, after being contacted by numerous residents, who deemed it to be the way forward for waste collection.
It’s an idea already being used by council across Victoria in an attempt to push residents to think about other waste management methods.
If the changes were enforced, it would mean garbage bin collection would occur once a fortnight and recycle bin collection would occur every week.
The controversial model has also been rolled-out by neighbouring shires including Golden Plains to a mixed response.
Cr Johnson said the city’s Smythesdale landfill has less than 20 years capacity left at its current site and is one of council's most significant expenditures, significantly contributing to rates.
“If we can reduce waste to landfill, we can reduce the costs associated with operating the landfill and also the cost to rate payers,” Cr Johnson said.
Cr Johnson said she was not pushing for the change, but rather canvassing public opinion.
Her post so far has been met with a resounding number of residents calling for the change to be implemented.
If the waste collection model is changed, it would coincide with the roll-out of the council’s new green waste collection service, set to be up and running by the end of July.
What do you think? Should the council change move to fortnightly bin collection and weekly recycling collection? Let us know your thoughts below.